Lately we've been getting a lot of calls after customers purchase Arbortext from an unqualified vendor. They come to us because they've been left out in the cold. There is little or no support coming from the reseller that sold them the products. The reseller sold them the wrong product set. They spent more than they had to. The stories go on and on. By the time they come to us, it's too late for us to help them.

Whenever you purchase software through a reseller, be sure to interview the reseller. Ask them questions about the products and see if they can answer you without having to "get back to you on that."  Do they know your business? Do they understand techpubs? Do they understand the technology they're selling? Can they support you? Do they have qualified staff who have implemented the technology? How many times? In what industries? Can they provide references that belong to them and not just to their provider?

While I'm talking about Arbortext, this applies to any technology and vendor-reseller structure. There are a lot of qualified resellers out there, make sure you get a good one.