Business System Consultation Center - Our Business System ColumnVol.179 2026.09.01 高橋実

When IT Sales Say "Proven Track Record" — That Does Not Guarantee Success for Your Business

Thank you for your interest and continued support.
This is Takahashi from the Marketing Plan Research Laboratory.

- "We have an extensive track record in your industry."
- "We're proud to be trusted by over 1,000 companies."
- "Our clients include government agencies, healthcare organizations, and more."

These are the kinds of claims you've probably heard time and again — the standard "proven track record" pitch that any IT vendor's sales team is expected to make.

Having a strong track record is, in itself, a good thing. Software that has been widely adopted across many companies earns what you might call a "mature technology" reputation — meaning most of the bugs have likely already been found and fixed, and you can expect a reasonable level of quality and stability.

However, a vendor's "track record" refers to past results at other companies. Whether that translates into success for your business is, at this point, far from guaranteed.

Your company's unique rules and business practices — built up over many years — along with the data and know-how you've accumulated, are assets that don't appear in any of those past case studies. Not a single one.

The same applies to another phrase IT vendors love to use: "This is how most of our clients handle it." While it's useful for understanding industry norms and common approaches, taking that at face value and ignoring your company's specific circumstances will cause real pain for the people on the ground.

Track records and industry standards do matter — but take a close look at the people right in front of you. For example, when a vendor's salesperson is in the room, which takes up more time: pitching their product, or asking questions about how your business actually works? And when you're working with the assigned systems engineer, is the balance right between "adapting your operations to fit the system" and "adapting the system to fit your operations"?

Your success won't come from someone else's past results. It will be shaped by the ongoing dialogue between your team and the people handling your system implementation. Take a clear-eyed look at what's happening in front of you.

We hope this gives you something useful to consider when evaluating systems and vendors.

That's all, Thank you for reading.

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