Many companies offer free or lower than standard cost trials of their goods and services to entice customers in and sell to them. For the customer this can be a great low cost, low risk way of finding out if something is going to meet a need that they have without fully committing, it is very much try before you buy.

When deciding on whether or not to sign up to a HR system, or indeed which HR system to purchase, a free trial period should give you a chance to find out the answers to all the questions you might have about whether or not the system is right for you and your business.

The first thing a free trial will do is highlight for you how easy working with the system will be, as you’ll need to upload your staff data in order to start using it. Once that’s done then the fun starts and you can navigate your way around the system and see how intuitive, or not, it is. You should also be able to test the full features of the system and as you do it’s worth asking yourself a few questions. Does the system actually deliver on the features I need from it? What extra features does the system provide and am I going to use them? How does the reality of using the system compare to the perception you initially gained when researching it? Once you’ve got your employees using it you can also ask them for feedback on how they have found the system such as, can they use it easily on a range of devices? Does it make their life easier and would they ultimately use it in the future? The answer to all of these questions should give you the details you need to make an informed decision along with the pricing structure, contract length and any other requirements you have.

At the end of the trial if the system you have tested isn’t for you then you can walk away with no obligation and look elsewhere, nothing ventured, nothing gained. Hopefully though if you’ve found a system that works for you then the trial will have been worth it, you’ll be able to purchase it with the confidence and reassurance that it ticks all your boxes and then you and your staff can get on with doing what you do best.

Did you know we offer a free 30 day trial of our HR software? Sign up today!