A vendor will happily hand you three references. All three will be happy customers, because no vendor lists the account that is threatening to leave. Reference checks are still worth doing, they are one of the few windows into how a product behaves after the sale, but only if you go in knowing the list is a highlight reel and you plan for that. The value is not in confirming that happy customers exist. It is in the specific, operational detail a real user will give you if you ask the right way.
Every reference list is curated
Treat the provided references as the best case the vendor can assemble. That does not make them useless; a curated reference can still tell you a great deal about implementation, support, and daily use. It just means the sample is biased upward, and you should weight what you hear accordingly and work to widen the sample.
Reaching customers the vendor did not choose
The most valuable references are the ones the vendor did not pick. Ways to find them:
- Ask peers in your specialty or a professional association who use the product.
- Ask the vendor for a reference that is similar to you, same size, same specialty, so the fit is comparable rather than aspirational.
- Ask each reference, at the end of the call, whether they know anyone else using the product, which often leads to a less-curated second call.
- Look for a customer who switched away from the product, whose perspective is the mirror image of the reference list.
The questions that surface real problems
Skip the questions that invite a yes. Ask ones that require a story:
- Walk me through your implementation. What went wrong, and how did the vendor handle it?
- The last time you had an urgent problem, what happened, who did you reach, and how long did it take?
- What did the product cost you beyond the subscription, in fees, add-ons, or internal effort?
- What do you know now that you wish you had known before signing?
- If your contract were up today, would you buy this again? Why?
Listening for what they do not say
Reference calls leak information through tone and omission. A customer who praises the sales process but goes quiet on support is telling you something. So is one who volunteers a workaround for a problem you did not ask about. Note the topics they steer around, the features they describe as "fine" rather than good, and any phrase like "once you get used to it," which usually means the first months were hard. Write down the hesitations, not just the endorsements.
Turning calls into a decision
Three or four honest calls, ideally including one customer the vendor did not choose and one who left, will converge on a pattern. Consistent praise for support across independent calls is a real signal. A recurring complaint that surfaces on multiple calls is a bigger one. Line the calls up against the same set of questions, look for what repeats, and let the pattern, not any single glowing quote, inform the decision. A reference check done well does not tell you a product is perfect. It tells you what it will actually be like to live with.
Common questions
Are vendor references worth checking if the list is curated?
Yes. A curated reference list is biased toward happy customers, but real users still reveal a great deal about implementation, support, and daily use if you ask operational questions. The key is to treat the list as a best case and work to widen the sample with references the vendor did not choose.
How do I reach references the vendor did not pick?
Ask peers or a professional association in your specialty, ask the vendor for a reference similar to you in size and specialty, ask each reference whether they know other users, and try to find a customer who switched away from the product, whose perspective balances the curated list.
What are the best reference-check questions?
Open-ended ones that require a story: walk me through your implementation and what went wrong; describe your last urgent support issue and how long it took; what did the product cost beyond the subscription; what do you wish you had known before signing; and would you buy it again today, and why.
What should I listen for on a reference call?
Tone and omission. Note topics the reference steers around, features described as merely fine, and phrases like once you get used to it that hint the early months were hard. Record the hesitations alongside the endorsements, and look for complaints or praise that repeat across several independent calls.