This checklist covers what to send, the scenarios to ask for by area, the questions on compliance, support and cost, and a worked scoring sheet comparing three vendors.
Why is a scripted demo better than a standard one?
A standard demo is designed to impress: clean sample data, the smoothest processes and the newest features. A scripted demo, built from your scenarios and data, shows what you will actually live with.
| Standard demo | Scripted demo with your data | |
|---|---|---|
| Data | The vendor's sample company | Your items, customers and documents |
| Processes | The vendor chooses | You choose, including the awkward ones |
| Gaps | Rarely shown | Visible when a step can't be done |
| Comparison | Each vendor shows something different | Every vendor runs the same script |
| Custom work | Hard to spot | Clear when a vendor says "we would build that" |
A vendor that can't run your script with two weeks' notice is telling you something about how the implementation will go.
What should you send vendors before the demo?
Enough real data to make the demo yours, but not so much that setting it up becomes a project. Send it at least two weeks ahead, under a confidentiality agreement.
Ask for a session of two to three hours, and bring the people who will use the system: finance, sales, purchasing and the warehouse. They will spot gaps a manager won't.
Which scenarios should you ask vendors to show?
Ask for whole processes, from first document to last, using your data. Include the awkward cases, because those are where systems differ.
| Area | Ask them to show, live |
|---|---|
| Sales | Quotation to order to partial delivery to invoice to credit note; an order blocked by a credit limit and released by a manager |
| Purchasing | Purchase request to approval to order; a partial delivery; a supplier invoice at a different price; freight and duty added to item cost |
| Inventory | A transfer between warehouses; a stock count and adjustment; items with batches and expiry dates |
| Finance | Importing a bank statement and reconciling it; closing a month; the VAT return report; revaluing a foreign currency balance |
| Compliance | A ZATCA standard and simplified invoice with QR code, cleared or reported; a UAE e-invoice sent through a service provider; an Arabic invoice layout |
| Reporting | Drilling down from the profit and loss to a single invoice; building a new report on the spot |
| Approvals | Approving a purchase order from a phone |
| Flexibility | Adding a field or an approval rule live, without a developer |
The last row is the most revealing. If a small change needs "our development team", every change after go-live will too, at a price.
Panorama Consulting gives the same advice: build the script from your own requirements and data, have every vendor run the same scenarios in the same time, and treat a vendor who won't follow the script as a red flag.
What should you ask about compliance, support and cost?
The demo shows the software. These questions show the company behind it. Ask for the answers in writing.
| Topic | Questions |
|---|---|
| Compliance | Is the vendor listed in ZATCA's e-invoicing solution providers directory (a listing, not a ZATCA approval)? Which UAE accredited service provider do you work with, and is its fee included? |
| Data | Where is our data hosted? How are backups made, and how quickly can we restore? |
| Support | What are support hours and response times? Is support available in Arabic, from a local team? |
| Implementation | Who will implement: your staff or a partner? Can we speak to two customers in our industry and country? |
| Cost | What is in the base price? What do light users cost? Is there a cap on renewal increases? |
| Exit | How do we get all our data out, in what format, if we leave? |
The renewal question deserves attention. Software subscription prices have been rising quickly: Gartner analysts spoke of SaaS increases of 9 to 25% in 2025, so a written cap on increases is worth asking for. Our guide to ERP pricing in the UAE and Saudi Arabia covers the cost side in detail.
How do you score ERP demos fairly? A worked example
Agree the weights before the first demo, score straight after each one, and have each attendee score separately before you average. Score what you asked for, not features you didn't.
A distributor in Jeddah compared three vendors, scoring each area from 1 to 5:
| Area | Weight | Vendor A | Vendor B | Vendor C |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sales and purchasing fit | 25% | 4 | 5 | 3 |
| Inventory and warehouses | 20% | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| Finance and reporting | 20% | 4 | 3 | 4 |
| Compliance and Arabic | 15% | 5 | 3 | 4 |
| Ease of use | 10% | 3 | 5 | 4 |
| Support and implementation | 10% | 4 | 3 | 5 |
| Weighted score | 100% | 3.85 | 3.90 | 4.05 |
Vendor B gave the most polished demo and scored highest on sales and ease of use, and the team's first instinct was to choose it. The weighted scores told a different story: Vendor C was strongest on the warehouse processes the business depends on and on support, and that outweighed its clear gap on sales and purchasing, where it scored 3 against Vendor B's 5.
The scores were close enough that the reference calls decided it. The team spoke to two customers of each of the top two vendors before signing.
What does HYP see in ERP selections?
When companies bring HYP their own script, the demo is shorter and more useful for both sides. When they don't, they tend to compare vendors on presentation, and the gaps appear during implementation instead. Our How to Choose an ERP in the GCC guide covers the wider selection process, and you can book a personalised HYP demo on our Request a demo page.