What to expect in the ERP buying process with ProjectLine

When you start exploring ERP, you’re stepping into a big decision with a lot of moving parts. You’re likely dealing with unclear timelines, multiple stakeholders and the pressure to make the right decision on a major investment.

At ProjectLine, we guide businesses through this process every day, and we want to give you a clear picture of what the ERP buying process looks like.

Our goal is not to push you forward. It’s to give you clarity at each step so you can decide whether ERP and ProjectLine are the right fit for your business.

In this article, we’ll walk you through our ERP buying process—from your first conversation with us through to project kickoff. You’ll see who’s involved, how long each stage typically takes and how to get the most value out of each step.

Step 1: The introductory call (figuring out if ERP is the right fit)

The first step is a quick introductory call. We typically book 30 minutes, and that’s usually enough time to get a solid understanding of where you’re at.

This isn’t a deep dive and there’s no prep required on your end. You don’t need to bring documents, reports or anything formal to the conversation.

Our goal here is simple: understand what’s going on in your business that led you to start looking at ERP in the first place. We’ll ask questions like:

• What challenges are you running into today?
• What’s not working with your current systems?
• What are you hoping to improve?

By the end of this call, you should have clarity on whether ERP is worth exploring further and whether ProjectLine is the right partner to guide that process.

In some cases, we’ll determine early on that it doesn’t make sense to move forward. That could be because ERP isn’t the right solution yet or because there isn’t a strong fit. While that might seem like a setback, it actually saves you time—and potentially a significant investment—by helping you avoid moving forward with a solution that isn’t right for your business.

Step 2: The ERP discovery call (what to expect)

If the introductory call makes sense to move forward, the next step is discovery.

This is where we build on what we learned in the introductory call and dig deeper to understand your business inside and out. Our goal is to get a clear picture of how your processes work today, where the challenges are and what you’re trying to improve.

Most discovery calls take anywhere from 45 minutes to a couple of hours, depending on the complexity of your business and how many areas we need to cover. If your business has multiple departments, systems or processes involved, we’ll spend more time making sure we understand each area properly.

Who should be involved in an ERP discovery call

ERP discovery is where we start creating the foundation of your future system. That only works if we’re hearing from the people who are actually involved in those day-to-day processes.

That usually includes:

• The person leading the evaluation
• The right stakeholders and decision-makers
• Representatives from key areas of the business (like finance, operations or production)

If a system is going to impact a specific part of your business, we want someone there who understands that area.

It’s also important that the decision-maker is part of this conversation. When the right people aren’t involved early, it often leads to rework later—whether that’s revisiting requirements, running multiple demos or re-aligning on priorities. Having everyone on the same page at this stage makes the process more efficient and prevents delays down the line.

This step is important because it helps prevent one of the most common (and costly) mistakes in ERP: moving forward with a solution that doesn’t match how your business operates and won’t address the challenges you’re trying to solve.

Step 3: The ERP demo (how to get the most value from it)

Most demos take anywhere from 90 minutes to a few hours. In some cases, they can run longer or be split across multiple sessions, depending on how many areas of the business we’re covering.

The biggest factor here is complexity. The more departments, workflows or systems involved, the more we need to show!

Who should be present for your ERP demo

In most cases, you’ll have the same core group from discovery, but this is where we often expand the number of people involved.

Along with decision-makers and stakeholders, it’s helpful to include actual end users. These are the people who will be working in the system day-to-day. At a minimum, we want someone representing each key area of the business that’s being evaluated.

How to get the most value out of your ERP demo

One of the most important ways to get value from the demo is by providing sample documents, such as:

• Order forms
• Invoices
• Reports
• Spreadsheets you rely on today

With these, we can recreate them in the system and show you how your business would operate day-to-day using ERP.

This is what separates a tailored ERP demo from a generic one. Instead of seeing abstract features, you’re seeing how your real workflows would function in the system.

It’s also important to:

• Have the right people there for the full session
• Ask questions as you go
• Make sure each team understands the parts that affect them

By the end of this step, you should have a clear understanding of how the system would support your day-to-day operations—and whether it realistically fits your business.

Step 4: The ERP proposal and review process

Your proposal is based on everything we’ve learned through discovery and the demo. In most cases, it takes about one to two weeks after the demo to prepare and review your proposal.

A big part of that timeline comes from refining the scope after the demo. Once you’ve seen how the system works—especially with your own data—it often leads to new ideas, questions or adjustments. User counts can change, priorities may shift and sometimes additional demo sessions are needed to cover new areas.

Once everything is confirmed on your side, we finalize the proposal and typically deliver it within about a week.

What goes into your ERP proposal

Your proposal is built around your specific requirements. That typically includes:

• The software components you’ll need
• The number of users
• The implementation approach and services
• Overall ERP pricing and commercial terms

Reviewing the proposal and alignment

Once you’ve had a chance to review the proposal, we’ll schedule a meeting to walk through it together. This is typically a 45-minute conversation where we go through everything in detail.

At this stage, we want to make sure:

• You understand exactly what you’re getting
• The scope reflects your priorities
• The pricing and timing make sense for your business
• You have complete clarity on your ERP solution

The goal is to leave this stage with a shared understanding of the scope, approach and next steps before moving forward.

Step 5: Closing and preparing for your ERP implementation

Once everything is aligned and you’re ready to move forward, we move into closing and handoff to our consulting team—this is where we transition from the sales process into implementation.

From the ProjectLine side, there’s quite a bit happening behind the scenes to make sure your project starts off on the right foot. We’re coordinating internally, setting things up with the software publisher and transferring what we’ve learned about your business to the consulting team that will be implementing your system.

We’re sharing your processes, challenges and goals so they have a strong baseline understanding from day one. That allows them to focus on the right areas, move faster and avoid spending time covering information you’ve already shared.

From there, we’ll schedule a kickoff call. This is typically about an hour and includes your project team along with our consulting team who will be leading the implementation.

In that meeting:

• You’ll meet with the ERP consultants who will be leading your project (if you haven’t already met them during discovery or demo)
• They’ll walk you through how the project will run—including structure, expectations and best practices
• We’ll outline the first steps and next actions to ensure a great outcome

From there, our consultant team takes the lead and you’re officially into the implementation phase!

Your sales team is still available if needed, but this is the point where your focus shifts from evaluation to execution.

If you’re considering ERP, here’s what working with ProjectLine looks like

When you’re evaluating ERP, there’s usually a lot of uncertainty. You’re making a significant investment, involving multiple people across your business and trying to make the right decision without always knowing what the process will look like.

At ProjectLine, we guide businesses through this every day. We’ve seen what works, where things can slow down and what helps teams move forward feeling confident buying ERP.

Our goal is to make this process as clear and straightforward as possible by:

• Setting expectations early
• Involving the right people at the right time
• Making sure you have the information you need to make a confident decision

Now that you understand how the ERP buying process works—from your first call through to kickoff—you’re in a much stronger position to move forward.

Frequently asked questions

How long does the ERP buying process usually take?

Most ERP buying processes take anywhere from two to six months, sometimes more.

In some cases, it can move faster. A smooth and speedy ERP buying process can happen if your team is aligned, decision-makers are involved early and you have a clear understanding of what you’re trying to solve.

On the other hand, the process can take longer if:

• Decision-making is slow and hard to make across a large group
• Your team isn’t fully aligned on the challenges you’re trying to solve
• You’re evaluating many options at the same time and it’s made comparisons unclear

The goal isn’t to rush it. It’s to move at a pace where you can make a confident, informed decision.

When do we talk about ERP pricing?

ERP pricing is discussed throughout the entire buying process.

Early conversations (like the introductory call and discovery) help establish general expectations, but detailed pricing is typically shaped after we understand your specific requirements and workflows.

By the time you reach the proposal stage, pricing should feel aligned with what you’ve seen and discussed—without surprises.