Outsourcing workflow automation — 7 criteria for choosing a vendor

The typical path to a failed automation project

The common failure goes like this: the quote is "we'll advise after a consultation" → you see the screens for the first time after signing → it's not what you imagined → every change costs extra → after delivery, the maintenance vendor disappears → a system nobody uses.

It isn't a technology problem. It's a structure where you sign before seeing anything and the product is abandoned after it's built. So the selection criteria should be about contract structure, not portfolios.

Seven criteria — what to ask before signing

• ① Published prices — is there a list price on the website? "Whatever we say" pricing means the side with less leverage loses.
• ② Demo first — do they show a real, working screen before the contract?
• ③ Operations responsibility — does the contract say who handles servers, errors and improvements after delivery?
• ④ Data ownership — is data export guaranteed if you cancel?
• ⑤ Per-seat pricing — does the fee rise as staff or customers grow?
• ⑥ New feature cost — a new quote for every feature, or included in the monthly fee?
• ⑦ Cancellation terms — long-term lock-in, or free to leave?

If a vendor's answers to these seven are vague, it's safer to pass.

MAEUM's answers — all in writing

To the same questions, MAEUM answers: ① every price published (scoping ₩0, SaaS at ₩1M / ₩2.5M / ₩5M/mo, the owned stack on the Private tier) ② free demo — sign only if you like it ③ on SaaS (managed), we take responsibility for servers, errors and improvements every month and prove it with a monthly report ④ data is yours, export supported ⑤ no per-seat pricing ⑥ feature consultation and building included in the monthly fee — no separate development invoices ⑦ no long-term lock-in, cancel freely. SEO and AI-search visibility work is included in every build at no charge.

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