In my last blog I wrote about why you’re always going to be better off buying SPSS from an IBM partner such as Smart Vision than from IBM itself (and why IBM is perfectly happy with that arrangement!). However there may be some situations where IBM should still be your first port of call. In this second blog I’m going to go through the most common types of queries that people have about SPSS and explain who to contact for each.
Generally speaking, if you have an SPSS licence but you did not buy it directly from IBM then you should contact Smart Vision with any queries that you have about SPSS. We are an IBM Gold Accredited Business Partner for SPSS and other advanced analytical software software. If you are not an existing customer of IBM’s, they will usually direct you to their partner channel as they do not provide support, training or consulting for SPSS other than for direct customers of their own, nor do they sell additional licences directly to organisations or individuals in this situation.
If you have an SPSS licence and you did buy it directly from IBM then there are some situations in which you will need to contact them with your enquiry, but still many other circumstances in which Smart Vision would be the better choice. It depends on the nature of your question.
What is your SPSS question?
Broadly, SPSS related queries fall into the following categories:
- Questions about existing licences:
- you want to renew, cancel or reinstate your maintenance contract
- you want to add extra users
- you need help with a particular procedure or an entire project
- Questions about getting a new licence:
- you are unsure if your organisation already has an SPSS licence that you might not be aware of
So… when to contact IBM and when to contact Smart Vision? Let’s consider various situations to give you a steer on where to go for help…
| Who should you contact? | |||
| What do you want to do? | If you have an existing IBM licence | If you have a licence with Smart Vision | If you don’t yet have an SPSS licence |
| Cancel your maintenance or the renewal of your subscription licence | IBM – You will need your IBM licence information and the easiest way to do this is to log in through the IBM Passport Advantage portal. If you get stuck with this – feel free to contact Smart Vision and we will try to assist you | Smart Vision – put details of what you would like to cancel in email to any of the Smart Vision team and we will get that processed. Email [email protected] | n/a |
| Add extra users or modules to your licence | Smart Vision – We can answer any questions you might have about your current licence setup, give you options and advice about the additions you need to make & sell you the software at the cheapest possible price. We can also offer you free online training, telephone technical support and access to a wealth of content to support your use of the software. | n/a | |
| Move your licence to a new machine | IBM – You will need your IBM licence information. You then need to log a ticket through IBM’s Support Page for them to help with this. | Smart Vision – contact our technical support team with details of what needs to be changed and we can walk you through the process. | n/a |
| Get Technical Support help (including upgrades) | IBM – You will need to have an active maintenance agreement in place. You will be directed to IBM’s Support Page and will need to have your IBM licence information. With its broader corporate structure, IBM has a complex support channel which can be more difficult to access and involve longer wait times. IBM’s support team may not have the expertise to answer your SPSS specific questions. | Smart Vison – You will need to have an active maintenance agreement in place. You can contact Smart Vision’s dedicated support team by email or phone simply by referencing your organisation’s name. As well as telephone technical support, Smart Vision also offer ‘how to’ support to help overcome any challenges faced with particular features or processes. | n/a |
| Get training/consultancy help for using SPSS software | Smart Vision – IBM doesn’t offer SPSS training or consultancy services but instead outsources these to partners. Smart Vision has an extensive range of self paced online training (free to Smart Vision customers and available at a price if you aren’t a Smart Vision customer). Smart Vision also offer a large library of recorded webinars and regular live webinars as well as extensive range of ‘how to’ content and several video series covering a variety of topics. | ||
| Reinstate a perpetual licence where the maintenance has been cancelled | Smart Vision – we will offer you discounted ‘reinstatement’ pricing which effectively gives you a new licence on the latest version, but at a discounted price | n/a | |
| Renew maintenance or renew a subscription licence | IBM – you will be contacted by IBM to extend or renew your contract | Smart Vision – we will be in touch before your maintenance or subscription renewal date to give you a quote for extending your contract. | n/a |
| Buy a new licence of SPSS | Smart Vision – IBM will refer any requests for new licences on to their partner channel so coming directly to Smart Vision saves the additional step. Smart Vision can answer any questions you have about licence options and our business partner agreement with IBM means we can offer very flexible and highly competitive pricing. We can also provide you with a trial licence for a short period. | ||
| Account management queries – like checking which modules you have, checking functionality in different modules, asking how licence options work | Smart Vision – We have a dedicated account management team who can answer any questions you have about your licence or any general SPSS related questions. Feel free to call or email us any time | n/a | |
Given the scale of IBM’s operations and their focus on bigger solutions rather than niche products such as SPSS, you may well find that contacting IBM can be tricky and time consuming. If this is ever the case, then you are always welcome to get in touch with Smart Vision. In summary, while it’s true that IBM is the developer of SPSS Statistics software, it is also true that the scale of their operations mean that they direct new licence queries as well as training and support questions to their partner channel. Smart Vision Europe is an IBM Gold Accredited Business Partner for SPSS and other advanced analytical software and we can:
- identify & provide you with the right licence to meet your needs
- provide support with installation
- offer access to free online self-paced training courses, free webinar content, free ‘how to’ videos and more
- provide paid for consultancy work if needed
- provide comprehensive telephone technical support
- help with any questions of problems you have with an existing licence of SPSS software
So please feel free to contact us and we will be happy to help!
