Before signing a multi-year SaaS contract, ask how it renews, how much the price can rise, what minimums you are committing to, what happens if your organisation shrinks, and how you get your data out at the end. Get the answers in the contract itself, not in an email from the salesperson, and have the contract reviewed by a lawyer before you sign.
A multi-year term is a trade. You accept less flexibility, and the vendor gives you a better price or a price held still. That can be a good trade for a registration platform or event app you are confident in. The questions below are about making sure the flexibility you give up is the amount you think it is.
Renewal and notice windows
Find the renewal clause first. Look for whether the contract renews automatically, for how long, and how far ahead you must give notice to stop it. A notice window can close months before the end date, and for a conference organiser that date may fall in the run-up to your biggest event, when nobody is reading contracts. Put the notice deadline in the calendars of two people on the day you sign.
Price increases
Look for what the price does in years two and three and at renewal. Some contracts fix it, some allow an increase up to a stated cap, some tie it to an index, and some say nothing, which leaves renewal pricing open. Ask also whether the discount you were offered applies for the whole term or only the first year.
Minimums, and what happens if you shrink
Multi-year deals can be built on committed volumes: a number of registrations, events, exhibitors or staff seats per year. Ask what happens if you fall short. An event that moves to every second year, a show that loses a hall, or a merger of two conferences can each leave you paying for volume you no longer have.
Ask whether unused volume rolls over, whether you can reduce the commitment at an anniversary, and what overage costs if you go above it.
Getting your data out
Attendee and exhibitor history is what you sell next year's event from. Ask what export you receive at the end and in what format. Ask whether it includes registration answers, session choices, invoices and payment records. Ask how long after termination the data remains available, and whether there is a charge for it.
The list to send the vendor
- Does the contract renew automatically, and what is the last date we can give notice?
- What can the price change to in each year of the term and at renewal?
- What volumes or seat numbers are we committed to, and can they go down?
- What do we pay for going over?
- Can we end early, and what would we owe?
- What happens to the contract if you are acquired or withdraw the product?
- What service levels apply during our event dates, and what is the remedy if they are missed?
- What export do we receive on exit, and for how long is it available?
Then put numbers on the commitment. Multiply the yearly price by the term, including any permitted increases, so you know the total you are signing for. Our software bill calculator is a free calculator that shows yearly and three-year totals from per-seat or per-unit pricing.
None of this replaces a lawyer reading the actual document. A checklist tells you what to ask. It does not tell you what a particular clause means for you.
If you are weighing the contract against not renting at all, our guide to renting versus owning business software sets out both sides, including when custom is the wrong choice. Our page for conference and trade show organisers goes through what is rented in this line of work and which parts can be rebuilt.