Avoid Free Trial Trap: How to Choose Systematic Review Semi-Automation Tools for Yourself, Your Institute, or Library?

Farhad
7 min readOct 19, 2023
Systematic Review Automation Programmes
Systematic Review Automation Programmes

The marketing departments of automation programme companies are constantly contacting individuals, research-related libraries, institutes and universities, offering them free trial periods. While a free trial could be used to your advantage, it could become a trap if not used well.

This approach has been in place since a long time ago with databases and other 'Information Resources'; however, there is a danger of getting into the trap for the passive decision-makers. Passive deciders wait for the marketing departments to contact them and offer them a product instead of actively hunting for the best programs and comparative studies.

What can go wrong with free trials?

A. Free trial of a single product compared to nothing!

When you get a free trial for a single product, the users have no other reference or comparison point, so they cannot compare the products. The result of such a trial is, in most cases, obvious: the product is good, and better than nothing. So, feedback would tell you to get a subscription.

B. The fate of files and projects post-free-trial period

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Farhad

An Evidence Scientist with a Pinch of Career and Life Lessons