Ten Reasons to Select a Royalty Specialist Over a Generalist

Not all software is created equal. Royalty management solutions tend to fall into two camps: those that are developed specifically for the purpose of automating royalty accounting, and “all-in-one” packages that claim to manage a multitude of business processes. Sometimes there can be sound reasons for choosing the latter, but for the large majority of royalty-based businesses, specialist solutions will beat generalist products on every count. Here are just ten reasons why.   

1. Royalty-Specific Complexities

Most “all-in-one” systems offer royalty modules as afterthoughts, lacking the functional depth and intuitive interface design that royalty administrators truly need. Royalty agreements have thousands of permutations involving advances, escalators, splits, bonuses and many more rules, and failure to execute can cause havoc. Royalty specialist software is designed to handle these intricacies, and while generalist solutions promise to do it all, they rarely do so in practice. These tools struggle with the nuanced requirements of real-world complexity such as vendors on hold, deceased recipients, and more, meaning that your team is dragged into risky manual exception tracking and work-arounds. 

2. Quick, Simple, and Proven Implementation

Royalty management software that is wrapped inside an all-in-one package is invariably costlier, harder, and slower to implement. The complexities of integration and rule-mapping are multiplied, and royalty calculation and payment runs can encounter delays and errors. Crucial royalty management needs can require “custom” development, prolonging the onboarding process and multiplying development costs into the tens of thousands of dollars or more. Implementation of standalone specialist software is easier and smoother—especially with MetaComet®’s proprietary MetaGoLive™ process, perfected over 25 years and hundreds of successful launches. 

3. Flexibility to Suit You

Software that helps manage other business functions like production and rights can promise instantaneous integration. But the trade-off for this is a lock-in to a single environment, often via a long-term contract, and the lack of flexibility to choose the royalty management solution that is best suited to your business. MetaComet®’s Royalty Tracker® solution integrates easily with ERPs, financial management, and other software, and gives you the freedom to select complementary tools that are “best-of-class” in their area of expertise. 

In addition, a purpose-built royalty platform can offer flexibility in terms of statement formats, so you can provide as much or as minimal transactional information as your royalty recipients require.  

4. Good Value and No Hidden Costs

The pricing of all-in-one solutions can be appealing at first glance. But with add-ons and support, expenses can soon spiral. There are also internal costs to consider, as team members may need to spend hours on integration and troubleshooting, incurring an opportunity cost as well. When you are locked into an all-encompassing solution, renewals can be expensive and negotiations one-sided. By contrast, royalty specialist software usually provides greater certainty on price, better flexibility and a lower time commitment from your team. 

5. Accurate Calculations and Payments

Royalty management must be scrupulously accurate. Getting calculations wrong brings financial and reputational risk, and it’s more likely to happen when software isn’t built to cope with the complex rules outlined above. Best-in-breed solutions minimize errors because they’re built for the realities of modern-day royalty agreements. 

6. Relevant Insights

Reporting tools are intrinsic to most software applications these days, but sometimes the data is just not useful or relevant. Software built for royalty management comes out of the box with reports to provide you with actionable insights, like the Royalty Tracker® Sales Reconciliation Report, Adjustments Reconciliation Report, and Statement Balances Report. 

7. Informed Innovation

As in most areas of business, small and specialist companies are much freer to innovate than larger generalists. That’s true of MetaComet, where we’ve rolled out numerous dynamic new features over the years, like our Royalty Portal for payment recipients and our smart sales aggregation tool. Our team is constantly brainstorming about new product developments to meet the evolving needs of today’s royalty practitioners. 

8. Growing with Your Business

Specialist software is built to grow with your business, processing information on thousands of products and sales reports as easily as it processes dozens. MetaComet has been proud to play a part in the success of many businesses from their earliest years, and we know where the royalty pain points are in the growth cycle. Our systems are prepared for usage spikes at the busiest phases of the royalty cycle, with no impact on speed, performance, or costs. 

9. Futureproofed Management

Royalty requirements evolve constantly. New products and formats, revenue streams and approaches to royalty agreements are constantly emerging, and AI is accelerating the pace of change. It means regular updates are essential to help clients keep up with developments. Providers of dedicated solutions can better anticipate new requirements as they emerge, and develop and install fixes and upgrades quickly, while more generalist products can lag and leave users behind the curve.  

10. Support from Royalty Experts

Royalty software specialists have a deep expertise in the business model, and because royalties are the only task they handle, they can dedicate their time to them. MetaComet’s leadership team share decades of experience in this sector, and speak with our customers about their royalty needs on a daily basis. Our customer service teams understand intricate royalty workflows, know the challenges our clients face, and are ready with the quick fixes needed. Our testimonials from leading publishers reveal more about why royalty specialist support is so valuable. 

To learn more about the advantages of specialized royalty management solutions and the benefits of MetaComet’s tailored solutions, contact the team.