Microsoft Dynamics CRM holds a prominent place in the “leaders” quadrant due to its many strengths including its global reach and language availability, the user interface compatibility with Microsoft Outlook, the ability to create custom interfaces, the multitenant architecture, the vast partner network, and the integration with the Microsoft stack.

Microsoft Dynamics CRM Online was assessed as an individual product for the first time this year and was placed in the “visionaries” category.  In addition to all of the strengths of Microsoft Dynamics CRM, which it shares, the cloud deployment combines proven and committed service levels, flexible contracts and a low price ($44 per user per month at time of writing).

Sage SalesLogix was given a spot in the “challengers” segment.  It addresses the needs of sales professionals by leveraging its strengths including its choice of on-premise or cloud deployment methods, advanced mobility options, adaptability for varying deployment sizes, and proven customer support strategy.

SageCRM held onto its previous position in the “niche” quadrant due to its strong integration focus with Sage ERP solutions, providing an affordable end-to-end business management solution with effective opportunity management and an impressive vision for enhanced mobility.

Sage ACT! serves an important “niche” in the SFA market by providing an easy to use, inexpensive contact management system that is widely used by salespeople.

To help you decide which of these sales force automation solutions is the right fit for your organization, request a free business strategy assessment today!

But mobile CRM isn’t just about “gee whiz” technology.  By improving convenience and access to CRM data, you’ll also improve user adoption which is critically important to a successful CRM strategy.  Simply put, your mobile employees will actually use and benefit from CRM and not view it as an unnecessary administrative burden.

Introducing SalesLogix Mobile
Sage SalesLogix Mobile extends CRM to your mobile device delivering up-to-the-minute customer data through the convenience of wireless connectivity.  And we’re not talking about a watered-down “light” version of Sage SalesLogix CRM … it’s full-featured with all the functions you’d see if you were sitting in front of a PC in the office.  SalesLogix Mobile maintains the same look and feel of the desktop version which shortens the “mobile learning curve” and increases user adoption.

Stick Sage SalesLogix CRM in Your Pocket
Sage SalesLogix Mobile allows you to view, edit, and add contact and account details, take notes, schedule meetings, and update opportunities.  Having CRM in your pocket improves the quality, timeliness, and perhaps most importantly, accuracy of CRM data.  No more customer data on Yellow lined notepads or chicken scratch on the back of a napkin that may not make it to your CRM system.  Even during a meeting, you can discretely pull out your mobile device, enter notes and schedule follow up meetings and to-do’s right on the spot which ensures timely and accurate follow up.

Another important aspect of mobile CRM is that large sets of data can be stored locally on your device.  Whether you’re in a meeting, on a plane, or in the middle of a cornfield in Iowa, you remain productive and can perform all CRM functions without having to connect and reconnect to exchange data with the server.

The Technical Stuff
It’s next to impossible to standardize on a single platform as different devices will appeal to different users.  That’s why SalesLogix Mobile Offers support for today’s leading mobile devices including BlackBerry®, Windows Mobile Smartphone®, and Pocket PC®.

Clearly, security is a key consideration when you’ve got sensitive CRM data on mobile devices.  To address these concerns, SalesLogix Mobile supports the security services provided by RIM and Microsoft to ensure that data is securely transferred and stored on your mobile device.  In addition, data encryption and password protection are supported.

Extending CRM to mobile devices is quickly becoming a necessity and not an option if you want to remain efficient and competitive.  Read more about the benefits of mobile CRM in this white paper: “Mobile CRM:  Harness the Competitive Advantage of Your Mobile Workforce through Sage SalesLogix Mobile”

A Quick Look in the Clouds Reveals Clear Benefits

The term “cloud” is used as a metaphor for the internet and involves delivering business applications that are hosted online.  That way, you don’t have to worry about managing the infrastructure, hardware, and other technology that supports those applications.  As such, the primary objective of cloud computing is to shift the burden of computer hardware support and IT service to the service provider (in this case, Sage and Amazon) thus reducing your ongoing support costs.

A deployment model that has gained popularity as an option “in the cloud” is Software as a Service, or SaaS.  The SaaS model offers a variety of nice benefits including rapid implementation, lower up front costs (instead of buying software, you’re renting it), and relatively pain-free upgrades (which are handled by your SaaS service provider).  However as SaaS matured, customers discovered a few of the common drawbacks which include disputes over data ownership (if you decide to migrate to another product), limited ability to customize the software (because you don’t actually own it), and overall lack of control (security, ownership, etc).

Introducing The Best of Both Worlds

SaaS or On-Premise CRM? … the debate rages on.  But why choose when you don’t have to?  Sage SalesLogix Cloud offers the best of both worlds with full ownership and control of your CRM software and data, hosted online access 24 x 7, flexible subscription options to keep capital expenditures down, and complete hardware and infrastructure support from Amazon – a world-class technology provider.  Let’s take a look at just a few of the many benefits:

Data Ownership & Upgrade Control – you retain ownership of all your SalesLogix CRM data and processes, for peace of mind.  Plus, you choose when to upgrade to the latest version rather than having to adhere to your SaaS provider’s schedule.

Integration & Deployment Flexibility - Sage SalesLogix Cloud is built on a standards-based platform allowing you to integrate with your other business management solutions.  Plus you’ll get your data back in a standardized, usable format should your needs change and you decide to bring SalesLogix in-house for an on-premise implementation.

Buying Options – you can choose from a variety of payment, subscription, and traditional license options giving you the flexibility to use SalesLogix CRM in a way that fits your financial goals.

Test drive the Sage SalesLogix Cloud today with a 30-Day Free Trial

In their annual SaaS survey, Saugatuck Technologies discovered that the primary concern for SMBs when considering a SaaS solution is data security and privacy.  However, this area of concern is not expected to hamper adoption of SaaS solutions as an average of 50% of new software deployments worldwide will be made via SaaS by year-end 2014.  This statistic shows that for most organizations the benefits of SaaS exceed the concerns they may have about the Cloud.

This point is further proven by the fact that over 50% of survey respondents expect to have adopted a SaaS-based CRM solution by 2012!  In order for this expectation to become a reality, SMBs must manage the key concerns around a cloud CRM solution by keeping several areas of consideration top of mind when making a CRM system selection.

Saugatuck Technologies has prepared two whitepapers to help you with this process:

Software-as-a-Service:  Managing Key Concerns and Considerations

Software-as-a-Service:  Managing Benefits for SMBs

Download these SaaS whitepapers to learn more!

Microsoft is offering a $200 per user cash incentive to any organization that transitions from Salesforce.com or Oracle to Microsoft Dynamics CRM Online.  This offer is available through June 30, 2011 and can be combined with the discounted pricing of $34 per user per month for Dynamics CRM 2011 Online, which will be available in January 2011.  Learn more about the “Cloud CRM for Less” offer today!

Sage is offering two versions of their “Switch and Save” offer.  Organizations interested in either Sage SalesLogix (on premise) or SageCRM save 60% off  the software license price, 5% off a 2 year maintenance and support contract, and a 10% discount on data conversion services from your Sage software partner, like Socius.  Organizations that prefer Sage SalesLogix Cloud Advanced Edition are eligible to receive a discounted rate of $40 per user per month for the term of the contract, with a 10-user minimum when switching from an eligible CRM product.

To be eligible for either of the Sage customer relationship management offers, an organization must have a current licence of one of the following competitor’s products:  Salesforce.com, Microsoft Dynamics® CRM, SugarCRM®, GoldMine®, Maximizer, Siebel, Pivotal, Onyx.

Let us know if you are looking to make a switch to Microsoft Dynamics CRM Online, Sage SalesLogix, or SageCRM.

This quick quiz game is the entrance requirement for a sweepstakes:  Sage is offering a one-year subscription to Sage SalesLogix Cloud for up to 15 users!  This prize is valued at $11,700 (and that doesn’t include any cost savings or increased business you experience as a result of using an industry leading customer relationship management solution). 

Test your CRM IQ, challenge a co-worker, and enter for your chance to win a year of SalesLogix Cloud!

Play Sage SalesLogix Cloud for Smarties

Highlights (Web Client Only):

• Welcome Page Widgets: Coupled with a visual refresh to the Welcome page, v7.5.3 offers new widgets enabling users to further personalize their Welcome page and workspace tabs and share that content with other users. The refreshed Welcome Page gives you quick and easy access to the information you use the most.
• Web Administrator Tool: While this does not replace the current Sage SalesLogix Administrator, it does let you access common administrator tasks via the web, such as managing users and teams, pick lists, products, lead sources, library, teams, users, roles, and more.
• Desktop Integration: Drag and drop attachments and email from Microsoft Outlook, perform mail merge, export to Excel, drag and drop Library files (administrator only), and much more.

For a complete overview and demonstration, please contact us!

Also, Professor Crumblehorn is back with another session to teach us about Cloud Computing:

Saugatuck Technology recently released the findings of their 2010 Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) survey via a whitepaper sponsored by Sage, “Software-as-a-Service: Managing Key Concerns and Considerations.”  One of the key findings of the survey indicated that by 2012 50% of small and midsized businesses will have adopted a SaaS-based or Cloud-computing CRM system.

Although growth in this market-space seems certain, there are still some concerns with the SaaS platform that are shaping the decision making processes of those adopting Cloud-based CRM solutions.  According to Saugatuck, the top three concerns that SMBs weigh when selecting a Cloud CRM solution are:

• Data security and privacy
• Data and transaction integrity
• Customization for unique business requirements

Although data security and privacy is far and away the greatest concern for most SMBs, very few take into consideration the security and privacy gains that can be attained through a single-tenant system vs. a multi-tenant system.  Only 8% of respondents indicated that they would take multi-tenancy into consideration when selecting a cloud-based CRM solution, despite the fact that a single tenant system would improve security and eliminate the chance for data to accidentally be migrated from one company to another, which is possible on a multi-tenant system.

Whether this is due to confidence in the multi-tenant system’s security, a lack of knowledge of the differences between single and multi tenant systems, or a cost-savings on the multi-tenant systems that outweighs the risks, is not addressed in the paper.

What do you think?  Leave a comment and let us know how multi-tenancy vs. single-tenancy factors into your CRM cloud computing decision.

The new Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) deployment of Sage SalesLogix is now available across the US!  Sage SalesLogix Cloud offering is built upon the Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud™ (EC2™) infrastructure and costs $65 per named user per month for new implementations. Current on-premises Sage SalesLogix users who wish to migrate to the cloud can do so for $35 per named user per month. Multi-user and multi-year discounts are also available.

Sage understood that they would need to bring new and current CRM customers alike up to speed on the difference between their on-premise and on-demand deployments, so they created a world-class educator named Professor Crumblehorn to provide some brief video tutorials:

Cloud Computing 101 – Prof. Crumblehorn explains what an on-demand crm system is, some of the issues that plague other SaaS CRM deployments, and how Sage SalesLogix Cloud combines the best qualities of SaaS with the best qualities of on-premise to create a one-of-a-kind hosted CRM solution.

Cloud Computing 102 – Prof. Crumblehorn dives deeper into the benefits of Sage SalesLogix Cloud including:

• Data Storage and Ownership
• Control, Change, and Customization
• Complete view of relationships and insight
• Flexible payment options

Sage is also offering a 30-Day Free Trial of Sage SalesLogix Cloud so you can get a taste of their new deployment offering:

Sage SalesLogix Cloud CRM deployment officially launched this week and Sage is accepting orders for this Software as a Service (SaaS) customer relationship management solution.  The product will officially become available in June to North American companies looking to manage their relationship data in an online environment. 

New customer pricing is $65 per user per month for Sage SalesLogix Cloud CRM.  However, currently Sage SalesLogix users with an on-premise deployment can transition to the Cloud for $35 per use per month. 

Sage has also launched their “Cloud Watcher” website:  www.watchthecloud.comthat allows people to register to receive updates and information about Sage SalesLogix Cloud CRM as it comes available.  Become a cloud watcher today!