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Wish CRM Could Do That?

October 7, 2009

During almost every CRM implementation, at one point someone says, “I wish CRM could do ____.” The challenge for a consultant is to first decide if the request is in scope, and then decide what to do about it.

When needed functionality is not a part of an application, there are several approaches available to implementers. I subscribe to the “Configure, Add-on, Re-think, Customization” philosophy.

  • Configure – Use the application’s existing tools to configure it to effectively accomplish the required process. This usually will not include new code, even when it conforms to the vendor SDK.
  • Add-on – If I can’t properly configure the application to accomplish the goal, the next step is to locate an add-on ISV (Independent Software Vendor) product that will give the client what they need. Add-on products must conform to the manufacturer specs, be supported, and provide timely upgrades.
  • Re-think – If the first two options are not available, it’s time to re-think the request. How important is the need? Any other options will usually add considerable costs to the implementation as well as ongoing administration and upgrade hassles.
  • Customization – Finally, if it’s decided the functionality is a show stopper then we move to the customization option. This might include custom programming and\or changing underlying code or schemas (never recommended). This should never be decided upon lightly in any implementation.

Over the years (and across many implementations) I have been able to identify some very capable and well supported add-on products. These products all have a couple of key strengths that make my decision to recommend them easy – Great add-on functionality that solves a need, coupled with great ISV support and decent price points. I want to share some of my favorite Microsoft Dynamics CRM add-ons with you. I have no financial relationship with any of these ISVs, I just like their products.

Product: Email to Case (http://www.c360.com/EmailToCase.aspx)
Vendor: c360 Solutions
Why I like it: This vendor has quite a few products I have used in various implementations. This add-on provides a great way to automatically convert emails coming into the CRM Queue to a Service case. I recommend this in every Service implementation.

 

Product: Advanced Quote and Order Processing (http://www.c360.com/AdvancedQuoteProcessing.aspx)
Vendor: c360 Solutions
Why I like it: The stock CRM quoting process is pretty basic and clunky. I found this product several years ago, when it was first built for CRM v1 by a partner back east. They have licensed it to c360 but are still strongly supporting it. I just implemented it for a client and love what they have done with it since that first version.

 

Product: Scribe Insight (http://www.scribesoft.com/)
Vendor: Scribe Software
Why I like it: When Microsoft first came out with integration between CRM v1 and Dynamics GP, it was based on early versions of BizTalk Server. What a mess. After using it once, we switched to using the Scribe Insight product. This is a versatile product with many licensing options. Integration or migration, this is a great tool.

 

Product: Exact Target (http://email.exacttarget.com/)  
Vendor: Exact Target
Why I like it: To really get the most bang for your buck using email marketing, you need to be able to integrate it with your CRM. Compose and send HTML emails, tracking email opens, recording click-throughs, AND have that information fed back into your CRM system – that really provides you with the proper metrics about your marketing efforts.  

 

I am always on the look out for additional products to recommend to my clients. I am currently testing Bridge2CRM (http://www.softbridgeinc.com/products.aspx) now. It provides a great hosted mobile solution that is device\OS agnostic. Since I haven’t implemented it – yet – I can’t recommend it but I like it so far.

Enjoy!

Think Big, Start Small, Act Now.

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