Microsoft Dynamics vs Salesforce - All You Need to Know

Introduction

A CRM stands for Customer Relations Management, which is software that helps the company to manage the relationship and interactions with its customers. A CRM is software that helps the company to get a proper insight into its customer’s lifestyles, that further helps the company to plan and built a healthy relationship with its customers.

What is Microsoft Dynamics 365?

Microsoft Dynamics 365 is a CRM software that helps the company to manage the relationship and interactions with its customers, and stakeholders and helps in inspecting all the contacts and people that are linked with the company.

Microsoft Dynamics 365 CRM is highly known for providing seamless integration with other Dynamics 365 modules that include Dynamics 365 Marketing, Dynamics 365 Sales, Dynamics 365 customer service, and Dynamics 365 field service.

Microsoft Dynamics 365 is an upgradable CRM software that allows you to add different types of modules from the Dynamic 365 range to make your business management flexible and profitable.

Features of Microsoft Dynamics 365

1. Sales Insight - Getting proper sales insight is a privilege for any company/business. Microsoft Dynamics 365 CRM aids with a relationship insight feature that helps to analyze a large amount of data for your CRM and helps to create opportunities for developing your customer’s account.  It also helps you to get relevant information about the customer.
2. Mobility – Unlike other CRMs Dynamics 365 provides you with an interface that enables your representatives to access all their activities, contacts, and leads even during their travel. This application also helps you get real-time customer interaction alerts and provides a complete overview of different sales channels.
3. Connection with LinkedIn Sales Navigator - Dynamics 365 grants direct access to the LinkedIn profiles of your prospects directly from your CRM solution, and also helps to document your emails and other LinkedIn messages. Dynamics 365 also helps you to attain key information and greater target recommendations and prioritize opportunities for your representatives.
4. Integration of Email with Outlook 365 - Outlook 365 helps your CRM to completely integrate with your Microsoft email management software. It also grants access to all data and information that is linked with the specific contact to whom you are sending the email. This application also helps you to increase your sales activities by giving you access to email templates and attachments.
5. Dashboard for Customer Service – The customer service Dashboard helps the manager to gain access to the most important cases and provides the status of all the urgently made requests. It provides an overview of your customer’s experience and unlocks opportunities for the company’s improvement.
6. Activity log and connections to CRM – Dynamics 365 offers sensible information to your CRM in the form of an activity log, this activity log helps in recording and maintaining all the carried-out actions and connections. This log can easily be integrated with other security systems such as Microsoft OMS and Splunk which helps to prevent intrusion and fraud of your CRM.
7. Feature of Smart Search – Smart Search is an advanced feature that grants faster access to information on all records, templates, contacts, and stored opportunities. This feature helps you to save time by providing you with faster and better information. This feature also provides you with intelligent data analysis capability which is integrated by Microsoft into each module.

Don't forget to check out: The Salesforce-Microsoft Partnership: Paving the Way for Win-Win Business Advantages

Microsoft Dynamics Pricing

Before purchasing the Dynamics 365 CRM for sales or Customer Service the professional or Enterprise needs to get the licensing. Professional and Enterprise licensing cannot be merged, and are needed to be attained separately, the features of both Professional and Enterprise licensing are different from each other. The MS Dynamics pricing keeps on varying from country to country.

Pros of MS Dynamics

• It is comprised of a low code platform that is easy to use and configures the exact needs.
• Provides endless virtual integration capabilities and provides a range of feature sets.
• Helps the company system to connect any device through the internet with the help of the cloud ecosystem.
• Helps to increase the workflow through AI-powered automation capabilities.
• Completely scalable according to your needs, in case one of growing or downsizing

Cons of MS Dynamics

• A lot of training is required to master all the functions, and the interface is not much user-friendly.
• The mobile application lacks features and is a bit glitchy and shows the difficulty in connecting certain apps and tools.
• Limited data storage and high cost of purchase. 

What is Salesforce?

Salesforce is a cloud-based Software designing American Company, that is also known as the top-ranking CRM in the world. This company is known for providing powerful CRM tool that helps to manage sales and marketing teams worldwide.

Salesforce provides you with top-level cloud-based services by using a high-tech advanced level cloud technology, which aids the business to attain a strong and effective connection with their potential customers, which further helps their business to grow and expand by creating limitless opportunities. Salesforce CRM is highly loaded with useful features that help the company track and market its customers and helps to provide limitless opportunities.

Features of Salesforce

The Salesforce is loaded with highly beneficial features:

1. AppExchange – AppExchange is one of the most beneficial and important features that is provided by Salesforce, it is a feature that helps to create limitless opportunities and potential for the software. It helps to create next-level sales opportunities by building a strong and flexible sales flow.
2. Customer Cloud – It is an e-commerce feature that helps to generate an integrated buying experience for driving your customer’s seamless attention to placing an order. It provides customers with a one-touch payment option and helps to enhance their unique buying experience.
3. Marketing Cloud – The Email marketing platform provided by Salesforce is highly automated and customizable. Its highly intelligent technology helps to identify market segments and potential customers that can mostly engage with your products. It also offers you an option of pre-built templates, that helps you to save your money and time.
4. Collaborative Forecasts – This feature helps you to predict your future sales performance and helps you to create a better plan and to increase your future sales and generate great revenues. It also helps you to build and strong and responsive working hierarchy.
5. Workflows- Salesforce Workflow feature helps you to automate internal procedures and processes by creating if/then rules. It is a feature that responds to the actions automatically according to the situation and helps to create a high possibility of success in the given task.

Check out another amazing blog by Avinash here: How Does Salesforce Secure Your Data? Learn Here!

Salesforce Pricing

Salesforce pricing is highly dependent on the user’s needs and the scale of the business. There are different plans or clouds that users get offered to choose from according to their business needs and requirements. Salesforce CRM cost varies from one country to another.

Pros of Salesforce

• The Systems provided by Salesforce is likely less expensive in comparison to other CRMs and do not require a developing team or an infrastructure.
• The Salesforce System can be accessed from any location around the world through the means of the Internet.
• Salesforce being a top CRM in the world is highly popular and trustable, and finding a technical partner and proper consultant is very easy in its case.
• Salesforce can be managed and set up easily while using the cloud. It helps you to handle updates, and estimate downtimes, and releases.

Cons of Salesforce

• A good internet connection is required for the proper function of this CRM software.
• Limits the control over the planned downtimes and CRM updates due to complete dependency on the Salesforce database.
• It is highly expensive considering all the costs, because of which it may not be a great choice for a small business.

Conclusion

From the above statements, it is clear that both Microsoft Dynamics 365 and Salesforce are CRM software that is highly beneficial for a company to manage their strong customer relationship and are also helpful in providing a proper insight into the customer’s lifestyle, which can further help them to improve their business growth.

Both these CRM have their advantages and disadvantages which makes them useful and unique from each other. Depending on the work both can be chosen according to the user’s business need and demand.

Salesforce is the world’s top-ranking CRM and offers you highly advanced features that can help to increase your business potential, but at the same time, this CRM service is highly expensive and is only suitable for a large-scale business.

Microsoft Dynamics 365 CRM is also a greatly useful CRM software that allows you to get your customer’s insight and is highly compatible and easily synchronizes with Microsoft. The Dynamics 365 CRM is cheaper than salesforce and somehow is restricted with certain features in comparison to Salesforce and is suitable for a small-scale business.

As Salesforce and Microsoft Dynamics 365 offer FREE trials, try out both before making a choice, and bear in mind the differences and the pros and cons.