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An analyst praises Salesforce.com's software-as-a-service for its ease of use while SAP's on-premise offering is doing better than its Saas version. Here is a sampling of the major customer relationship management products on the market
Mobility and software as a service are changing customer relationship management and sales force software. Upstart Salesforce.com has made a significant dent in the market, and established vendors of licensed software are playing catchup. SAP AG's recent alliance with Research in Motion Inc. is the latest development as CRM vendors try to meet customer growing demand for mobility. And user interfaces are evolving to meet the expectations of people who have grown up with the Web.
Here's a quick survey of the major players.
Microsoft
Microsoft Corp. came late to CRM, in 2002, but its Dynamics software has moved up in the pack quickly. A key reason is integration with other Microsoft software, says Robert DeSisto, analyst at Gartner Group Inc. - particularly Outlook, whose basic contact management, scheduling and e-mail capabilities make it popular with salespeople. Integration with Access database software helps too, adds Vinay Nair, research manager for Canadian enterprise applications at International Data Corp. (Canada) Ltd.
Microsoft has a "huge" installed base in small to medium business, Nair says, but isn't as well established in enterprise software as vendors like Oracle and SAP. However, he says Microsoft is using its strong SMB and desktop base to...