CRM2011 vs SuperOffice

Today, we were talking to an Europe company about Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011.  During the demonstration, we were asked “so, what is the differences between your product and SuperOffice”? This is really the first time I heard of SuperOffice.  If you are a serious CRM person, you must know SuperOffice!  It is one of the most popular CRM products in Europe!

Anyway, I ended up to do a Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 and SuperOffice comparison chart and here is my finding.  Due to time constraint, I could not locate all the fine details I needed.  Should anyone has any information or spotted any incorrect info below, please do leave a comment, so I can update this! 

Cheers! 

 

  

	Microsoft Dynamics CRM	SuperOffice
Deployment Option
- On-Premise (Server)
- Online
- Mobile
Cloud Service Detail
- Online Coverage	Over 80 Countries	Online option only available in Norway, Sweden, Denmark, UK, Benelux, Germany and Switzerland
- Online Service Guarantee	99.9% Money Back Garantee	99.8%
- Backup Offsite
- Subscription Fee Monthly/ User	US$44	€37 (Standard) €49 (Professional)*
Mobile Service Detail
- Included in the user CAL
- Supports Android
- Supports Blackberry
- Supports iPad
- Supports iPhone
- Supports Win Mobile
- Supports Symbian
- Mobile sync
- Offline Capability	via 3rd Party	?
Product Features – Contact Management
- Separate Company List
- Separate Contact List
- Relationships
- Outlook contact integration		?
- Communication Tracking
- Documents
Product Features – Sales Management
- Sales Dashboard
- Opportunities & Sales Management
- Activities tracking
Product Features – Marketing Management
- Lead Management
- Static Marketing List
- Dynamics Marketing List
- Campaign Management
- Email Marketing		Not available for online yet
- Auto Campaign Response		Not available for online yet
- Advance Email Templates	via 3rd Party add-ons	Not available for online yet
- Email Campaign Reporting	via 3rd Party add-ons	Not available for online yet
- Online scripting for tele marketing
- Bulk call list distribution for tele marketing
- Bulk fax distribution	via 3rd Party fax integration
- Word Mail Merge
Product Features – Service Management
- Included in User CAL	Included	Only for Professional License
- Request/ Case Management
- Social network integration	via 3rd Add-on	Not available for online yet
- Convert email to case	via workflow	via setup
- Auto Case Numbering
- Team Management	via Team or Queue	via Group
- Email notifications
- Personalized email templates
- Knowledge Base
- Calendar Scheduling
- Goal Management
- Contract Management
- Nice to have OOB features (Split request, publish to FAQ, Add to hotlist)
Product Features – Other Features
- Dashboard
- Inline Charting
- Import
- Export to Excel
- Document Management	via SharePoint Doc Library version control, check in/out	via Office Add-on
- Outlook Integration
- Duplicate checking		?
- Customer Portal	via 3rd Party
- Dynamics Excel Reporting
- Report Wizard		via Professional License
Third Party Solutions
- Data Integration and Management Add-ons		?
- Download Stores	Market Place
- eMarketing Add-on	EngageB2B, MailChamp, InsideView, etc	eMarketeer
Scalability and Expendability
- SDK
- UI Customization
- Solution Management		?
- Multi-tenant Support		?
- Multi-currency Support
Licensing (indication only, not a formal listed price)
- Server	HK$45 000	?
- User CAL	HK$8 800	Std: Prof:
Training and Support
- E-Learning
- Help File
- Managed User Forum
- Online Support	24x7	Business Hours
- Regular Service Packs	Every 2 Month	?
- Regular Email Tips
- Published Books		?
- Classroom Training	via many IT training centre	only supported countries
- Webinars
Back-ground Information
Manufacturer	Microsoft	SuperOffice
First Released	2003	1990
Product Team	600~	200~
Languages Supported	41	11 Norway, Sweden, Finland, Denmark, Germany, UK, Benelux, Austria, Switzerland, USA, and Japan
Partners Count	2000 over 80 Countries	14 over 6 Countries
Customer Count	33 000 ~	12 000 ~
User Count	2.25 million	?
Selling Point	Native Outlook Integration Native SharePoint Integration Scalable and Extendable Reasonable Price Fastest growing CRM product	Intuitive and easy to use Great support in Europe

*For features between Standard and Professional, please refer to http://www.superoffice.com/Products/CRM-Online/see-pricing-and-compare-editions/

References:

http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/news/press/2012/mar12/03-19Convergence2012PR.aspx

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SuperOffice

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microsoft_Dynamics_CRM

http://www.superoffice.com/Products/CRM-Online/see-pricing-and-compare-editions/

Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 Installation Languages Supported

 

I have been installing Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 Server using the English language pack most of the time.  Recently, I was asked to investigate installing it using language pack other then English.

If language other than English is required for installation, then we must confirm ALL of the following servers are installed in the same language edition:

a. Windows Server (2008 R2 or 2012)

b. Microsoft SQL Server (2008 R2 or 2010)

c. Microsoft Exchange Server (2007 or 2010)

d. MSXML

e. .NET Framework

f. Microsoft Dynamics CRM Server 2011

And the languages supported are:

 

Arabic	Chinese (HKSAR)	Chinese (Simplified)	Chinese (Traditional)	Czech
Danish	Dutch	English	Finnish	French
German	Greek	Hebrew	Hungarian	Italian
Japanese	Korean	Norwegian (Bokmal)	Polish	Portuguese (Brazil)
Portuguese (Portugal)	Russian	Spanish	Swedish	Turkish

The appropriate installation language pack can be downloaded from:

http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=27822

From the download page, use the Change language pick list to select the appropriate language and the page will refresh and the execution file (CRM2011-Server-LAN-amd64.exe ) for download will be updated to the language pack you selected.

Reference Links:

http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/hh699690 

http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=27822

Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 Outlook Client failed to install due to Microsoft SQL Server 3.5 Service Pack 2 failed to be downloaded

With the latest integration between Office 365 and Microsoft Dynamics CRM online services, I have been experiencing a few different installation and connectivity issues.  Today’s issue was originally related to unable to Get CRM for Outlook from the Online notification bar.  When I click “Get CRM for Outlook” button, it pops up a page with url http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkID=194222&clcid=0x409 and I had Internet Explorer cannot display the webpage error.  So I decided to download and install the Outlook client manually.  (I am setting up a new CRMOnline demo for a client, hence have to go through this process again)

To download the CRM for Outlook client, I use this link http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=27821 

During the installation process, I experienced the following error:

The installation has failed.  Microsoft SQL Server Compact 3.5 Service Pack 2 did not download successfully.  To try again, ensure your internet connection is working, then try again.  Click the link below to view the log file.

I decided to download and install it manually.  To download the installation file, I use this link http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=5783 . 

During installing SQL Server Compact 3.5 SP2, I have the first warning screen.

Warning – On a 64-bit Computer, install both 32-bit and 64-bit versions of the SQL Server Compact 3.5 SP2 MSI files. Existing SQL Server Compact 3.5 applications will fail if only the 32-bit version is installed on the 64-bit computer.  Developers should chain both the 32-bit and the 64-bit MSI files with their applications and install both of them on the 64-bit Computer.  See Install.txt file for more information.  Click ‘Yes’ to Continue.

I clicked ‘Yes’, then continued installation, all went well!  Then I need to configure the Outlook client.  When the Configuration wizard pops up, I selected Server URL to be CRM Online and click test connection, I experienced this error:

Cannot connect to Microsoft Dynamics CRM server because we cannot authenticate your credentials.  Check your connection or contact your administrator for help.

I clicked OK to continue.  Then a login screen pops up.

I input my registered Office365 user name and password, then I see a better confirmation screen

I clicked OK and finally saw a better promising screen.

There is always new experience everyday with CRM!

CRM2011 Set a field to read only

Since I am not a programmer or developer, I always save some frequently used jscript and solutions in my toolbox for quick reference.  Today, I converted one of my CRM4 frequently used jscript and saved to my CRM2011 toolbox. The jscript is to set a field read only.

For CRM4, the jscript is like this:

crmForm.all.new_fieldname.disabled=true;

For CRM2011, the jscript is like this:

Xrm.Page.getAttribute("new_fieldname").controls.get(0).setDisabled(true);