Sage CRM

Pros

I liked the ease of updating accounts and billing clients.

Cons

I found the process complicated and not as user friendly as it could be to load a client account.

Pros

Easy and always updating to perform better.

Cons

Would b nice if it could synch w outlook.

Pros

I never liked SAGE compared to other CRM. I couldn't WAIT for our company to move to another CRM.

Cons

It was clunky, it was hard to manage my DB of contacts. Constantly having to "rank" the clients into groups based on their activity, so that I could market to "active" contacts was tedious.

Pros

I really loved that our Systems Integration Team could custom build workflows so applications within CRM work exactly as we needed them to and showing data which was relevant to us rather than having 'out of box' generic options

Cons

Sometimes workflows could be 'click heavy' which couldn't be changed but only a minor niggle - plus points far outweighed this downside

Pros

Sage CRM is a fully customized client relationship management suite with a wide array of different tables and data storage. With a the ability to choose on-prem or hosted, this allows more control over where the data is being stored and how. The 2018 interface is a huge face-lift to the older styled CRM layouts. Really makes Sage seem new again.

Cons

The architecture can be incredibly complex given the age and various modules clients may be using. The Sage CRM does not have as quite a robust partner/member community as some of the more user friendly CRMs in the SaaS market.

Pros

A solid reputation that lasts over the whole product timeline.

Cons

There are many different functions and each one costs money. The subscription based payments mean it is difficult to break away onto another platform

Alternatives Considered

Reasons for Switching to Sage CRM

Pros

you are able to create change proposals and then change orders in order to track costs and link everything together

Cons

There is no "smart" technology with the program. It does not remember what cost code you entered on the line above, very frustrating.

Pros

A beneficial tool to use and best in customer relationship management for my business needs, it has a feature where you can make your marketing campaigns perfect and accessible
It is just that you cannot easily Logged on to this software maybe because it is not cheap that other competitors, it could be better if it makes cheaper and easily accessible

Cons

I love using this, and no problem with this tool. It has too many benefits on my financial needs, and I am more productive while using it on my projects and doing business with my clients on UpWork

Pros

From what I know Sage is largely used in the business/construction world, it's essential to any professional

Cons

At times it can be slow but with upgrades over time I have definitely seen an improvement in it's worth

Pros

The learning curve on this software was shorter than other ones I've used in the past. Workflows were not difficult to set up.

Cons

Although there is a short learning curve to get up and running. Becoming proficient is another thing. There is a lot of room for customization that requires better training.

Pros

The fact that we can store Software renewal information in the system and use for software renewal billing reminders.

Cons

How hard the product it is to use and the pricing.

Pros

I'm sure its a dream for administators - who get to pull data easily
(If the data is actually inputted is a different story)

Cons

I won't even discuss the look of the system (yet)
This system is most effective for people who have nothing else to do but (write) about what they should do.
Single entry lines are the first put off - each time you need to create a task under a client - it must be done as if its never been done before. You cannot add multiple tasks at one go! and can easily spend 2 minutes or more per task (weighing up my options here - i'd rather just get the work done)
That in itself is the MOST counter productive frustration - i have ever had to deal with!

Its not fully integrated with Outlook - unless its a calendar appointment - This is a major hindrance and duplication of work and really MUST be addressed

Nothing can be set as recurring - nothing. ever, imagine having to input Status Meetings, Month End Debt Collections, Work Appraisal Reviews, other standard reporting 4 times a month x 12 months at an average of 2 minutes each = YUP! 96minutes of NOT making a sale - on 1 (one) recurring task

Have the developers actually worked on this very unfriendly, incredibly unproductive Lotus-looking in Android Age system - or are they too 'intellectual' in finding methods to output our disgruntled input

Built without user experience in mind!

Pros

I have been using Timberline/Sage for almost 25 years now. I have watched it go from DOS based to Windows based. This is excellent software for construction companies as it handles everything from AP to GL to JC and PR. It is pretty easy to use and I like that you can connect it to Microsoft Access and be able to get any info out of it that you want if there isn't already a canned report.

Cons

There are areas such as billing that could definitely be improved upon. I'm not that crazy about the contracts module because it doesn't give you subtotals and it doesn't allow you to put change orders separately which most GC's require that we do so I have to resort to Excel spreadsheets to do their billing form and then input it into Sage for accounting purposes.

Pros

SAGE CRM has been great for our clients. There are very few CRMs that are affordable for SMEs and can keep the full business function housed under them. The shared documents feature allows us to make sure that everyone who needs access to certain documents has the access. The accounting function seamlessly integrates with the sales and supply chain aspects.

Cons

Sage CRM can be a bit of a problem when there are database problems. The support guy can usually fix them quite quickly but the instability of the the software raises at times.

Pros

The in-built business processes are good and very basic to deploy in the initial stages

Cons

Well a long list I have for this section:
1. Pathetic customer support
2. Less competent product knowledge to "customer support specialist"
3. Not user friendly software
4. Lot of technical backed problems

Alternatives Considered

Reasons for Switching to Sage CRM

Pros

Professional look of items printed and organizational capabilities

Cons

It needs to be able to upload csv files. It can be time consuming to do a drawing log that has 500 sheets with some sheets that have repeated names and dates... a simple excel formula would solve this. When creating RFIs, it is difficult sometimes to view the body of texts, the text window can't be widened to shrink unnecessary or not used options. Users should have the ability to use their cursor/mouse to adjust the text box to whatever size they desire

Pros

Easy to learn - the more you work with it , the easier it becomes.
Save time and sales is all about time management

Cons

The resources intensiveness , entry level computers will not do good with the is program
It needs a high speed intenet to not get frustrated with the slowness

Pros

What I liked most was the ability to manage our leads and prospects all throughout the sales funnel. Being able to track the various stages in one intuitive software made mine and my colleagues lives much easier.

Cons

A bit expensive and a small learning curve when getting familiar with the software, was a bit of a challenge training the sales staff on the workings of the program.

Pros

The organization of client information and the projects that offshoot from the clients. This software has many functions and features, and is great for a business with many employees and many branches. Keeping track of incoming and outgoing projects, inventory, sales, reports for tax purposes etc.

Cons

I found it overwhelming to integrate with our type of service business. The set up was very lengthy and difficult. In addition the main reason for us to use it was to keep track of invoices, sales with clients, and to process payments online. We had trouble processing payments. Overall, it was hard for us to use all the features and rely on it to be more productive. Also, there was a 2 year contract to use the software, which we could not keep because we were not able to process payments.

Pros

It's very easy to find information. Everything seems intuitive.

Cons

Running reports can take a while. This may be because of the amount of data we have housed in the CRM.

Pros

Nothing about this system I like it's awful

Cons

It doesn't work. There is WAY too much "technical jargon" that the average employee doesn't understand. You need a degree in IT and coding just to figure out how to change a field or what a field even means or is asking for.

Pros

Record Management. Job Costing. Purchase orders all essential for tracking Individual jobs

Cons

Slow to learn but worth the time. Hang in there

Pros

Every feature Sage offers is a pro. We are fully reliant on Sage and it never lets us down. Our AP, AR, Contract Management, Insurance Compliance, Project Management, etc is fully involved in Sage. We all would be lost without it.

Cons

It's not necessarily a con, because it does add to the ease of use, but it looks extremely outdated. As far as functionality is concerned it's not outdated at all. But the colors, tables, etc. look "old".

Pros

There's about 4-5 different ways to do everything with this piece of software. Some users may love this, however, I've found it to be frustrating and very confusing for most users. Once you really truly understand how the system works, the functionality is pretty seamless.

Cons

Where to begin... It's not a "smart" program, in any sense of the term. First off - The function of creating Contacts vs. Companies is asinine. You can create a "contact" and list the company name as: "ABC Company" but if you don't manually link the company to the contact, you'll never see that contact listed under the company. Sound confusing? It is... There aren't any tools to pick up on grammatical errors while typing. You WILL inevitably have several of the same companies (some variations in spelling/grammar), all with different contacts, all different records and no way to fix it unless you buy an add-on clean up tool that you still have to manually run in order to clean up the DB. Frustrating all around!

Pros

Logically made sense to go from one step to the other.

Cons

Everything takes forever to load. The more people on it, the worse it gets. Cannot use remotely through a VPN.

Pros

The biggest pro with this CRM is that there are a million ways to customize the software. This pro could be seen as con since out of the box it isnt going to do everything you may need.

Cons

The more addons you have the slower this system will become. Their are a ton of consultants that you can work with but if you are a small company operating like a large company then I wouldn't get this CRM.

Pros

Able to print out customized reports showing details on a project. Makes it easier to Track expenses throughout a project. Integrates well with accounting and sales staff.

Cons

Would like to be able to customize more on the layout of the reports. Need to be very specific when looking up a specific job number/project.

Pros

Availability of web portal with no need for any upgrade

Cons

With the Absence of offline accounting features, you cannot access accounting data without an internet connection

Pros

We primarily use it for database management

Cons

Its complex and takes a lot of support to develop the reports you require

Pros

The customization of the layout allows for easily managed client data and prospective clients. It is great for leaving notes for the whole sales staff to review and understand what was discussed.

Cons

The biggest problem with it is continuous functionality. When you have database errors it can be a nightmare. The software wont launch correct. The database gets corrupted and needs to be restored.

Pros

Sage crm is that the customer data is transmitted in real time.the application is easy to handle.reliable and accurate details and it has very good features.

Cons

sage crm works very well for me and I haven't found any complication with this application yet

Pros

It does the job if you are willing to put in all the time. We have used this for years and are now changing to Salesforce.

Cons

Expensive licensing. Doesn't always sync well with Sage software. Constantly having to restart services.

Pros

CRM is very customizable and helpful in accessing information company wide.

Cons

We have had some issues with data disappearing but Sage has not had any other customers have this issue so it may be our uploading to the cloud.

Pros

Its saves automatically, sends reminders for follow-up, has customizable fields, runs reports with lots of ways to narrow searches for making lists and labels, enables me to order lists fast by almost any criteria, connected to email.

Cons

As Windows 10 and updates are put into service, the compatibility with mail, backup, and reports fade in availability as product ages, forcing you to upgrade. Support for older ACT versions are scarce and expensive.

Pros

Contact syncing between CRE300, Outlook, and (formerly) Sage ACT. It is very flexible for our wishes.

Cons

The implementation of this software hasn't gone well for us. It is almost TOO flexible. It feels like a fully customized piece of software so we are having to make decisions on flow and content that really should be simple.

Pros

It helps to organize sales contacts better than Microsoft Excel. I also enjoy the shared documents feature so our company can share our important and most updated documents from branch to branch.

Cons

It doesn’t always work correctly and needs to be easier to toggle from one page to another.

Pros

User friendly, with a fairly easy interface.

Cons

Real time synchronisation with Sage 200. Hard to configure.

Pros

Sage can capture information entered into a web form on a business's page for later reference.The ability to easily and efficiently turn an opportunity into a quote and then into a sale order is uniquely strong and very helpful for field based sales professionals.

Cons

Sage CRM lacks the integration features found in other CRM solutions.A lack of social CRM and social media tools will hinder companies looking to leverage social monitors and engage prospects and customers in social networks and other online social channels.

Pros

We had to use a Sage Partner for support, so I never worked directly with Sage. Whenever we had issues or questions about our CRM, we had to go through the authorized partner who charged a hefty hourly rate. I can't tell you how much money we spent on trying to get this system to work for our needs. There was nothing I could say that we liked about this software, and this is why we switched to Salesforce CRM.

Cons

It's inflexible, and it's not easy to make changes to the system setup without paying for support. Also, the system layout was not intuitive. Further, generating reports was cumbersome.

Pros

Good as a client database. Clear online portal and good customer service representative assigned to account

Cons

Not as up to date as other CRM systems. data inputting takes time and is not simple. Overall system is expensive.

Pros

Actually we had to not using it due to the the fact it does not work properly on most of our computer's screens as it appears with extremely small type. The other is that software claim network. Does not work. Removal from test PC so we can switch to the real people to eork with it. Not possible. Surprisingly customer service respond with very standard answers but not to specific questions.

Cons

1. does not work properly with high diffinition screen
2. Many of the claimed features on ACT PREMIUM simply not true
3. They escape and don't answer if you ask for help

Pros

Integration to the backend ERP system, great pipeline management for both the individual rep and a team, integration to RingCentral, import/exporting of data and customizability.

Cons

Pricing models are confusing, it is not and out-of-the box solution. Need to pitot of POC the product before implementation to customize the primary screens down to pertinate data and permissions. Also the terminology is slightly unique so training is a must. Also need to develop/tweak the workflows before implementation.

Pros

Before Sage swallowed Timberline, Master Builder, and Peachtree, they were each the respective top tier tool in their field.

Cons

But Sage like to buy and squat on assets to bleed them dry without investing in development. The Sage suite was best-in-class prior to 2010 but has failed to keep up.

Pros

When we first got this product it was very well suited for what we needed. Can be simple, depending on how you use it.

Cons

Customization is lacking for the price. I wanted to be able to customize more fields in the company and customer fields but, the customer service was never very helpful in setting this up. Everything is very cut and dry, they don't let you do a lot of what you want to the software to make it suit your needs perfectly.

Pros

It is easy to navigate and get from screen to screen to check on personal information. I like the simplicity of it.

Cons

The portion that I've been able to see doesn't have a lot to offer and frequently the info shown when logged in is not accurate.

Pros

We are just in the selection mode, however the feature that we have seen seems to be fully ready for our business.

Cons

We dont have the skillset to implement in a timely manner.

Pros

Ease of use and customizing the reports

Cons

I wish more advanced training were offered aside from videos

Pros

The software was very easy to use, very user friendly and layout was simple.

Sage consistenly bring great products to the table we are so happy for a vendor like them

Cons

There isnt much I don't like. Hard to say anything bad and i have gone through a lot of software. I really enjoyed the products so i dont have anything bad to say about it.

Pros

The interactive dashboard is great. It provides a number of visual elements that delivers a variety of reporting statistics. The ability for each user to customize his or her experience gives each user there own personal feel. The cost per user is affordable and staff genuinely care.

Cons

The report output is restricted to CSV and if you print to PDF then you can save to PDF as well but that's about it. The email integration outside of outlook is limited.

Pros

Ease-of-use, centralized contact location, Distributing your project pipelines to other colleagues and managers

Cons

It was a little difficult and entering contact information from business cards, would be nice to have an option to scan business cards into the database.