Microsoft Raises the User Minimum for Dynamics CRM Online

If you have recently looked into Microsoft Dynamics CRM Online, you may have discovered that the minimum is now five (5) Professional licenses for new subscribers. Microsoft increased the user minimum when it launched the newest version of its cloud-based CRM service, Microsoft Dynamics CRM Online Fall ’13, back in October. At this time, the user minimum applies only to new subscribers and not to those companies that were CRM Online subscribers prior to the release of CRM Online Fall ’13.

Along with the new release, Microsoft introduced a completely new pricing and licensing model for CRM 2013, which replaced the single price of Microsoft Dynamics CRM Online 2011 ($44 per-user, per-month). The new model provides customers with an opportunity to choose between the three different licenses, which I’ll summarize below.

Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2013 License Types

Professional – $65 per user, per month

The Professional license is the top-of-the-line license. Despite the price increase, Microsoft expects that most companies will provide this license level to most of their CRM users. As mentioned before, every new CRM Online account must maintain a minimum of five Professional licenses.

Basic – $30 per user, per month

The Basic license maintains most of the core features of Dynamics CRM at a reduced cost. Companies that find that the Basic license serves the needs of most of their customers can actually lower the monthly cost of their CRM service by converting some of their licenses to Basic.

Essential – $15 per user, per month

The Essential license is meant to provide lightweight access to custom applications that are created using the xRM framework of Microsoft Dynamics CRM.

Microsoft Dynamics CRM Online Alternatives

In addition to the various CRM products available from competitors, there are two CRM Online alternatives from Microsoft itself.

If you know that you want Microsoft Dynamics CRM but you don’t want to pay for licenses you aren’t going to use, there is an alternative available. xRM, a Microsoft Partner, provides partner-hosted Microsoft Dynamics CRM through itshostedMScrm website. Like CRM Online, partner-hosted Dynamics CRM is a cloud-based CRM service. There is no hardware or software to buy. xRM provides both a no-contract option and a no-setup-fee option for its hosted CRM service. The user minimum is one (1) Professional license. Click here to learn more about partner-hosted Microsoft Dynamics CRM.

Another CRM Online alternative from Microsoft is Business Contact Manager. Business Contact Manager is a free plugin for Outlook that helps small companies manage contacts and track sales. While it doesn’t provide nearly as many features as a true CRM application, Business Contact Manager is a good option for very small companies with limited CRM needs. Click here to download Business Contact Manager.

If you have any additional questions about Microsoft Dynamics CRM, please contact xRM at sales@xrm.com or visitwww.xrm.com.