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No, we’re not going “Dear Abby” on you. We’re talking about your relationship with your CRM provider.

It’s a tale you’ve heard before with the message of caveat emptor. Everything starts fine, the whole thing seems like a promising partnership between you and your chosen CRM vendor. It’s been a short relationship but things are going well and you want to take things to the next level, stary discovery sessions, and maybe even purchase this product. But…the more you learn, the more flaws you find, flaws that you can’t stand. This may be a lack of innovation, an ambiguous pricing model, or a disconnect between what you actually need and what the vendor says you need.

Time to consider your options. Are you too far in to go back and look at another vendor? Are you stuck? You haven’t signed anything but you’ve invested so much time. 

If something is giving you pause, it’s time to take a step back BEFORE you do anything else.

Maybe It’s the Vendor…

If you are considering a new CRM relationship with Salesforce, you should be aware of a few things. Salesforce pricing includes upcharges for system usage, which are often very hard to calculate and budget. Just as companies start to realize the business benefits of the CRM system, the costs start to grow exponentially varying wildly from the advertised pricing. Upcharges can include API calls, which equate to connections to other data sources. Storage-based fees can balloon when storing large files such as PDFs or presentation slide decks in the system. In addition, while mobile is considered part of the essential package, it’s truly limited to sales functions, if you want to add additional functionality to that, be prepared to shell out at least double the base according to Tech.co. Add into that custom-built applications and integration, and you’re looking at quite a large upcharge when it comes to your new CRM platform. 

To understand why you need to understand the Salesforce business model. They talk about “the age of the customer” and how they want to help you build close customer relationships. That’s what every CRM company should help you do. Inside that message, they also lock you into a proprietary cloud environment that is limited, costing you to access the data you already own. Think about that. 

It is like being charged a toll every time you park your car in your own garage.

A common aspect of TrustPilot reviews remarks that the high cost of the platform is deterrent but they often feel stuck in Salesforce. 

The other thing that gets customers of Salesforce? They don’t get attention if they aren’t one of the big fish or they only are available during contract renewals. 

Good luck with that one. 

Explore Your Options

Breaking up is hard to do, the best approach is to avoid a dysfunctional CRM relationship in the first place and choose a better partner from the outset.

SugarCRM believes strongly in simple, predictable pricing with no hidden fees or forced upgrades. Unlike Salesforce, Sugar Sell includes one price – no unwanted additions without talking about it and we can be as complex or as simple as you need. We encourage you to compare pricing but also compare value because we believe that your experience and value are also part of our commitment to customers. 

We understand that it’s not about arbitrary API limits, integration customization pricing, or secret pricing books—it’s about you, enabling your business so you can build your relationship with customers today, tomorrow, and as long as you’re a SugarCRM customer. 

These are some critical elements to consider when entering into a new CRM relationship. Buyer beware!

For more information about hidden CRM costs, check out our pricing comparison guide.