Two partners speak: Why they chose selling Microsoft Dynamics 365 over Salesforce

Salesforce.com or Microsoft Dynamics 365? Analyst reports and a plethora of pundits would argue with equal fervor for one or the other. Resellers and service providers often lean to the center of such a debate, willing to support clients in whichever choice they make. But recently some channel teams have made their case for a decision to lean strongly toward Microsoft in this debate.

Catapult ERP, Vancouver, BC, for example, announced in March that it was backing away from Salesforce and focusing on Dynamics. It did so in a blog post by CEO Elliot Fishman with the provocative title "Substance vs. Style: Why we're shifting focus to Microsoft Dynamics 365."

"The truth of the matter is it had to do with our strategy and background," Fishman told us. That includes a desire to focus on midmarket companies that are "bigger than a small business," around for 10 years or longer and with a sustainable business, he said. By the numbers, that's usually 25-150 employees and $25-$150 million in revenues.

"We have always felt Dynamics was a great offering both on the ERP side with NAV, and with CRM, which can scale way up and way down," Fishman explained. But ultimately it is the breadth of Microsoft offerings, including Office 365, Windows, and Azure that help Dynamics fit with the needs of his customers and his company, Fishman explained.

Indeed, it was customers that drew Catapult toward Salesforce. "Over the last decade, with more information available, customers and prospects often came to us knowing exactly what they wanted rather than looking to us for advice," he said. After a substantial number ...