Why Honest Reviews of Microsoft Dynamics GP Add-Ons Don’t Exist, And Four Ways to Still Get Answers

At Convergence 2011, Microsoft's premier customer conference for their Dynamics product line, a lot of Dynamics users will be visiting the Expo Hall looking to enhance their solution with software add-ons from Independent Software Vendors (ISVs).  It will be fairly easy for attendees to pull out their maps and find the booths with relevant software. The tough part is figuring out if any of these solutions works as advertised and whether the ISVs can offer the proper support. 

After Convergence it's not unusual to find users wishing there were independent ratings of ISV products to help them sift through all the various options. Well, I'm here to tell you that it will probably never happen, but there are some steps that users can take now to get the answers they are looking for. 

Independent ratings of ISV solutions won't happen for a variety of reasons. Partners won't do it because sometimes even a solution with problems is still the right fit. It may also be the only option for certain scenario. Other times they add a client that is already running a product and they are going to have to help support it. Publicly trashing someone's product doesn't improve the ISV's willingness to provide support.

Additionally, partners are biased. They fall in love with products and companies that have worked well for them over the years. There is no incentive for partners to compare three audit trail solutions when they are already happy with one that works well for their clients.

Users can't provide independent ratings because they typically only have experience with one of several possible solutions for a given need. Once a choice is made in the sales cycle their experience with competing products ...