Generally speaking, we advise our Salesforce.com consulting clients to start with Salesforce.com Professional Edition. This edition is at $65 per user per month. You can always upgrade later if you require more features. However, you cannot downgrade.
Most organizations do not require an upgrade to Enterprise Edition. Those that do tend to are larger, more-complex businesses, where it would be easier to simplify most complex customer operations with an upgrade. It can be rapidly deployed across multiple departments and locations.
The Salesforce.com Enterprise Edition includes considerably more functionality which bridges most of the critical gaps found in the Professional Edition. Basic campaign management for marketing activities is included. The ability to send email campaigns is still very limited without the addition of one of Salesforce.com’s email partners and can add a significant expense to the overall cost per user.
Notable Features
Some of the notable features added in this edition are territory management, workflows, self service portal and web services API for integration.
If integration with other systems or workflow automation is required, then this is the CRM system edition for you. Send emails using Salesforce email templates, update fields, assign tasks, create multiple profiles, and change owners automatically based on any criteria you choose.
Enterprise edition raises the limits to ten custom apps and 200 custom objects to allow for more customization as you grow and want to track more data.
More Features
In addition to the overall enhancements, the following features can also be found in an upgrade:
- Account and Opportunity Team Selling Client Lifecycle Management
- Advanced Call Scripting
- Territory Management
- Mass Quota Updates
- Workflow and Approvals
- Marketing Automation Advanced Call Scripting Workflow and Approvals
- Customer Service and Support Service Entitlements
- Desktop and Mobile CRM Desktop Solution Administration
- Data Model Customization Custom Object Sharing Controls Smart Field Defaulting
- User Interface Customization Multiple Custom Page Layouts Record-Dependent Page Layouts AJAXToolkit
- Enterprise Administration Field-Level Security Multidepartmental Administration
- Profile-Based Departmental Security
- Delegated Administration Opportunity, Lead, and Case-Sharing Controls
- Business Process Controls Multistep Approval Processes Workflow Automation Rules and Tasks for Multiple Business Processes
- On-Demand Database Real-Time Database Mirroring Data Loader Salesforce Sandbox
Primary Reasons Our Customers Upgrade
There are several key reasons our customers tend to upgrade. Here are some of them which require consideration for your own decision:
Workflows And Approvals
There is built-in workflow software which allows for business process management. You can design, track and control business processes inside Salesforce.com. If you want to have a multi-step process where there is an approval from team members before the process proceeds, then these controls are available.
Furthermore, tasks and alerts which are triggered based on process or data conditions can be programmed into Salesforce.com. An email or an assigned task can be automated.
API And Custom Software Integrations
If you are wanting to create custom developed software scripts that are not available in the AppExchange, then you will need Enterprise Edition to accomplish this. You have the opportunity to program on top of Salesforce.com as a platform and use their API for integration and triggering scripts.
Stronger Security And Controls
There are security layers based on Roles and Profiles. These tend to suffice for most organizations. However, if you are working with multiple processes and teams, then the available security layers can be further defined using the features and toolset inside Enterprise Edition. This includes defining page layouts for data objects, field-level security (which is also available in Professional Edition), territory management, team management and data object level security.
Depending on your organizational goals, the available methods can vary with the combination of features for security and user access to information within your Salesforce.com system.
Exhaust Your System First
As advisors to our clients, we encourage our users to exhaust Professional Edition first with creative workarounds. There are many, so the dialogue around specific problems will help to clarify when you should consider any other solution. Assume there is always more than one way to get things done.
If a feature, process or requirement is important to upgrade, then it would be an appropriate time to upgrade permanently to Salesforce.com Enterprise Edition based on the cost/benefit decision.
What questions do you have about Salesforce.com Enterprise Edition?
A majority of our tasks and deadlines are predetermined. Would enterprise enable us to automate the assignment of task to team members for a given project based on things such as production time, transit time, sale start dates etc….?
Chad, yes, you can create triggers for tasks based on field criteria in your data objects.
The logic for workflows and triggers is a reason many customers upgrade. Thanks.
Does Salesforce.com allow you to upgrade any anytime during my subscription? Or do i have to wait till the end of my term? Do I get credit for my leftover investment if I upgrade mid-term?
Thanks!
Salesforce allows/encourages you to upgrade at any time, regardless of where you are at in your term. Your new term should start upon the upgrade. Note that this is for your entire organization of user licenses.
You might also talk with your rep at Salesforce.com about quarterly payments. What is the motivation to move to Enterprise Edition?