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1Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errors2Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minute3Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsSAP’s 2006 on-demand CRM launch brought a hosted, subscription-based sales tool to market with a reported starting price of $75 per user per month and a 100-user minimum. The offer was aimed chiefly at larger organizations, especially companies already using SAP systems. These are launch-era terms reported in 2006, not current pricing or evidence that the service is still available.
What SAP CRM on-demand was
SAP CRM on-demand was a hosted, web-based subscription service initially focused on sales force automation. Instead of beginning with a large, complex CRM deployment, a company could start with sales functions and expand later. SAP senior vice president of CRM product and global strategy Bob Stutz described the intended approach to Stacy Cowley of InfoWorld on February 2, 2006: “The reason most CRM implementations fail today is that people jump into them with both feet,” he said. “They don’t really know what their needs are. This allows you to start and get up and running quickly. It’s a good on-ramp.”
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The launch was part of SAP’s effort to extend CRM to users and departments that might not have undertaken a traditional enterprise deployment. Cowley’s report contrasted the subscription service with ERP implementations that could involve high upfront licensing costs and complex implementation work.
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What the 2006 launch terms were
| Launch detail | What the report said |
|---|---|
| Starting price | $75 per user per month, as reported by InfoWorld in 2006; this is not a current quote. |
| Minimum users | 100 users, as reported by InfoWorld in 2006. The report said the minimum limited the potential customer base to enterprise clients. |
| Uptime commitment | SAP reportedly guaranteed 99.5 percent uptime, according to InfoWorld in 2006. The report said higher service-level agreements were available for an additional charge. |
| Languages at launch | English and German. French, Japanese, Portuguese, Spanish, and Chinese versions were slated to follow within three months, according to the 2006 report. |
| Other CRM functions | Customer-service and marketing tools were described as future releases; the report did not give their release dates. |
The figures describe the launch announcement period only. They should not be used to estimate present-day SAP prices, service commitments, or availability.
#1 Best Overall
Who hosted and sold the service
InfoWorld reported that IBM would host the service and operate its data centers, while SAP alone would sell it. IBM was also to offer consulting services. That arrangement paired SAP’s CRM product and sales channel with IBM’s hosting and consulting role; the report does not establish later operational or commercial arrangements.
Why some SAP customers were interested
American Standard had delayed a full CRM installation because of complexity and saw a faster rollout as a practical first step. Tim Gallagher, vice president of customer care for the company’s bath and kitchen divisions, told Cowley: “We are the masters of Excel spreadsheets.” He expected American Standard to go live with 150 users within a few months of the February 2006 report. That was a forecast at the time, not confirmation that the deployment later occurred.
Gallagher also saw potential to connect the initial sales effort to company data later: “We can do this for now, and when we’re ready to move forward with a full-blown CRM system, we can do that,” Gallagher said. “Down the road, we want to tie it into [our business warehouse]. We see this as the first step in connecting all this together.” The appeal was therefore not simply avoiding a large initial project; it also included a possible path toward integration with an existing SAP-oriented business environment.
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The launch was presented as competition in hosted CRM, but the customer example in the 2006 report does not support a simple story of SAP replacing Salesforce.com. DuPont teams already used Salesforce.com, and Michael Michlovich, DuPont Marketing and Sales IT Director, said: “We’ve had good luck with Salesforce.com,” Michlovich said. “We’re not tearing anything out. We’re going to make a move only when there’s some business driver to do so.” DuPont was exploring SAP back-office integration rather than committing to a wholesale replacement.
Rank #3
The evidence supports a limited comparison: SAP’s offer promised a quicker, hosted starting point and potential fit with SAP back-office systems, but had a reported 100-user minimum and $75-per-user monthly starting price. The article supplies no equivalent Salesforce.com price or minimum, and it does not establish which product was better. It also does not support conclusions about either product’s capabilities today.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What the launch report does—and does not—establish
At publication, few customers had gone live, and SAP had not supplied adoption forecasts or targets in the report. The account is useful for understanding SAP’s 2006 move into subscription CRM, its intended enterprise audience, and why some existing SAP customers considered a staged deployment. It does not verify current availability, current terms, or subsequent customer outcomes. For a historical account of the announcement, see Stacy Cowley’s February 2, 2006 report in InfoWorld.
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Best Value
- Author: Bungay Stanier, Michael.
- Publisher: Page Two
- Pages: 244
- Publication Date: 2016-02-29
- Edition: 1
Rank #4
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.
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