Act Ups Corporate Appeal

Although long known as a sales force automation tool for individuals and very small teams, Sage Softwares Act has evolved into a good, easy-to-use system for larger teams in companies looking for a way to manage sales.

Sage Softwares Act Premium for Workgroups 2007 (also known as Version 9.0) began shipping in September and is priced at $400 per user for the EX edition that eWeek Labs tested. The product is available at a variety of price points, from $230 for individual users to $480 per user for the SX edition of Premium for Workgroups 2007. The EX edition includes Microsofts SQL Server 2005 Express Edition, while the SX edition includes Microsofts SQL Server 2005 Standard Edition. (Adding Web-based access to Act Premium for Workgroups 2007 costs $400 per user.)

During tests, we found that Act Premium for Workgroups 2007 EX does a good job of managing sales for small groups.

This new workgroup version of Act includes two enhancements that greatly improve the products suitability for the enterprise: tighter integration with Microsofts Outlook and improved security through new password policies and field-level security.

However, Acts feature set is limited to SFA (sales force automation) capabilities, so companies that want a full, integrated CRM (customer relationship management) system should look at solutions including Sages own SalesLogix. Companies also can go the add-on route to add CRM capabilities to Act.

Next Page: Familiar territory.

Next: ' Familiar Territory ' >>