Salesforce.comThe online customer relationship management tool is simultaneously scorned for its complexity and heralded for its performance. Here's a view from both sides.

Can't Live with It
We are a marketing company that produces custom on-hold programming, internet broadcast videos, website design and a new product calledSiteSpokesPerson.comthat adds a live video actor to any business website. We tried to use Salesforce.com but it only helped manage the sales process, not the production process. We found off-the-shelf CRMs--even with some tweaking--to be too rigid and unaccommodating. Many of our sales opportunities and additional client interactions occur during the production process, therefore we needed a system that allowed for both production flow and sales opportunity management. We have multiple upsell opportunities along our production process, so we built an internal CRM. Our new program adds a tool to our sales reps' toolbox and integrates nicely with our order-entry system.
-- Jesse B. Lubar, President, OMG National, Sunrise, Fla.

Can't Live Without It
I love new technology, but I have a very slow learning curve. I am in the process of launching a new online platform, MeetSaas.com, and I wanted a CRM that was as easy to navigate as my site. The initial problem I had with Salesforce.com is that its technology is so robust that I struggled with understanding how to harness its power. I realized that once it was properly implemented, we would be able to leverage its technology to help us accommodate rapid growth and scalability. We understand our work flows, the life cycle of our customers and how to effectively engage them. We wanted to measure and report these metrics internally and to our partners. That's everything Salesforce.com is built to do, and do well.
--Daniel Kaneshiro, Managing Partner, Resource Suites, Honolulu