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Microsoft Dynamics CRM vs Salesforce Marketing Cloud comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Categories and Ranking

Microsoft Dynamics CRM
Ranking in Marketing Management
2nd
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
76
Ranking in other categories
CRM Customer Engagement Centers (1st), CRM (2nd), Local Government CRM (1st), Sales Force Automation (2nd)
Salesforce Marketing Cloud
Ranking in Marketing Management
1st
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.3
Number of Reviews
55
Ranking in other categories
Social CRM (2nd), Marketing Automation (1st), Social Media Management Solutions (2nd)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of March 2025, in the Marketing Management category, the mindshare of Microsoft Dynamics CRM is 23.2%, up from 23.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Salesforce Marketing Cloud is 15.5%, down from 18.9% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Marketing Management
 

Featured Reviews

Rishabh Chhajer - PeerSpot reviewer
Intuitive APIs, customizable design, but dashboards could improve
The most advantageous aspect of Microsoft Dynamics CRM is its periodic updates. Every quarter, Microsoft releases upgrades that address bugs and vulnerabilities. As a company governed by the Reserve Bank of India and SAP security regulations for our stock operations, we conduct periodic reviews of our applications, including Microsoft Dynamics CRM. Whenever we submit an audit report and identify bugs, we reach out to the Microsoft team for assistance. They assure us that the issues will be fixed in the next quarterly release. As a result, we have not experienced any outstanding bugs that have not been recorded or addressed.
SantoshKrishna - PeerSpot reviewer
Easy to deploy, stable, and scalable
The encryption and decryption have room for improvement. We need to be confident that the customer's data is secure when shared outside of the organization. I would like to request additional mobile app features that go beyond push notifications. As the mobile development industry continues to advance with new technologies, such as AI components, it is important to consider these advancements when setting up campaigns. Currently, campaigns are scheduled to be sent to customers at a prescribed time, but they may not be relevant to the customer unless they see them as valuable. For example, if I want to run a campaign offering loans, I would need to consider the customer's needs and balance. In the future, I hope Salesforce can incorporate an AI component that utilizes the shared data, rather than just scheduling campaigns.

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"The solution is easy to use and stable. It offers a 360-degree view of your customers. It allows you to track interactions, giving you full visibility into customer habits and behavior"
"The way it effectively works with the array of other Microsoft tools, such as Azure, is valuable. It works very well with the use of data linking and things like that. Overall, it is a great overall tool to have an effective understanding of the transactional background of each of our customers."
"Microsoft Dynamics CRM brings the most value in terms of its ease of implementation."
"The initial setup is very easy."
"This is a scalable solution."
"Working with all Microsoft products from one platform is very useful."
"The solution is scalable."
"Microsoft Dynamics CRM is a comprehensive solution and is well-integrated into other Microsoft solutions, including ERP solutions. Additionally, it is feature-rich."
"It is a great solution. I like its stability, scalability, and performance."
"The ability to automate processes is one of the most valuable features of Salesforce. This sets it part from other systems. We use the journey builder to design a fully automated journey."
"Marketing Cloud offers a 360 customers experience as it integrates with Service Cloud and Sales Cloud, the CRM portion of Salesforce. The different platforms integrate easily which makes it easy to manage customer communication using a single point of truth."
"The most valuable features of Salesforce Marketing Cloud are that it performs well and gives me what I need. It's the most friendly interface system for CRM I've worked with. Additionally, it integrates fairly well with different kinds of AI and ML to allow you to receive more out of your application."
"The most valuable feature is the 'Accelerators', which are expert-taught subject matter webinars on items such as personalization of emails and SMS to contacts and prospects."
"Salesforce Marketing Cloud's integrations are seamless since it is a native application. It helps us with B2B and B2C send-outs and can handle large columns."
"Marketing Cloud has improved our productivity and our team enjoy using it."
"It is straightforward to set up."
 

Cons

"The main issue with Microsoft Dynamics CRM is that its GUI isn't very attractive. Overall, the solution has the same functionalities as other CRMs such as Salesforce, but Salesforce is much simpler to use. Microsoft Dynamics CRM is complicated to use, and this is another area for improvement. It was also more difficult to set up the solution, so its setup could still be improved. What I'd like to see in the next version of Microsoft Dynamics CRM is a cleaner user interface because currently, it looks messy to me. Salesforce CRM has a better, more simplified user interface that makes it easier for you to get what you need, while in Microsoft Dynamics CRM, you have to put in a lot of effort to get things done."
"Microsoft Dynamics CRM could improve by being more user-friendly and having a better design. I have used Service Desk and it is not user-friendly but this solution is worse. The graphical interface is not intuitive, you need someone to guide you or you will have difficulties navigating around to find the file you need. The data we are normally dealing with is boring enough and the interface could be more attractive and more exciting. The tabs and arrangement could be done better to be more user-friendly. Microsoft Excel, PowerPoint, and Word are fine and Microsoft should extend their user-friendliness and intuitiveness to Microsoft Dynamics."
"My company's biggest challenge with Microsoft Dynamics CRM is wanting to market solely to leads without having to create a contact and link the contact to the lead. From a marketing standpoint, there's room for improvement in the lead process of Microsoft Dynamics CRM."
"We would like to see the tech support for this product improved, at present we are frequently waiting for a couple of days before we receive any response."
"In terms of the performance, when it comes to loading a large volume of data, it's slow at times, so the system could be optimized."
"The overall price of Microsoft Dynamics CRM could improve."
"It would be better if it were more secure."
"Microsoft Dynamics CRM's customer support could be improved as tickets usually take a long time to resolve."
"In terms of marketing, I don't think Salesforce invests the same level of intensity in promoting Marketing Cloud...Pricing is a concern and needs improvement, as some customers find the product a bit too expensive."
"User management could be better."
"The general setup and understanding of how to use it can be improved. There should be easier self-service for setting up dashboards. Currently, we have someone setting them up for us. I wish it was easier."
"Clarity around new features could be improved when they are released."
"Marketing Cloud's forecasting could be improved."
"They could improve the product's data integration functionality for larger companies."
"If you want to use advanced features in Salesforce Marketing Cloud, they are extremely difficult to use."
"The processing speed, the way information displays, and scrolling options can be improved."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The solution is expensive."
"Microsoft often encourages customers to commit to multi-year enterprise-level agreements, such as three or five-year deals with a minimum commitment of, for example, $200,000 dollars. However, in order to acquire more customers, I believe Microsoft should offer this same rate for one-year commitments for customers who want to experience it."
"Microsoft Dynamics CRM is an expensive solution."
"The cost could be cheaper. I would rate them 3 out of 5."
"There is a license required to use Microsoft Dynamics CRM."
"I rate the solution's pricing as a seven out of ten."
"Microsoft Dynamics CRM is slightly cheaper than Salesforce today. Pricing for the solution is pretty aggressive in the market."
"Microsoft Dynamics CRM is a little expensive solution."
"This solution is priced in the medium to high price range."
"The price is expensive."
"Salesforce has different versions of the solution and some are more suitable for smaller clients. However, Salesforce is expensive."
"It's not cheap, which is why I recommend that you use Marketing Cloud to create automated journeys. If you plan to use Marketing Cloud just to send emails, use another tool."
"We did a yearly license. We negotiated and got a great deal. I don't think we would have gotten far with the regular price, but they negotiated, so it was worth that."
"This is a low cost solution suited to larger organizations."
"Salesforce Marketing Cloud is a highly expensive solution, it needs to be less expensive. We are on an annual license to use the solution."
"We have two types of licensing. We have a yearly license for end users and we have a concurrent login for selling."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
12%
Government
11%
Financial Services Firm
11%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Educational Organization
59%
Computer Software Company
7%
Financial Services Firm
5%
Manufacturing Company
4%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Microsoft Dynamics CRM?
The most valuable features of Microsoft Dynamics CRM are all the filters and possible reports.
What needs improvement with Microsoft Dynamics CRM?
Costing might be a reason for concern. It could be an issue for the organization, or maybe not. It's uncertain.
What is your primary use case for Microsoft Dynamics CRM?
I use the solution to manage the lead sales pipeline and enable the marketing department to maintain customer data.
What do you like most about Salesforce Marketing Cloud?
Datorama is part of Salesforce Marketing Cloud, which is quite a valuable feature that provides customer analytics.
What needs improvement with Salesforce Marketing Cloud?
In the SMS area, it is not up to the mark, compared to what has been developed for email.
 

Also Known As

Dynamics CRM, MS Dynamics CRM
ExactTarget
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Metro Bank, Nissan, Pandora, Delta, Haynes International, City of London, Trek and many more market leaders.
American Express, Financial Conduct Authority, KPN, Merck KGaA, Peterborough City Council, The Chapar, ADP, Financial Times, Stanley Black & Decker, SureFlap, Western Union, Philips
Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft Dynamics CRM vs. Salesforce Marketing Cloud and other solutions. Updated: March 2025.
842,296 professionals have used our research since 2012.