After overcoming challenges in the financial sector, your business is poised to simplify operations by consolidating multiple software applications into a single, streamlined Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system.
Both companies are similar in that they offer a service to track customer information, sales, pipelines, campaigns, and interactions. Both reduce the amount of time your employees need per customer, smoothing the flow of operations and increasing profit.
“70% of customers expect every representative they contact to know their purchase and issue history.”
The differences are important in your CRM choices are important. One main consideration is that Salesforce has always been a cloud-based SaaS model but Microsoft Dynamics has not. Furthermore, Microsoft Dynamics relies on a host of integrated applications and IT resources.
| Salesforce | Microsoft Dynamics |
| Key Features: | Key Features: |
| Customer Relationship Management (CRM): Centralized customer profiles that provide a 360-degree view of the customer, their financial goals, and interactions with the bank. | Customer Engagement: Provides a unified view of customer interactions, enabling banks to offer personalized products and services. |
| Financial Services Cloud: Tailored for retail banking, commercial banking, and wealth management with features that address client onboarding, loan servicing, and relationship management. | Financial Services Accelerator: A pre-configured solution tailored to financial services, which includes industry-specific data models and workflows to manage loans, deposits, and other banking services. |
| Collaboration Tools: Integration with Salesforce Chatter and third-party apps to improve collaboration between departments (e.g., sales, service, and compliance). | ERP Integration: Full integration with back-office systems, allowing for seamless management of financial operations, from client onboarding to loan processing. |
| Automation: Automates key banking processes such as loan approvals, customer onboarding, and compliance tasks. | Microsoft Ecosystem Integration: Integrates deeply with Microsoft Office 365 tools like Excel, Word, Power BI (for advanced analytics), and Teams (for internal collaboration). |
| Compliance & Risk Management: Built-in tools to manage regulatory compliance and reduce risk exposure. | Compliance and Risk Management: Tools for managing regulatory compliance, data privacy, and risk management. |
| AI & Analytics: With Einstein AI, banks can predict customer needs, personalize services, and provide more efficient customer support. | Data Analytics: Leveraging Power BI for analytics and reporting, providing deep insights into customer behaviors, loan performance, and risk exposure. |
| Strengths: | Strengths: |
| Extensive customization and scalability for banking operations. | Strong integration with Microsoft tools (Excel, Power BI, Teams), ideal for banks already using Microsoft technologies. |
| Strong AI and analytics capabilities with Einstein to enhance customer experiences. | Offers both CRM and ERP capabilities, making it an all-in-one solution for banks. |
| Robust ecosystem for integrating with other banking and financial systems (e.g., credit scoring systems). | Pre-configured banking solutions (Financial Services Accelerator) reduce the need for heavy customization. |
| Weaknesses: | Weaknesses: |
| Can be expensive for smaller banking institutions. | Requires more configuration to tailor it specifically to banking compared to Salesforce Financial Services Cloud. |
| May require significant customization and development for specific banking needs. | Less focus on customer-facing banking services compared to competitors like Salesforce. |
Salesforce Core Features
User Experience – Superior
User Friendliness – High
One-Click Upgrade – Yes
- Ecosystem – Extensive marketplace (AppExchange) with customization options through the Salesforce platform. There are more than 3,200 apps on AppExchange all of which can subtly enhance a customer’s user experience.
- Sales Cloud – Contact, opportunity, lead and data management, seamless mobile and email workflow and approvals, sales forecasting, files sync and share immediately. Centralized customer profiles that provide a complete view of the customer: their financial goals and interactions with the bank. Automates key banking processes such as loan approvals, customer onboarding, and compliance tasks.
- Service Cloud – Tailored for retail banking, commercial banking, and wealth management with features that address client onboarding, loan servicing, and relationship management.
- Marketing Cloud – Compliance & Risk Management aware. Built-in tools to manage regulatory compliance and reduce risk exposure. B2C journey and B2B marketing automation with digital advertising, social media marketing and mobile messaging.
- AI – With Einstein AI, banks can predict customer needs, personalize services, and provide more efficient customer support.
Microsoft Dynamic Core Features
User Experience – High
User Friendliness – Medium
One-Click Upgrade – No
- Platforms – Seamless integration with Microsoft tools (Excel, Power BI, Teams), ideal for banks already using Microsoft technologies.
- Sales Automation – Microsoft Dynamics offers tools to manage a cross-channel customer base, sales performance and pipelines, automate marketing campaigns, and track customer interactions.
- Service Integration – Cross-channel customer case management, self-service portals, incident routing, and a pre-configured solution tailored to financial services.
- Marketing – Leveraging Power BI for analytics and reporting, providing deep insights into customer behaviors, loan performance, and risk exposure.
- AI – AI assistant to assist sellers in order to track daily actions.
Conclusion
Although this guide is brief, here at Platinum Cubed we’ve invested years comparing Salesforce to Microsoft Dynamics in an effort to deeply understand how these diametrically different technologies serve our customers. In summary, we choose Salesforce because they offer a much more precise way to tailor CRM systems for businesses in the financial sector. Our team can make the switch from Microsoft Dynamics to Salesforce a smooth process for you because we understand both.
Salesforce is the ultimate CRM solution, built with a laser focus on delivering unmatched value to CRM customers. At Platinum Cubed, we specialize in helping you harness its full power to drive your business forward.
Start with a no-hassle, no-cost consultation today.