NetSuite adds to tool with CRM+

NetSuite Inc. bulked up its CRM application today with the release of CRM+, targeting larger customers.

The San Mateo, Calif.-based company is adding order management, up-sell and cross-sell and partner management tools, as well as basic Web hosting and analytics.

"The definition of a customer is anyone who's bought from you," said Mini Peiris, senior director of product management. "We're putting the focus back on the customer where it belongs and we're starting with order management."

Available in June at a cost of $129 per user per month, CRM+ prices higher than NetSuite CRM at $79 per user per month, but should appeal to larger companies, according to NetSuite executives. Boston-based Salesnet Inc., another hosted sales force automation provider, is itself shifting away from small and midsized businesses and focusing on larger customers.

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"Now that they have real customers I think they have all the right tools in place to move into the market with NetFlex," said Liz Herbert, an analyst with Cambridge, Mass.-based Forrester Research Inc.

NetSuite rolled out NetFlex, a customization tool, last month.

CRM+ also offers project tracking to assign activities required to complete a job and measure time against each project, an incentive management capability to allow the salesforce to track complicated compensation plans using multi-tiered rules, and a customer portal tool that provides customer self-service capabilities and cross-channel views. NetSuite is also offering partner management capabilities, giving partners visibility into sales and performance metrics.

"That will open an opportunity for people who sell indirect, which is not something we see a lot of support for with hosted vendors," Herbert said.