Inbound vs. Outbound Sales and Marketing

Inbound strategies are popular with digital marketers who want to attract users to a brand with engaging content and one-on-one conversations. Microsoft Dynamics 365 balances inbound, outbound, and everything in between, while HubSpot is a newer solution built specifically for deep inbound functionality.  

Microsoft’s CRM comes from traditional sales techniques such as B2B and outbound sales and marketing. Inbound is not entirely out of its wheelhouse, but Dynamics 365 excels at its outbound capabilities. The software’s highly customizable reports and dashboards, sales goalposts, rich drill-down capabilities, and various ways to organize sales information make it appealing to Microsoft-focused organizations. Ultimately, Dynamics 365 is best for organizations focused on sales data rather than content marketing efforts. 

HubSpot’s inbound sales strategies revolve around content-driven marketing to generate prospects and leads. Because inbound lends itself to a heavy marketing focus, HubSpot’s flexible Sales Hub and easy-to-bundle Marketing Hub are perfect for marketing-focused organizations. Sales Hub features like email templates, canned snippets, and conversation routing offer ease and automation for marketing-focused sales efforts. For companies that want to prioritize creative marketing strategies for customer acquisition efforts, HubSpot is tough to beat. 

Small, Mid-Sized, and Enterprise Businesses

The size of your business will determine which software best suits your needs. Small and mid-sized companies benefit from flexible software like HubSpot Sales Hub, while larger organizations will get more mileage from Microsoft Dynamics 365. 

Large mid-sized and enterprise companies may want full functionality from the start, and their higher budgets for software purchases reflect this. Microsoft’s Dynamics 365 applications are great fits for such organizations because the Microsoft Platform requires a partner to help with implementation and customization. Larger organizations have the time, resources, and financial capabilities to handle the necessary touchpoints for a Dynamics 365 CRM implementation. 

Extensive implementations are not always feasible for small and mid-sized companies with lower budgets. HubSpot solutions are excellent options for these businesses because pricing follows a “freemium” model. The free version of the software is relatively limited in functionality, but it offers a valuable sampling of HubSpot’s CRM features. However, HubSpot breaks its CRM functionality into several small, focused solutions. You’ll need to purchase a software bundle if you want all-in-one software for sales, marketing, and customer service. 

Cloud vs. On-premise

Would you prefer broad cloud deployment or a flexible on-premise or hybrid deployment? Cloud deployment is appealing for modern businesses searching for high-level security and readily accessible data. On the other hand, companies that aren’t prepared to manage a cloud infrastructure or simply don’t need that level of accessibility might opt for hybrid or on-premise solutions.  

Businesses can deploy Microsoft Dynamics 365 Sales through the cloud, on-premise, or using a hybrid model. Microsoft’s CRM was initially created for on-premise deployment but has since evolved to offer robust cloud capabilities. Dynamics 365 CRM is an excellent choice if your company needs flexible deployment options. 

HubSpot Sales Hub has a cloud-only deployment. Because the software was built for the cloud, it is efficient and provides robust capabilities anytime, anywhere. The software is accessible through a web browser or a mobile app produced by HubSpot.  

Updates

How many software updates would you like per year? Do you want to explore new features each month or at a slower pace? And what time and resources do you have to manage these updates?  

Microsoft’s Dynamics 365 sales updates occur twice a year for cloud-based customers and annually for on-premise customers. The cloud solution updates are automatic, while the on-premise updates require teaming up with Microsoft or your software provider. The Microsoft website highlights each release and update for customers.  

HubSpot updates its various solutions each month. Each update is paired with a blog spotlighting the new changes “in less time than a coffee break.” Because HubSpot is deployed in the cloud, updates are automatic and can be completed in a short amount of time. 

Sum it up

Dynamics 365 CRM is a sales-oriented solution that you can deploy in the cloud, on-premise, or through a mix of the two. This Microsoft solution is best for mid-size and enterprise companies that need a variety of sales and marketing features. Customers receive up to two updates yearly, which is especially helpful for on-premise and hybrid customers who may need to work with their software partner to update. 

HubSpot Sales Hub is an excellent solution for modern businesses needing marketing automation capabilities and data on the go. Small and mid-size businesses can deploy HubSpot Sales Hub in the cloud to make data accessible across the organization, and the software receives frequent automatic updates that do not require hardware to manage.  

At Cargas, our expert consulting team specializes in Microsoft Dynamics 365 CRM. If you’re struggling to determine which of these solutions is the best fit for your business, we’d love to help. Let’s connect to talk about your needs and what you’re looking for in a software solution.