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Commence
Online CRM for Small to Mid-Size Businesses
(12)
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Commence Features
Features Summary
Functionality
4.6
/5
44
Total features
38
8 categories
Commence features
Common features of CRM software
Screenshots
Contenders comparison
Common Commence comparisons
Reviewers who mentioned features said:
Robert P.
Law Practice,
Used daily for 2+ years
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I use Commence for calendaring, contact management, task management and timekeeping. When it comes to personal and professional information management, I essentially "live" in Commence. I cannot imagine working life without it.
The upgrade process was efficient, professionally handled and seamless. Commence is extremely customizable. On startup, it loads almost instantly. I have a very small firm, and I use it constantly for calendaring, contact management, task managment and timekeeping. I've used Commence since the early 2000's, and Commence Corp. has consistently supported and improved its products.
I rated it tops in Ease of Use, although for a solo user like me there is a learning curve. The User Manual is very good (occasionally a bit technical).
Ozair E.
Marketing and Advertising, self-employed
Used daily for 2+ years
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Multiple. It has become my primarty Database and CRM software. For a small business with multiple needs, at an extremely reasonable cost per year.
Commence user for 15 yrs. As a marketing consultant and service provider to multiple non-profit clients, Commence is the primary Database/CRM software I use for all my needs. I have created multiple Commence Databases for multiple applications on my own to suit my specific and particular needs. I have created Commence Applications for Client Management, Inventory management and GTD (Getting Things...
I would like Commence to address in their future version of non web based standalone Commence: 1. Allow creation of some sort of Simple Spreadsheet into the DB. Spreadsheet format is something that we are all fond of and comfortable with, and it would be a great boost to have that functionality built in. If this exists already, and I am not aware of it, please let me know? 2. While adding text...
Thank you for your recommendations. You'll be pleased to learn we have a grid view that provides a spreadsheet view right in the product. We have also received suggestions about allowing formatted text in notes and will consider this for the future.
Dave M.
Semiconductors, 11-50 employees
Used daily for 2+ years
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Cost effective, configurable, maintainable CRM.
As a Manufacturers Representative, we have created an implementation of Commence on which we run almost all of our business operations (Opportunity Management, Sales History, Quotations, Forecasts, Tracking overseas, Leads, Target customer, as well as the usual CRM contact info). We developed this in-house from the ground up to meet our specific needs....and so can you! Why shoe horn your data needs...
While spreadsheets are the best tool to analyze data, CRMs were never designed to do that. But, the ability to compile reports with totals/summaries is a challenge to implement in Commence RM Desktop (lots of scripting required which we choose not to do due to maintainability concerns). Manually filtering data within Commence (and using the summary button for totals and averages) works great for the most rudimentary tasks, and exporting as tab-delimited TXT takes a few easy steps to get into Excel.
Thank you for your review of Commence. Buyers of CRM software often overlook the need for a flexible solution that can change along with their business. Thank you for bringing this to the attention to others. Whether you are using our cloud based version or our desktop solution, this flexibility coupled with robust functionality and best in class customers service differentiate Commence CRM from competitors.
John M.
Mining & Metals, 1-10 employees
Used daily for 2+ years
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I never loose a contact - backup automation to the cloud I never loose a document - access to all documents generated since 1994 I can generate document and letters rapidly It integrates our data right across all platforms It integrates all business activities seamlessly.
Excellent and readily customizable GUI. Enormous flexibility and ability to use "agents" to undertake otherwise complex tasks - no coding required. Agents can integrate with everything from Google Earth to Skype and automate backups to the cloud. MS Office integration allows document generation from within the product, seamlessly merging address data and word templates. Integration with Outlook...
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John, thank you for taking the time to articulate the merits of Commence CRM. We are happy that you are realizing so much value from the product and have taken the time to inform others of the unique capabilities we can bring to their business. We appreciate your support.
Jerome S.
Hospitality, 1-10 employees
Used daily for 2+ years
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Overall... haven't found anything to compare to allow me to continuously (over 30 years) build relationships with people and business's. I could show you meetings I had with people back in 2001 if you wanted to. The support group have all been very helpful even for a small consulting company like my own.
I started using Commence in 1996 when the president of our hotel management company needed something to help him track more than 100 hotels, their brands, their owners, and their asset values. Since a hotel could change brands and owners throughout it's life cycle, the need for a many to many relationship capability was critical. Commence's architecture makes this effortless. The inherent flexibility is absolutely amazing. Still use it to this day to maintain relationships with thousands of business's in Outdoor Hospitality. Thank you!!
For what I use it for, I really don't have any negatives. Anytime I need to track a new area of our industry it is easy enough to add and link a new database and build a new relationship.
Jerome, thank you for taking the time to discuss your experience with Commence CRM Software. We are pleased that you have realized as much value from our product as you have. We look forward to working with you to ensure we address your future business requirements as well.
Verified reviewer
Utilities, 1-10 employees
Used daily for 2+ years
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We would not have stayed with Commence for so many years if they did not stand behind their product! Their support team are prompt, polite and willling to help, always! MPS tracks just about everything in our Products and Services business with Commence and we are looking to add new capabilites soon, as well!
Commence is by far the best and most flexible CRM I have used over the years. We have been a user of the desktop version of Commence since the mid-90's and still find it a relevant and speedy solution. (The search capability is SO FAST!) Being a bit of a techy type Commence allows me to customize where and when I need to in order to manage my company's unique data requirements. As we've grown over the years, so hasn't Commence with expanding features and easy solutions.
In the original product, the synchronization of the desktop database could sometimes hiccup, although with the web version, this is no longer a problem.
Brett S.
Information Services, 1-10 employees
Used daily for 2+ years
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Commence's capability, flexibility and support has made working with Commence a great experience for us.
Commence allows us to customize our critical CRM applications to automate our business processes for efficiency, ease of use and quality control. Also, the ability to deploy custom improvements to our system as needed seamlessly without user interruption is a key feature.
Commence offers good balance of features and capability that we rely on to grow our business. It does take determined effort implement a customized solution (with Commence or any other application) but it is worth the investment and critical to our success.
Lee K.
Government Administration, 1-10 employees
Used daily for 2+ years
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Grant fund accounting, employee time management, court case management, drug court case management and superior historic record retrieval.
Customization, unlimited data management and excellent customer support. After years of modification of business practices in the California court system, the Commence product has allowed up to keep up with a changing court culture and legislation.
A bit difficult to learn, but well worth the effort. Changing templates after updates to the products has presented us with unique challenges which were overcome through customer support.
Lee, thank you for discussing the extensive value you have realized with Commence CRM over the years. We are pleased that the products flexibility has enabled you to continue to enhance it to address your changing business requirements. This is clearly the strength of Commence. We look forward to continue to work with you in the years ahead.
Tim M.
Automotive, 1-10 employees
Used daily for 2+ years
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Personally I have been using this product since 1991. Over that time period I have not found a product in the CRM space that offers anywhere near the features and functionality that Commence offers. In my humble opinion, not a better more flexible CRM in the marketplace today.
The product provides the user with an easy to interpret interface which makes customization and automating tasks very straightforward. The ability to add categories with customizable fields, create interconnections between the categories and then create any number of letter templates that create a quote or cover letter with a single click are invaluable
initially struggled a bit with Mobile Link -- but once we got up and running has worked great
Paul E.
Real Estate, 1,001-5,000 employees
Used daily for 2+ years
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I can access so much custom data. The software is quick, customizable, and efficient. Cost per user if very affordable. It's not a huge risk to dive in and get something going.
Ease of use and speed. It's simple yet effective. It's not overdesigned. You do not have to click multiple times to get to the information you need. Customization is a breeze. The overall speed of the system is great. Basically no lag time.
I can't really come up with anything of substance but a better custom report write would be a benefit.
Thank you for your review of Commence CRM. You will be happy to know that while the product does have a very capable report writer we have just released an updated version that produces graphical reports as well.
Steve M.
Oil & Energy, 11-50 employees
Used daily for 2+ years
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Our business was using an excel spreadsheet to manage our customers and projects and it just was not maintainable. We selected Commence CRM because of how easy it was to use and how full functioned it was. We also use it for project management and its all integrated enabling the users to see a 360 degree views of all account, contact and project management information. As indicated our experience has been very good with the product and the company.
The flexibility to tailor things yourself is well above competitive products. The reliability of the product is outstanding and customer support has been very good, friendly knowledgeable staff.
Nothing to report here - very satisfied with the product and the company.
Brooke D.
Oil & Energy, 11-50 employees
Used daily for 6-12 months
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The software is fairly user-friendly. The software for tracking is good for tracking communication with customers and reporting.
The scheduling feature and the reports.
It does not automatically calculate the entire contract amount - multiplying the term by the rate.
Thank you for your review of Commence CRM. We are pleased that your company continues to realize value from the software.
Justin G.
Used weekly for 6-12 months
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Allowed for users off all skill levels to engage with the product! This is essential for a medium sized business today.
Robust functionality, room for growth at the same time Commence is flexible enough to addresses the unique requirements of our business. The level and quality of the on boarding service that Commence provided is top shelf. The ease of this transition had afforded us a rapid return on our investment. Features like this are the differentiation between Commence and those that simply download and walk away.
To this point we can truly say that we have not found fault with Commences platform. While "glitches" in any system are unavoidable, I Know Commence will be right there either on the phone or over email.
Peter Schoon
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Systems Support Solutions located in Minneapolis, Minnesota claims to have saved as much as $300,000 dollars a year by automating their internal sales processes. “We opened our doors in 2001,” says Peter Schoon, CEO of the company, “and wanted to find a software product that would become the core of everything we did in sales from initial prospecting and logging of information to producing quotes,...
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Nigel P.
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We have been using Commence RM for over 20 years. It has been the core to our business and allows us to function with optimised efficiency without high staffing overheads. We have found that the secret is to have good workflow processes mapped out and then we just made Commence follow these. No compromises were necessary which was a huge relief. Unlike many other apps, which over the years we have looked at because other companies claim to be better, Commence has allowed us to quickly change our system quickly and with minimal cost as our business needs have changed. Many of our team work away from the office and again this is where Commence has proved its worth. We can still fully function even when we are in areas with no internet.
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Nigel, thank you for your testimonial of Commence CRM. You have certainly taken advantage of the flexibility of our product and we are happy that it has not only met but exceeded your business requirements.
Chris Schultz
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We sell an amazing product to large educational institutions. The sales cycle can be quite long which requires us to capture and store a significant amount of data such as, notes and history, activities, documents and e-mail correspondence. We had been using multiple systems to manage our business and were simply fumbling every time we needed a complete historical profile of customer information. In addition it was almost impossible to maintain. Commence CRM has been invaluable to us. We now have one consolidated system for managing our customer relationships and since everything is stored in the cloud we have access to the most up-to-date information anytime and anywhere. We are pleased with the product and Commence customer service has been excellent.
Feature rich product Easy to use Rapid return on investment Very good customer support
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Scott G.
Retail,
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We looked at many CRM programs and we felt that Commence gave us the best bang for the buck for what we needed it to go. Happy with what the program allows us to do and the reports it allows us to create.
The customer service that we receive is tremendous. When we started using the program, we did not go through any formal training so we have questions on a regular basis. The service we get is courteous, prompt and always helpful. Especially when we have Flo helping us, she always helps to simply, explain and resolve the issue.
If you do not pay for training, you can only get support online. You do not have the ability to speak with someone.
Mary Nicolazzo
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Our firm was seeking a CRM solution that enabled us to capture, track and share information within the organization without using multiple systems. Of key importance was the ability to integrate e-mail with accounts and contacts and generate custom reports. What we liked about Commence CRM was how robust and customizable it was as compared to similarly priced products. Commence is a powerful tool that integrates marketing, sales and lead management seamlessly. Commence support has been amazing with a friendly knowledgeable staff eager to help. I recommend them highly.
Full featured easy to use product Great service staff Better value then the competition
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Melinda S.
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Commence is hands down the very best CRM solution on the market for small-to-medium sized businesses. When I researched for a CRM solution for our company, I could barely get people to give me the time of day and their rates were not competitive with my budget needs; Commence had a live person (the sales person that ultimately provided me with my quote) who answered the phone the first time I called. After they got our business, things only got better. I send an email or make a phone call, I get an answer and I get help. My relationship with Commence is what I wish I had with all my vendors. I can't recommend them highly enough.
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Manjit Syven Birk
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My firm has been using Commence for more than a decade. The ease at which one can work with relational data makes Commence arguably one of the most powerful software programs in the industry. Commence Corporation is a rare example of reliability, value and performance. When I think of Commence I think of integrity. The company offers a robust solution backed by a staff of experienced people.
Real value at an affordable cost Great service Product is enhanced every year
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Cary Schwartz
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Good product and an even better company. Offers excellent value added services for those that need assistance with lead generation, sales opportunity management and customer service insuring that you get real value from their CRM solution. Strong endorsement here.
Excellent functionality at its price point Good value added services More of a partner than a vendor Answers the phone immediately with qualified service staff
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Paul M.
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We've been using Commence for several years. It handles our in-house ticketing (reserved seating and general admission), rental events, estimates and invoices, patron database, rental client database, events calendars, employee scheduling, reporting, and so much more. It is solid, feature-filled, quick to learn, and incredibly flexible.
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Mel N.
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Highly recommend
Very ease to use yet offers robust functionality. Very good customer support. Telephone gets answered and the staff is very knowledgeable.
Not as customizable as Salesforce.com but good enough and 1/2 the price.
Regina R.
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Extremely customizable product without programmer intervention able to meet changing business requirements. Very high quality and experienced customer service staff helped us to get good value from the product.
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Stefan N. Maier, PMP
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Commence is doing an excellent job. The key is to first have a marketing and sales process, "outside" any software. Then Commence will allow you to emulate it without forcing on you functionality you don't need for the time being.
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