For most businesses, the CRM and ERP are the two most important systems they operate. When they work together seamlessly — customer data, orders, credit limits, and financial information flowing automatically between systems — the productivity gains are significant. When they do not integrate well, you get double data entry, reconciliation errors, and sales teams working with stale financial information. This guide covers what to look for when choosing a CRM for a business already running an ERP.
Start With Your ERP, Not Your CRM
The most common mistake businesses make is choosing a CRM based on its standalone features, then discovering the ERP integration is difficult or expensive. Start with your ERP and ask: what CRM platforms does this ERP integrate with natively? Native integrations are maintained by the ERP vendor, updated with each release, and significantly cheaper to implement than custom integrations. For Business Central and Dynamics 365 Finance, Dynamics 365 CRM is the native choice. For NetSuite, Salesforce has the strongest native connector.
What Data Needs to Flow Between Systems
Before evaluating CRM platforms, document exactly what data needs to flow between your CRM and ERP, and in which direction. Common integration requirements include: customer account creation and updates (bidirectional); credit limit visibility in the CRM (ERP to CRM); quote-to-order workflow (CRM to ERP); invoice and payment status in the CRM (ERP to CRM); and product catalogue and pricing (ERP to CRM). The more complex your integration requirements, the more important native integration becomes.
Dynamics 365 CRM vs Salesforce: The Integration Comparison
Dynamics 365 CRM integrates natively with Business Central and Dynamics 365 Finance — the integration is maintained by Microsoft, covers the full quote-to-cash workflow, and requires no custom development for standard scenarios. Salesforce integrates with NetSuite via Oracle's native connector and with Business Central via Microsoft AppSource connectors. Salesforce-Business Central integration is functional but requires more configuration and ongoing maintenance than the native Dynamics 365 integration.
Total Cost of Integration
Integration cost is often underestimated in CRM selection. A native CRM-ERP integration typically costs $15,000–$30,000 to implement and configure. A custom API integration between non-native platforms can cost $40,000–$80,000 and requires ongoing maintenance as both systems are updated. Factor integration cost into your CRM total cost of ownership — a cheaper CRM licence with an expensive integration can easily cost more over three years than a more expensive CRM with a native integration.
Questions to Ask Before You Decide
Before selecting a CRM, ask your shortlisted vendors: Is the ERP integration native or third-party? Who maintains the integration when either system is updated? What is the implementation cost for the integration? What data flows are supported out of the box, and what requires custom development? Can you see a live demo of the integration with your specific ERP version? The answers will tell you more about the real cost and risk than any feature comparison.
The best CRM for your business is the one that integrates most effectively with your ERP at the lowest total cost of ownership. For most Australian businesses on Business Central or Dynamics 365 Finance, Dynamics 365 CRM is the logical choice. For businesses on NetSuite, Salesforce is worth the integration investment. If you are evaluating CRM options, our team provides independent CRM advisory — book a free assessment.
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Our insights are a starting point. For advice specific to your business, book a free consultation with one of our senior ERP or CRM consultants.