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SAP Business One User Options
– Cloud or On-Premise
If you’re a start-up, or a small to medium sized business (SMB), then you want to know what the “go-in” is. Well, to get to that quickly, you might get by with a monthly subscription with a cloud server. Most reputable providers will ask for an up-front set up/installation fee. That is justified by the fact that mission critical software installations require expertise and Subject Matter Experts (SME’s).
Options- Options – Options! If you are a start-up, the monthly per user pricing might be a good option, and the next decision would be who will train and support your users. That’s what a Professional organization like ACUMEN Corporation can offer you. The more complex your business, the more expertise you want your implementation consultants to demonstrate.
More in-depth discussions are ahead. Of course it’s all well and good hearing about the feature functionality of the world’s leading business management system. Yes, often SAP Business One is also (and properly) called an ERP or Enterprise Resource Planning system. Both designations apply. But naturally you are curious as to the how the costs can be managed with implementing this award winning system.
Most software providers will tell you “it all depends” and that is largely true, but let’s looks at the different flavors of pricing models to give you an idea of what to expect. We’ll just talk about the software licensing itself for the moment.
First it’s important to understand that SAP Business One can be deployed in two ways:
CLOUD – Subscription – Let’s get this “cloud” idea put in perspective first. The subscription model allows you to pay for your software on an iterative basis. You can deploy the cloud version (subscription) licenses on a server
Hosted by a third party of your choice (that’s where the cloud aspect is sometimes discussed) If you elect to have a third party host your software they will provide you with the cost of that aspect of your deployment and what the services associated with it entail. This is often a perfect model for start-ups and companies whose business model is fairly straight forward, or;
Your server at your location. That’s often called the “on premise” option. In this model you can licenses Professional Seats (billed quarterly in advance) and Limited Seats, or;
SAP cloud hosted: like model 1., and we can manage that model for you.
Traditional Licensing – Through the purchase of a paid up fee per user that allows you the use of the software in perpetuity. Of course, like all full software suites an annual maintenance fee allows you to receive assistance through our SAP helpdesk and gives you access to software updates and improvements as they are released by SAP so long as you are current on maintenance.
Two types of users:
- Professional Licenses give the user access to all functionality across the board.
- Limited licenses are tailored to certain work areas and are bought to meet the more limited needs of a user. Categories include:
Limited logistics (manufacturing …the movement of goods included), Limited Financial, and Limited CRM (Customer Relationship Management) and so forth.
Your ACUMEN SAP Business One expert can help you map the combination of seats that best meets your needs while also protecting you budget.
In the traditional model annual maintenance in the first year is a percentage of the value of all of the above licenses you have elected. That’s about industry average and allows you the peace of mind of access to real SAP Business One experts on the other end of the phone and online.
Okay, How about Implementation
The long term relationship of our clients is of utmost importance to us. You can see that from the outstanding references, quotes, and testimonials seen throughout our web site.
Our belief is that you only get true value from your software if it is implemented properly by or under the watchful eye of SAP Business One experts like the team here at ACUMEN. We’ve done hundreds of software implementations all over the world, and no two project were alike.
So, here’s what we will do. We will provide you with 4 hours of consultation by one of our experts free of charge to get things started. During that time together, you can determine how much more time you will need to complete the project. And you don’t even have to make the final choice or sign contracts to take advantage of that offer.
So here’s where the “it depends” comes in. Some of our clients have experience in deploying software of this type and some don’t. Some clients have complex business models and some run relatively simple businesses involved in selling goods and services. Manufacturing firms typically take a little more time to implement. But our goal is to help you properly budget for the implementation of your SAP Business One and work with you to jealously protect that budget.
We’ll Help You Fill in the Blanks
Hopefully that gives you some idea of the pricing options open to you. SAP Business One will fit into almost any budget. Let us help you fine tune your planning by reaching out to us. We’ll be glad to help.
