Have you outgrown your Sage 50 accounting software?
If you’re using Sage 50 for your business, you may be wondering if it’s time to make the switch to a new software solution. One option to consider is NetSuite, a cloud-based platform that offers a range of benefits over traditional on-premises software like Sage 50.
Find out why so many organisations are taking the leap from Sage 50 to NetSuite and why it’s worth making the jump for your business.
10 Things to Know About Sage 50 Compared to NetSuite
1. Sage 50 cannot scale to grow with your business
Sage 50 is built for small to medium-sized businesses. As organisations grow, their accounting needs become more complex. Sage 50 is a great tool for small businesses looking to manage their finances, but as your business expands, you need something with more capabilities to keep up with the demand. That’s where NetSuite comes in.
With powerful scalability options and streamlined features for the future, NetSuite can help your business take the next step in the right direction, letting you scale up or down depending on your needs.
2. Sage 50 has no native CRM or ERP
Sage 50 is an accounting software but lacks key features such as customer relationship management (CRM), enterprise resource planning (ERP) and other essential tools needed to run a business effectively.
Manufacturing and business intelligence are additional sets of products that are not available in Sage 50.
NetSuite, on the other hand, comes with powerful integrated CRM and ERP capabilities, allowing you to easily access the data you need, run reports, and make informed decisions. NetSuite also offers a wide range of additional tools such as inventory management, business intelligence, and more.
3. Sage 50 has no native eCommerce support
For organisations looking to take their sales online, Sage 50 offers no native eCommerce support. That means you need to purchase additional software to run your online store, adding more cost and complexity to the process.
NetSuite comes with an inbuilt eCommerce solution which unifies eCommerce, point of sale (POS), and order management. The eCommerce solution also offers marketing, inventory, financials, and support capabilities, making it much easier to manage your online store.
4. Sage 50 has no native deferred revenue management support
Sage 50 does not offer any native deferred revenue management capabilities, meaning you need to purchase and integrate additional software.
NetSuite, however, offers powerful deferred revenue management capabilities, enabling you to manage your resources and finances more effectively.
5. Sage 50 is not true cloud software
Sage 50cloud is only called “cloud” but is not true cloud software – it’s an app on a desktop. All versions are on-premises only, with some cloud data backup and integration capabilities.
NetSuite, on the other hand, is a cloud-native solution. This means it was built for the cloud and offers multiple solutions, from a multi-tenant cloud platform to a single-tenant cloud platform. This provides organisations with flexibility and scalability options, allowing them to access data anywhere, at any time.
6. Sage 50 makes even simple modifications difficult
Making simple modifications to a Sage 50 setup can be difficult and time-consuming. It requires deep technical expertise, and changes may require the help of an IT consultant.
NetSuite, however, is designed with a user-friendly interface. Simple modifications are easy to make without the help of an IT expert, enabling you to make changes quickly and efficiently.
7. Issues with product release
Sage has had instances where updates may not have met the expected standards for stability, performance, and compatibility.
NetSuite, on the other hand, has rigorous quality control processes in place to ensure that products are stable and bug-free. And with frequent updates and patches, you can rest assured that any issues will be quickly resolved.
8. The new .NET components have doubled the time it takes to install the upgrade to Sage 50
Upgrading to a newer version of Sage 50 can be a time-consuming process. And the new .NET components now required to install the latest version have doubled the time it takes to complete the upgrade.
With NetSuite, upgrading is easy, fast, and orderly.
Signs That You Need to Move from Sage
If you’re using Sage 50 and feel like it’s not facilitating all your needs, it’s time to switch. Making the move from Sage 50 to NetSuite will save you time, money, and frustration in the long run.
NetSuite offers more powerful features and capabilities, faster performance, greater scalability, and better value than Sage 50 as it can scale with your business.
How do you know if you should switch?
- Do you have a requirement for end-to-end management of your business processes? If yes, Sage does not provide this, but NetSuite does.
- Will you be able to cope with using many separate applications to conduct your business if you use Sage 50? Do you need CRM, business intelligence, and eCommerce?
- Do you need many people in your company to access your accounting or financial data? Sage 50 is made for a limited number of users. It cannot scale to provide or capture financial information throughout your organisation.
- Did you know that as you grow you may need to change databases with Sage? Sage maps its users into three database camps — MySQL for low end, SQL Server for mid-range and Oracle, DB/2, MySQL, or SQL Server for the corporate market. If you grow, you need to change your database, perhaps more than once — requiring migrating your data — a risky, error-prone procedure. In addition, you may need to upgrade hardware and retrain your staff at each juncture.
- Sage decided to transition Sage 50 from Microsoft to MySQL in order to reduce its reliance on proprietary technology and embrace more widely accepted standards. However, Sage currently relies on Citrix for online support, which requires Microsoft infrastructure. This reliance on Citrix for remote access adds additional costs to the installation process
- Do you seek a SaaS solution to reduce costs and improve service to your users? Currently, the online version of Line 50 is only available for members of the Accountants Club. If you are in any business other than an accounting firm, you have to buy, install, maintain, and support an on-premises application. Sage executives stress that this new online version is not really meant to be a SaaS offering, largely because it is run over Citrix rather than over the internet.
- Are you comfortable dealing with the file-locking issues in Sage 50? Sage has yet to solve the file-locking difficulties in Sage 50, even after a quarter of a century of its existence.
Conclusion
By comparison, NetSuite does not have these problems and provides a single integrated application to manage all your business processes. It’s reliable, powerful, and scalable — perfect for growing businesses.
Make the switch today, and enjoy all the benefits of scalable, more efficient software. NetSuite is the right choice for businesses that have outgrown Sage 50 and need a solution that can grow with them.
Don’t get stuck in the rut of “we’ve always done it this way“—make the move to NetSuite and your business will thank you for it!
Book your free requirements call today and we’ll see if NetSuite fits your needs.
