With 1.2, when you ran the Outlook client, you had two calendars -- one in Microsoft CRM and one in Outlook. They didn't talk to each other. With the new version, you have one calendar integrated between the two. When I schedule an appointment with one of my accounts, it will actually ask me if I want to record it in CRM. It's cleaner.

I think 3.0 will have a serious impact on the world of CRM.

Before, when I opened Microsoft CRM, it always went to the homepage. Then I had to change it to the page I wanted. With the new version, you can customize your views and have it open to the right page automatically.

Most software lets you set formatting so that it stays consistent, no matter how it's entered by the end user. The problem with Microsoft CRM was that there was no such formatting. If you made a mistake, if you put a dash in the wrong place or didn't put a bracket around the area code, you couldn't search for the phone number because it didn't recognize it. In version 3.0, they've fixed that so you can standardize formatting.

It lets you create an instant campaign at the field level, so if individual sales reps want to communicate with their customers to ask them a question or gain feedback, they can e-mail them through CRM and it will consolidate and monitor responses.

Of course it took too long, but I'm glad they didn't rush it to market. I think it was a wise decision to hold off on the newer version and delay it until the product was ready, which I think it is.