Out of the box, Business Central has outstanding functionality as it is a complete ERP system capable of providing for the needs of most businesses. However, there are some things it does not do. For certain niche use cases where Business Central gets you 90% of the way there, the AppSource may provide that additional 10% boost needed to grow your business.
The AppSource for Business Central is a great place to get started in understanding the product as you can begin with a free trial. Going along the row above, we have Scapify. A free connector to Shopify, Scapify and products like it can be configured and input with your current data by your Rimrock consultant. Another type of offering available in the AppSource are products with unlisted pricing, simply stating “contact me”. These offerings are typically much more in-depth and may require the purchase of implementation and training products coupled with the functionality you are looking for. Once you have purchased a proprietary solution on-top of Business Central, parsing apart your data and environment from what is theirs may be difficult down the line. Staying informed and reaching out to a third-party consultant can be an effective way to position yourself for success in the long term.
Finally, like the original trial from Microsoft, there are other trial offerings. Again, caution would be advised before testing out new applications within your live tenant. While no coding is necessary, most pre-built applications on AppSource need heavy configuration. Therefore, requiring Business Central expertise is often necessary to make sure the appropriate functionality is maintained overtime. These offerings can be more attractive than the “contact me” offerings as you can make sure that the product works for you before buying, but that is by no means a guarantee for project success.
Like downloading apps on your phone, ratings and reviews are important to consider in order to to make sure the product you are bringing into your environment is reliable and does what it says on the tin.
At Rimrock, we provide consulting services for implementations, planning and more. If you are looking to keep costs low for a project and need a professional opinion on which apps to use, please contact us and we would be more than happy to help.