Frequently Asked Questions from Sage Customers: Migrating to Sage 300c 2017 This document is intended to assist you in answering questions that current Sage customers may raise related to moving from Sage 300 to Sage 300c. Question: I ve been a loyal longtime customer that has paid to stay on support and now I want the new features and UI I have to move to subscription? This doesn't seem fair. Answer: Net@Work thanks you for being a loyal and longtime customer. If you are a customer that is current on support and maintenance you will receive the Sage 300 and future releases which include limited new enhancements, many of which customers like you requested. If you would like take advantage of the new features of Sage s new premium offering, Sage 300c, then yes you will need to change to a subscription plan which includes some great new enhancements to both the product and your Sage Business Care plan. For a limited time (until December 28, 2016), Sage is running a promotion where you can receive Sage 300c for no additional charge over your current Sage Business Care plan. Please contact your Net@Work Account Manager or by contact our helpdesk at 800-719-3307 for more information. Question: I have been using Sage 300 for over 15 years, I don t want to use the new interface. I am fine with the way it is. Answer: Sage 300c is a new subscription pricing plan that provides feature enhancements that will not be turned on for Sage 300 (legacy perpetual license model). Sage is not forcing customers to the new subscription model today, but they are offering extremely favorable. You have the option now to move to Sage 300C subscription pricing. Just because you move to Sage 300C, does not mean that you have to upgrade today or that you have to deploy any of the new functionality, if you do not want it. If you are on plan, you can upgrade to the version and benefit from the new enhancements in that version. Currently Sage supports Sage 300 versions 2014, 2016, & 2017 today for Sage 300 and versions 2016 and 2017 for Sage 300C. Question: If I move to the latest 2017 release, much of the customized functionality that I built or my partner built may not work? Answer: Sage s goal is to minimize disruption to your existing customizations and integrations. If you have customizations, you will need to engage with Net@Work, your business partner, to ensure your update goes smoothly and any customization will persist after the upgrade. Please contact your Net@Work before you upgrade for assistance.
Question: I don t need all the modules in the Sage 300c product bundles. So, why should I pay more for them? Can I drop them and get a refund? Answer: The Sage 300c bundles are intended to simplify your buying experience by prepackaging modules into the most commonly bought configurations. Together with newly enhanced Sage Business Care plans, these bundles include more value than ever before with enhanced support options or discounts or complimentary access to key add-on solutions. Because your business is ever-changing, you may discover that some of these modules could be valuable in supporting your business going forward. Question: I pay my partner for support, so why should I pay Sage for Sage Business Care or upgrade to a plan beyond Silver? Answer: Sage Business Care includes much more than just technical support. Sage s newly enhanced Sage Business Care plans include product updates and enhancements, value-added solutions to help manage more of your business (such as Sage CRM, Sage Intelligence and Sage Inventory Advisor Basics), and discounts on other services, events and training. In addition, you have access to Sage City and the Sage Knowledge Base 24/7 so you can always connect with product experts and other product users to solve challenges and to ensure that you are using best practices with your Sage solution. The Net@Work account management team work with you, so you have the information needed to decide if you want to have the solutions mentioned which are included in Gold and Platinum plans at various levels to analyze the pricing to determine if moving to a level of support above Silver would be cost beneficial or not. Please note that if you have more than one or two users the incremental cost per month on a per user basis to be on the higher level of support may actually cost you more money than, just subscribing to the module you want to add and staying on Silver support. (i.e. A customer has 6 users and wants the Sage Intelligence Designer and Connector modules. When you run the analysis at Silver vs Gold the customer will actually spend $666 more per year to be on Gold support rather than just subscribing to Silver support and adding a single user for Designer and Connector.) Question: What happens if I can t pay my bill one month when I m on a subscription plan? I run a seasonal business. I can t afford to have my accounting engine shut down. I still have to run my business. Answer: Sage response: We understand that businesses are seasonal. A great option is to pay upfront and you ll get discounts for a 1-year or 3-year commitment. Non-payment of an invoice will put your company in default of the terms and conditions of the subscription and Sage EULA agreements. If you are in default the Sage EULA spells out that a non-payment of subscription is a violation and terminates your subscription agreement. It further states you have 30 days to retrieve your data from the system.
Question: Subscription means cloud to me and I don t want a cloud solution. Answer: Sage 300c is a subscription pricing model. It does have web deployed screens but you do not have to use them. Sage 300c is the same trusted on-premises solutions that you have used for years with new modern enhancements but at an affordable, convenient subscription price. Question: Subscription will cost me more money over time vs. perpetual and I don t want to pay more. Answer: You have a choice today. If you d prefer to stay with a perpetual license, you can do so and upgrade to Sage 300 2017 instead of Sage 300c. The promotional offer to move to 300c for the same price your current Sage 300 plan ends on 12/28/2016. Sage has said that this is a one-time offer and migrating in the future to Sage 300c after the promotion ends will cost customers more. Historically, all software vendors, including Sage have offered limited promotions that allow customers to move to new models for no additional cost. This is the offer that Sage is promoting through 12/28/2016. The entire software industry is moving to a subscription model. Eventually, perpetual pricing will not be an option for Sage customers. Sage has already eliminated the ability for Sage 100 customers to buy new software in any form other than Sage 100C subscription pricing. Question: I don t see the value in paying more for a subscription plan to get Sage 300c. There aren t enough new features or functionality. Answer: Sage 300c is Sage s premium offering and was offered for the first time in November 2015. Over time, Sage will continue to add the latest technology and more enhancements to this premium offering. For the 2017 release, Sage added Sage Inventory Advisor Basics and a new Notes feature, providing you with additional value. You make the decision when you are ready to move. Question: If the value of moving to Sage 300c is to always have the latest technology, what is the roadmap for this product? I haven t seen Sage add any real new functionality in the past few years until now. Answer: As you can see from the 2017 release, Sage is moving quickly to add new offerings and enhance current ones to bring more value to your business. Just around the corner, Sage will be releasing our next updates in December 2016. Stay tuned for more information on what will be included in those releases. Question: I am not happy with the enhancements in the Sage 300 2017 release. Why should I stay with Sage? Answer: If you can t take advantage of the enhancements in the 2017 release, we encourage you to take a look at Sage 300c, Sage s premium offering that includes even more modern
enhancements such as a powerful new Notes feature, which allows you to create detailed comments related to a customer, vendor or inventory item. In addition, Sage 300c now includes Sage Inventory Advisor Basics, allowing you to reduce excess inventory and free up working capital. Question: I m a [Business Vision or other product] customer and I was told I had to migrate. Now I don t? What s the best path for me? Answer: Sage wants to provide you a choice so you can move at your own pace. In order to determine the best path for you, we suggest you consult with your Net@Work account manager to discuss your business objectives and whether your existing Sage solution is meeting your needs today and into the future. Question: We already have remote access to the software; why do I need Sage 300c? Answer: Many of our customers leverage a VPN or Citrix for remote access to their Sage 300 system in the office but are frustrated by the slow connection and poor performance. With the web screens in Sage 300c, you will benefit from mobile access to key financial data without the slowness of a VPN or Citrix connection. Also the web screens in Sage 300c allow for customers to become device independent and run the web screens on non-microsoft devices such as Apple, ipad, iphone, Android, and more. Question: I have no need to access Sage 300 outside the office; why do I need Sage 300c? Answer: Mobile access is only one benefit of Sage 300c. The modernized user interface makes it easier to use and a new homepage with real-time, key performance indicators help you keep an eye on how healthy your business is. In addition, the 2017 release includes Sage Inventory Advisor Basics and a new Notes feature, offering you additional value. Question: Why do I need to pay an upfront fee? Answer: Some companies bury upfront fees in your monthly subscription price, which means that you continually pay for them for as long as you own the software and your monthly subscription price is higher. Sage opted to charge an upfront, one-time set-up fee so that you pay once and keep your monthly subscription at a minimum. For new customers: The upfront fee covers the set-up of your account and recurring payments in our system, that you are enabled for support from Sage, and have access to knowledge resources as well as communications on latest releases and updates about your product. For on-plan customers: The upfront fee is waived for on-plan customers. For win-back customers: Currently there is a promotion in place for customers coming back on plan to get discounts on the upfront fee, depending on how long they have been off-plan.
Question: Why is there an increased cost for Sage 300c subscription compared to the previous subscription offering? Answer: Sage 300c is a premium offering with new features and mobile capabilities. Additionally, Sage added a new Sage Business Care offering that has additional features to provide more value to the subscription offer. These premium offerings are the reason that Sage 300c is priced higher than previous Sage 300 subscription plans. Question: Can we just pay the full amount till we become fully subscribed rather than monthly? At that point, will it just be included in our subscription based billing we receive for the year? Answer: Subscription pricing is offered in the following types: Monthly Subscription - full price Annual Subscription small discount 3 Year Subscription 3 months free You are welcome to select the payment method of your choice. It sounds like you want to do an annual subscription. I will have Danny pull annual and 3 year pricing from Sage and then we can go over that with you. If you switch now your renewal will move to November annually. We have Sage CRM also, how would this impact us? Sage CRM is also available in subscription pricing. Please contact your Net@Work account manager for pricing. Is 300c compatible with third party products today? (Accellos, True Commerce, Avalara, Iciniti, etc.) Most of the Third Party Products are compatible with Sage 300c version 2017. Of the ones mentioned, all but Accellos are compatible today and Accellos compatibility is forecasted in the next 30-60 days as it is to be released in Q4 of 2016. Sage ISV are required to be compatible with in 90 days of release so most vendors have finished this release. More complex products, like Accellos, take long to update and test. If we are on Sage 300 2012 do we need to upgrade before going to C No, you can upgrade at any time and you consider doing so now as you are on an unsupported version of the software. You have to upgrade to get the additional features for versions 2016 and 2017 that come with Sage 300c. Sage 300c features and web screens will be able to be deployed during your upgrade process.
If we don t have subscription, the offer is for us or not? The current promotional offer to migrate to subscription for the same cost as your current perpetual license fee is only good for Sage 300 and Sage 100 customers who are not already on subscription and who are current on support. If we go to a 3 year subscription, do you pay up front or monthly? A three year subscription requires that you pay for it upfront. With that said Sage does give you 3 months of subscription for free with a 3 year plan. WHAT HAPPENS IF WE CHOOSE NOT TO UPGRADE You can upgrade at your company s own pace. Please note Sage supports the latest editions of the software for Sage 300 that is versions 2014, 2016 and 2017. For Sage 300c, that is versions 2016 and 2017. If you have a problem or issue with an older version of software, Sage does not support that and will refer you back to Net@Work, your business partner for upgrade assistance. Net@Work does support older versions and we will attempt to assist you but please note that there are some items such as technology changes that we cannot fix such as a new workstation being on Windows 10 and your software (versions 6.0 or 2012) does not function properly on it. These type of items do require that you upgrade. Will the Financial reporter be obsolete in this version? Sage s current versions Sage 300 and Sage 300c both still include Financial Reported or FR. The FR module requires that you are using 32 bit excel or it will not work as it is a 16 bit excel program. When Microsoft stops support of 32 bit Excel, Sage will most likely stop support for FR. Financial Reporter has been removed from the Sage Online 2016 and 2017 editions of the software, which is Sage s hosted version. 300c is hosted by Sage or at our site? Sage Online is the hosted Sage product not Sage 300c. Sage 300c can be deployed on premise or in a hosted datacenter of your choice. If you are interested in have Sage 300c hosted, Net@Work has an infrastructure and managed services team that can assist you with pricing for hosting. Please not that for Sage Online, Financial Reporter has been removed from the Sage Online 2016 and 2017 editions of the software. Net@Work 800.719.3307 www.netatwork.com sage@netatwork.com