What is Microsoft Dynamics 365 CRM?

Many businesses trust the Microsoft name. If you`re already using Microsoft across your organization, Dynamics 365 is a natural choice. It is a comprehensive business solution that combines the power of CRM with enterprise resource planning (ERP) software. In spite of its vast range of features, Microsoft Dynamics is surprisingly simple to use—after training. However, it is designed for large enterprises. If you`re a small company you may be overwhelmed by all the features and the steep price tag.

Ease of Use

Like any complex software solution, Microsoft Dynamics 365 requires thorough training. However, once you know the ropes, the platform is straightforward to use. Microsoft has managed to combine a complex and expansive feature set with easy navigation.

CRM veterans should note that the UI is different from most platforms. This may be the rare occasion where no experience with CRM software is better. New users won`t have to unlearn their old habits about how the system `should` function.

Microsoft offers live demos tailored to job roles, so you can see exactly how it will help each department. You can then complete a 30-day trial of the software, with the option to extend to 60 days. The trial version is already populated with test data, allowing you to play with the system from day one vs. migrating your own data. This ensures you get a good sense of the software before investing.

Reporting

Unlike Keap or Pipedrive, which offer drag-and-drop reporting tools, Microsoft`s Reporting Wizard is decidedly more work. The number of data points is seemingly endless. This gives Microsoft Dynamics 365 a lot more reporting power than most CRMs, plus the ability to drill down into data in a granular way. If you`re familiar with creating pivot tables in Excel, the setup is similar. However, for many smaller businesses, it`s overkill and creates unneeded complexity.

Customization

You can customize virtually everything in Microsoft Dynamics. But what sets it apart from other flexible solutions is the ability to create multiple dashboards. Your dashboards have their own tab at the top of the screen. Each dash can contain the information you like, presented in a way that makes sense to you–charts, Kanban boards, list views, and more. You can make more data visible without overloading any one page.

Microsoft Dynamics 365 for Sales Teams

Dynamics 365 Sales helps sales teams nurture stronger customer relationships, make data-driven decisions, and close deals faster. Here are some of its strongest features for sales:

Online selling: Microsoft Dynamics 365 provides everything you need to sell online. You can track supply chain, financial data, warehouse inventory, and more from a single platform.

AI insights: Microsoft Dynamics collects data from every customer touchpoint to make real-time suggestions to your sales team. For example, maybe a prospect is lingering on a product page. AI will let you know and suggest the next best step, such as sending a product demo or promotional offer.

Data analysis can also help predict what your customers will do next. Perhaps they tend to drop off at a certain point in the sales process. AI can alert you to the problem and suggest a different sales path. 

Telephony and conversation intelligence: Several integrations are available to help you speed dial your way through your sales calls without ever leaving the platform. Microsoft Dynamics 365 will also transcribe and analyze your calls. You can review the content and customer sentiment of each conversation to create your best sales pitch.

Microsoft Dynamics 365 for Marketing Teams

Microsoft Dynamics 365 Marketing has built-in business intelligence to tell you who your prospects are, and how to provide the customer experience they want.

Customer insights: The Customer Insights feature gives you a visual overview of your customers. You can click the tab to reveal a map of their locations around the globe. The number of past and active visitors is also visible, as well as which pages are trending on your site.

You can also visualize your marketing funnel across the metric of your choosing. Microsoft Dynamics can create a funnel for your last email campaign or for how web visitors progress through your site. You can easily see where your marketing efforts are paying off and where they fall short.

Predictive AI: Microsoft Dynamics is constantly operating in the background, interpreting customer data. It can identify high-value customers along with those at risk. You can apply the marketing strategy that best suits their needs and stage of the customer journey.

Workflows

Dynamics 365 CRM users can reduce their workload with the workflows feature. Workflows allow you to automate processes such as arranging follow-up tasks, sending emails, and updating records. Some of the other activities that can be automated are:

Campaign launchesManual tasksApproval processesLead nurturingInventory counts and restockingAccounting rules

Virtually any tasks that don`t require human interaction can be automated. Since Microsoft Dynamics 365 is an end-to-end software solution, you can automate tasks across every department.

Features

Pricing

Microsoft Dynamics 365 offers a lot of custom options and add-ons. Prices range from $20 per user per month and go up to $1,500 per tenant per month.

Support

• Phone support
• Tickets
• Product guides
• User forums
• FAQs
• Videos
• Email support
• Technical support
• Technical documentation