3 Reasons Why You Need a Microsoft Dynamics CRM Partner

You may ask, “why do I need a Microsoft Dynamics CRM partner for an out-of-the box CRM solution?” While there could be numerous answers to this question, I’d like to highlight three critical reasons why you should consider working with a Microsoft Dynamics CRM partner.

Based on our experiences with clients, we have seen multiple instances of organizations failing to take on a CRM project in-house. While companies may choose to go solo on their CRM projects primarily due to budget constraints, reality has shown that in most cases the cost of a failed or “half-baked” CRM project by far exceeds the cost of working with an experienced CRM partner.

Let’s talk about how and why working with a Microsoft Dynamics CRM partner will help save your company resources, manage frustrations and money, while improving a wide range of your internal and external business processes.

Here are three reasons why you should consider working with a Microsoft Dynamics CRM partner:

1. Customizing the framework: One Size Fits Some
2. From CRM to XRM: CRM Beyond the Customer
3. Integration: Eliminating Language Barriers

Customizing the Framework: One Size Fits Some

As Microsoft Dynamics CRM comes as an out-of-the box solution it offers readily available functionality to manage your company’s sales, marketing and customer care activities. These pre-configured features are, as the name implies, off-the-shelf and designed to accommodate rather ‘standard’ business processes. For some companies, an out-of-the box solution will suffice, but for most organizations it will take some configuration to maximize the value and functionality of Dynamics CRM.

The key in implementing any technology solution is to ensure optimal value and return on investment for your organization. As with any change, implementing a new solution requires effective change management, and partnering with a CRM expert will optimize your chance of success.

Each company has its unique ways of doing business as well as a unique set of stakeholder relations to manage. On top of organizational differences comes industry specific regulations, requirements and best practices. These differences often necessitates a CRM solution that goes beyond its out-of-the box capabilities.

For example, while a healthcare provider might have a need for managing co-billing procedures, and accessing patient documents and insurance provider information, a university might need a system to manage class registration, track attendance, grades and course evaluation.

Obviously, each of the above scenarios call for different configurations and system settings.

With deep experience in working with clients from a multitude of industries, an experienced CRM partner will help you identify your critical business processes and industry-specific challenges and set up your CRM system accordingly. Rather than trying to work your way around an out-of-the box system you will get a solution that is configured specifically to your business and its employees.

While configuring a CRM solution to meet specific needs is inevitably more costly on the surface than deploying an off-the-shelf solution, it is, however, a lot more affordable than overhauling your business processes and ‘re-configuring’ the way your employees, partners and customers work. In other words, a CRM solution should be tailored to work the way your business and employees work and NOT vice versa.

From CRM to XRM: CRM Beyond the Customer

While CRM, or Customer Relationship Management, traditionally had a sole focus on managing and nurturing the relationships with customers and prospects, today’s complex, global and dynamic business landscape has necessitated a more comprehensive and all-embracing approach for managing the entirety of an organization’s diverse set of relationships.

From CRM to XRM denotes a shift from Customer Relationship Management to Anything Relationship Management.

Company stakeholders in the modern business world span from customers, prospects, suppliers and partners to investors, sponsors, donors, employees, job applicants, governmental agencies, subsidiaries and so on.

Along with the diversity of an organization’s different stakeholders comes the complexity of managing multiple different stakeholder relations within one system. Without a CRM partner this can become quite a task.

A CRM partner can easily help you configure your CRM solution to accommodate your unique set of stakeholders and their respective needs. And more importantly, a partner can help your organization identify innovative and efficient ways you can use Dynamics CRM to enhance your business processes and increase organizational profitability.

The possibilities of Dynamics CRM are endless and there exists a wealth of great and creative examples on how companies have utilized Dynamics CRM to enhance their unique business processes.

Download the White Paper: 24 Wildly Creative Ways Companies Use Microsoft Dynamics® CRM to Drive Revenue and Serve Customers to see real-life examples of Microsoft Dynamics CRM in use.

Integration: Eliminating Language Barriers

Most organizations rely on multiple systems to manage the entirety of internal and external business processes. Examples of these systems include accounting software, ERP & CRM systems, ecommerce sites, ticketing software, document management applications and collaboration and communication software.

While disparate systems are necessary to efficiently manage and automate various business processes these systems need to communicate with one another.

A CRM partner will work closely with you to ensure your CRM solution is fully integrated with all of your existing business management systems. With a fully integrated solution your organization will benefit from automation of repetitive tasks across your entire organization, enhanced visibility, improved collaboration and higher profitability.

It’s all About ROI

At the end of the day, the choice of whether or not to work with a CRM partner comes down to ROI.

You want to eliminate manual and tedious business processes, automate your sales, marketing and customer service processes and effectively manage the entirety of your business relationships. You want to drive sales volume, lower your overall costs and grow your bottom line. Ultimately, you want to make sure that the money you invest in a CRM system yields the highest return possible.

A Dynamics CRM partner will help you maximize your ROI and ensure that you get a CRM solution that is tailored to your unique needs, challenges and opportunities, which ultimately allows you to run a more efficient and profitable business.

Still not Sure?

Please do not hesitate to contact us at FMT at (760) 930-6400 or info@fmtconsultants.com if you want to learn more about working with a Dynamics CRM partner. We would be more than happy to help you assess the complexity of your CRM requirements and discuss whether or not working with a CRM partner is right for your business.

Written by:
Jakob Bechgaard
Senior Marketing Specialist