This client was so impressed by our Power Platform expertise and DWS experience that they contacted us to update their existing customer relationship management (CRM) system.

Relieving CRM Strain

The client’s CRM system consisted of two parts: a front end for customers and a back end comprised of features reserved for use by Customer Service Representatives, as well as multiple interfaces with other key business systems. The front end is customer-facing with a large volume of online visitors making payments on tolls, submitting forms, etc. Customer service representatives use the back end of the CRM system to manage these accounts and provide customer support.

Our client found that the back end side of their CRM system was experiencing too much strain, which was largely due to the limited abilities of the customers on the front end. For example, if a customer was not able to complete certain payments without a representative’s intervention, then the payment would have to be processed by representatives. The improvements resulted in a significant reduction in the number of interventions that Customer Service Representatives had to execute.

As a solution, DMC customized their CRM system to expand the capabilities of customers. For many of the processes that required assistance, the customer could now perform themselves. Customers now had access to necessary information and actions, while sensitive data was kept secure on the back end.

Improving the Interface

With the expanded capabilities of customers, DMC needed to make sure that the front-end interface of their CRM system was easily navigable. DMC redesigned the customer-facing interface to be more intuitive. The user now has a friendlier, streamlined experience while still being able to perform their expanded abilities.

Increasing Efficiency

In addition to the many improvements on the front end, DMC addressed the inefficiencies on the back end such as unnecessary complexity. For example, if a representative wanted to take an order from a customer over the phone, it was a very long and complicated process for the representative involving many steps of manually inputting information. As a solution, DMC built a button on the back end that automatically performed many of these steps. The representative no longer has to perform these monotonous, repetitive tasks and the process is overall much more efficient.

Creating Custom Reports

DMC doesn’t just create solutions for today, we create solutions for the future. To help our client monitor and analyze their huge volume of data, DMC created CRM-integrated Power BI reports. Utilizing Power BI, the client can build reports of key metrics, such as toll activity and website traffic, using real-time data. These reports provide powerful insight into their CRM system and can help our client make informed decisions for the future.

Learn about DMC’s approach to business intelligence, read more about DMC’s CRM services, and contact us today to get started on your next project.

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DMC was tasked with creating an easy way for users to access and maintain Salesforce data directly from SharePoint. To accomplish this, DMC designed and developed a system that automatically extracts data from Salesforce and synchronizes the data with a SharePoint List. This solution also synchronizes data changes made in SharePoint with the Salesforce CRM.  DMC’s custom solution is high-performance and capable of syncing data quickly, efficiently, and reliably.

DMC started by creating a SharePoint list that contained a subset of the most frequently edited fields on a Salesforce Quote. New or modified data was read from Salesforce, and then copied into the corresponding SharePoint list item. Functionality was then added to allow fields edited on SharePoint to also sync back to Salesforce.

The synchronization service runs every 15 minutes, and retrieves items only if they have been modified within that time frame. After retrieving the item, the server checks which fields have been modified, then writes those fields to the other platform. Synchronizing only updated records significantly reduced the amount of network activity and shortened the overall time the service takes to run.

One challenge the solution had to overcome was determining what to do when a Salesforce record is modified at the same time as a SharePoint list item. This challenge was resolved by designating Salesforce as the platform of record. The service used logic to ignore SharePoint changes if the corresponding Salesforce item has been modified since the last time the service checked for changes.  A conflict could only occur if the same record was changed in both systems within the same 15-minute time window.

Another challenge the solution overcame was a mismatch in the time format used by SharePoint and Salesforce when syncing data. One platform was reading dates in Universal Time Coordinated (UTC) and storing dates in Local Time, while the other was reading and storing dates in UTC. This issue was resolved within the sync process by converting all dates to local time before doing any comparisons.

DMC’s solution allows for quick and reliable data synchronization between Salesforce and SharePoint. The system enabled company-wide read and write access to critical CRM data. This solution also allows users to choose which platform they want to work in so they can be most efficient.

Learn more about DMC’s Microsoft SharePoint services.

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If a site already existed for the Client, then only a new document set would be created under that Client site. Custom content types were used to copy the latest version of document controlled templates and add them to the proposal library. Important sales data from the CRM Online system is also by synchronized with the SharePoint libraries.

DMC chose to use SharePoint’s External Content Type feature as the primary mechanism for feeding CRM and ERP data into SharePoint. Web services were developed to facilitate the automation of this synchronization process. A custom SharePoint web part was also developed to allow users to bypass CRM and upload legacy Opportunities directly into SharePoint.

Learn more about DMC’s Microsoft Dynamics CRM and SharePoint service offerings.

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