If not maybe you should, but that is a whole other subject for another time.

In today’s economic climate many companies are cutting back or simply hanging tight with IT/Business Intelligence budgets, and while this is understandable, I would like to pose the question –

Do you invest in a new or updated CRM model or not?

 If you truly have a handle on your significant investment in your customer base and are taking advantage of all opportunities that you can then no, but if you are like many companies, do you really know that you know you are leveraging all you can in expanded, new or current opportunities.

With products like the updated Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0, designed to track and market to your current and potential customer base, maybe it is time to pose the question.

 A good CRM system can help you to focus on existing customers and maximize opportunities.  It should be easy to use, easy to access and understandable for those who have daily hands-on.  It would come with flexible deployment and purchase options, allowing for fit for businesses of all sizes and integration with current systems.  Also of notable mention – expansions that tie to newer technologies like twitter and face book, and the look and feel of an interface already widely accepted by the user community would be great.

So to answer the above question:  

To CRM or Not to CRM?

In today’s economic climate where many companies are cutting back or simply hanging tight with IT/Business Intelligence budgets.

To CRM is the only answer. 

If you have a CRM system now – verify you are getting all you can out of your system and take advantage of your opportunities. You have already made an investment in your customer base; expand on that to help drive your business forward.

 If do not have a CRM system now – I would urge you to investigate, this is one place you don’t want to cut back nor hang tight. To help you get that great ROI; plan, plan, and plan some more, then implement and train (don’t forget to implement and train).  Get expert help from knowledgeable sources, on-line sites and white papers, do your research.  These will give you valuable information and ideas for your own CRM implementation.

By – Sandi Meyer, DFC Consultants LTD., Fargo ND

To CRM or Not to CRM? is a post from: ERP Software Blog

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Customers  worldwide are taking advantage of the power of choice, and deploying fast, flexible and affordable CRM and xRM solutions across on-premise, partner-hosted and CRM Online deployment models. 

In addition, Microsoft Corp. today unveiled new sales and marketing programs for xRM, the new development platform for building sophisticated relationship-tracking applications. With new platform licensing options and close alignment with Microsoft SQL Server, Microsoft SharePoint technologies and other Microsoft solutions, organizations can now leverage xRM to create mission-critical applications that run on-premise or on-demand, reducing application development time and cost.

“Our fast path to more than 1 million users illustrates our strong market momentum, and shows how our CRM and xRM offerings are driving worldwide customer and partner success,” said Brad Wilson, general manager of Microsoft Dynamics CRM. “Today, hundreds of Microsoft Dynamics CRM customers are building thousands of xRM applications. We’ve built significant alliances within and across Microsoft to capitalize on these high-growth opportunities, and we’re ready to drive value for our next million customers.” 

Organizations such as the Leicester City Football Club, a professional sports organization based in the United Kingdom, have used xRM to develop its Player Management application, a solution for managing players, training schedules, diet and wellness programs, and injury prevention analysis.

“One big area of concern for a football club is the players, and people come to matches because they want to see good football,” said Lee Hoos, chief executive of the Leicester City Football Club. “In the interest of our fans and our players, we’ve used the Microsoft Dynamics CRM platform platform to build applications that help flag warning signs by player to help them avoid preventable injuries. The flexibility of Microsoft Dynamics CRM has been invaluable to our business in many ways.”

In an innnovative use of CRM or rather XRM, Ignify deployed Microsoft Dynamics CRM for contract management for contracts with thousands of vendors for AVID Center – a nation-wide non-profit headquartered in San Diego, CA. AVID Center is also a user of Dynamics GP and  showcases the convergence that customers are looking for between their ERP and CRM systems.  By sticking with a single product family such as Microsoft Dynamics, customers can ensure they get seamless integration between their back office accounting/ inventory systems and front-office customer service and sales force automation systems.

Contact Ignify – an Inner Circle 2009 Microsoft Dynamics Partner  – offering Microsoft Dynamics ERP and Microsoft CRM customers low-cost high value services.  Ignify has offices in Silicon Valley and other locations.

Microsoft Dynamics CRM Crosses 1 Million Users is a post from: ERP Software Blog

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