Use Microsoft AppSource to Enhance Dynamics 365 for Sales
Posted on: November 6, 2017 | By: Craig Thompson | Microsoft Dynamics CRM
For the last few years, Microsoft has been enhancing its online product store known as Microsoft AppSource. This is a site where Microsoft Dynamics 365 users can instantly download add-ins and products to enhance their system and give functionality that isn’t natively provided out-of-the-box with Dynamics 365. One of the distinguishing factors of Salesforce was that for a long time they had an App store called AppExchange that Dynamics 365 did not. Well, Microsoft’s AppSource has been increasingly releasing new products and even surpassing the Salesforce AppExchange. In this blog I’ll go over navigating AppSource and some of the great features it contains.
From within your Microsoft Dynamics 365 for Sales environment click on Settings-Dynamics Marketplace. (You can also navigate directly to https://appsource.microsoft.com/en-us/). By entering AppSource directly through you Dynamics environment, you can now install Apps with one click. Note, you will need Global Administrator permissions to update and install within your environment.
Once in the AppSource, you will see some navigation features including a Search box to type in specific apps you are looking for, and a category search. Here you have a filter for certain subjects like Marketing, Sales, or Customer Service. Also, the Other Apps dropdown has links to sites other apps within your Office 365 environment for example apps for Cloud Solutions, PowerBI, and Office 365 specific apps.
Within the main body of the page you have a mix of free and pay apps. The free apps have a link that reads ‘Get it now.’ With these apps you click the link and walk through the install instructions which is usually just agreeing to the terms and conditions and clicking Install. In a few minutes the app will be automatically inserted into your Dynamics 365 environment, usually as a new module. As you can see in the depiction, the first two apps listed in the store are free apps called ‘Organization Insights’ and ‘Insights, powered by InsideView.’ Both of these are very useful apps, especially for no cost. Organization Insights allows visibility into what is happening within your Dynamics environment. This includes who is logged on, what new records are being added, the health and maintenance of the organization, and other user updates. Insights by InsideView allows users to access company and contact information directly within Dynamics and populate this data onto account and contact screens. It provides news updates, some LinkedIn information, and high-level contact info at companies.
After the free apps, the apps that you buy or subscribe as a service to have a link that reads ‘Free Trial.’ As you can see, the second two apps listed are actually new product offerings directly from Microsoft which are trials for ‘Field Service’ and ‘Product Service Automation.’ As you continue to scroll down your list though, you will see that a myriad of companies have released products onto the platform. These include apps for project management, document management, telephone integration, e-signatures, marketing campaigns, calendar actions, etc. Within the normal scope of business functionality, there is not much you cannot find within AppSource.
Once you click on one of the Apps to download, you will be brought to a page with additional information including a description of the app, customer and user reviews, compatibility options, some screenshots or a quick demo link, and the link to download the app.
If you think that a Dynamics CRM system is the next best step for your business, contact Logan Consulting, your Microsoft Dynamics CRM partner of Chicago.