Logan Consulting Implements Microsoft Dynamics CRM for Business Simulation Company

Consumer Products Company Successfully Implements Microsoft CRM with the Help of Logan Consulting

The Client

Our client is a company which specializes in business simulations and business games utilized by teachers, professors, and corporate educators. Our client has a long and successful history and is the industry leader in authoring and presenting business simulation courses with use in some of the world’s greatest learning institutions and corporations. Over the years, they had built a variety of applications and corresponding databases to serve the needs of both existing customers as well as for prospecting new ones. With its ever increasing growth, the time had come to select a CRM application which would represent a single location where all users could work and all disparate databases could be united into a single database. Website submissions were also handled in a completely separate database and there was a desire to flow incoming web site leads and requests directly into CRM as well. Reporting was becoming cumbersome and there were no capabilities for ad-hoc reporting with the fragmented databases.

The Opportunity

Our client sought a CRM solution which would allow for integration to various other in-house applications while also allowing them to retire all databases into one single SQL database. Their new CRM system would allow for the highest level of customer satisfaction possible while also providing visibility during all steps of the sales cycle throughout the entire business. In addition, they sought to have web requests/submissions fed into CRM and routed to certain members of the staff based upon details entered within the submission.

A CRM solution was desired which would allow for the storage of Email dialogue as well as one providing task and calendar management capabilities. Their marketing department was generating printed marketing materials and sending Emails using Exact Target, but visibility of these activities across the business was limited.

The Solution

On-Premise Microsoft Dynamics CRM was deployed, with Outlook integration via the Dynamics CRM Outlook client. This allowed for access to CRM in the same location where they performed their Email correspondence and seamless integration with Outlook for Contacts, Tasks, Email, and Appointments. Logan Consulting staff deployed Scribe Insight, allowing our client the ability to feed data from their website directly into Dynamics CRM, checking for duplicates against the existing database while also creating records with content routed to certain members of the business along the way.

All disparate database bases were retired and data strategically loaded into Dynamics CRM. Workflow rules were authored which allowed for streamlining of processes and tasks created based upon business processes designed defined during the implementation. Our client’s existing Exact Target deployment was integrated to Dynamics CRM by Logan Consulting consultants, allowing for robust Email campaigning directly out of Dynamics CRM, with historical post-send data flowing back to CRM automatically. Mail Merge templates were created which allowed for easy execution of printed materials, with document history automatically captured within CRM.

The Result

Today our client’s Sales, Support, and Marketing staff operate solely within Microsoft Outlook, having access to every record in CRM and the full breath of functionality Dynamics CRM offers. A real-time pipeline of all current Opportunities is visible to everyone within the business. Workflow has been deployed to automate the creation of critical activities which need to be performed during the sales cycle. Web leads and requests are fed directly into CRM, checking against existing records in the CRM database and thus avoiding duplicate record creation. Letters and labels are generated directly from CRM and work seamlessly with Microsoft Word, with documents generated visible within a Contact’s history for later reference. Email campaigning is being executed in conjunction with Exact Target integrated functionality to allow for power of the Exact Target toolset while being able to view Email post-send history and hyperlink click thru’s directly from within CRM. Reporting was accomplished through use of the Dynamics CRM Advanced Find functionality supplemented with various custom SRS reports.