The CRM system Microsoft Dynamics 365 offers a wide range of analysis and visualization options, among other things to make everyday work easier and to be able to make data-based decisions.
The BI tool from Microsoft (Power BI) also enables you to carry out further and more comprehensive analyses. In this blog article you will find out which visualization options Dynamics 365 offers and what additional added value the use of Microsoft Power BI can bring.
Microsoft Dynamics 365 offers a variety of simple and easy-to-understand customization options so that you as a user can use the CRM system that is tailored to you. But what if, due to the changes made to the system, a flood of new fields appears on the forms or you want to query specific information in this one field under certain conditions?
The Importance of meaningful Analysis
Nowadays hardly any company can be successful in the market without the conscious collection and consistent evaluation of company data.
Data also forms the basis for a CRM system, the tool for a customer-centric alignment of company activities – be it contact data, sales figures, reactions to campaigns or performance evaluations. A holistic view of all customers – the so-called 360° customer view – can only be achieved with the right data.
With the help of a CRM system such as Microsoft Dynamics 365, information from different areas of the company can be collected and made available in a central location with the aim of creating a uniform experience that leads to a happy and long-term customer relationship.
For optimal support of employees in their daily work, it often makes sense to visualize data in the form of diagrams and graphics so that information relevant to decision-making can be recognized at first glance.
The business rules that Microsoft Dynamics 365 comes with as standard provide support here. They also make it easier for new employees to get started with the CRM system. The big advantage: You don’t need to be a developer, since the adjustments are made on a low-code/no-code level.
The Analysis Options with Microsoft Dynamics 365
Dynamics 365 already comes with some basic tools for data preparation and visualization as standard:
Views: a filterable listing of an entity’s records (e.g. companies)
Charts: the visualization of a view as a line, bar, pie or funnel chart (e.g. open offers)
Dashboards: a compilation of (max. 6) views and charts
The three display forms can each be created system- or user-defined. System-defined means that an administrator creates a dashboard, for example, which is then visible to all users (with the appropriate security role). In addition, users can also create their own personal views, diagrams or dashboards to display the data relevant to them. You can then share them with other users.
You can read about the detailed display options Dynamics offers and how you can implement them in the system in this blog article: Creating charts and dashboards in Microsoft Dynamics 365
The most common use cases for Dynamics charts and dashboards are simple but very useful visualizations, for example to support daily task tracking or as an action indicator for sales.
Are you looking for the right CRM solution? Check out how Microsoft’s Dynamics 365 CRM is suitable for your business needs.
With more complex issues, however, users quickly reach a limit, because compared to Microsoft’s flagship in terms of data preparation and visualization – the business intelligence tool Power BI – the possibilities in Dynamics 365 are limited.
Analysis Options with Microsoft Power BI
Power BI – as part of the Microsoft Power Platform – has been one of the leading BI applications since its introduction in 2015 and is characterized above all by
- the intuitive operation,
- the diverse visualization options and
- the uncomplicated connection of a large number of data sources.
Where Dynamics 365 has limitations in terms of data visualization, the strengths of Power BI lie – for example in unlimited dashboards.
The creation of business rules is of course also possible on custom entities of Dynamics 365. The Microsoft Dynamics CRM uses a simple if-then relationship that some people know from Microsoft Excel. In short, it is a test of whether certain conditions are met.
The two tools are a strong team and the connection is very easy in both directions. In order to access the CRM data with Power BI, Dynamics can be connected as a data source with just a few clicks. All data from the CRM is then available for the comprehensive applications in Power BI:
- extensive analyses, including artificial intelligence
- diverse visualization options
- Calculation of meaningful KPIs
- Creation of dashboards
- Creation of reports
Microsoft Dynamics 365 and Microsoft Power BI in Combination
A great strength of the joint use of Power BI and Dynamics is the possibility of connecting other external data sources and thus enriching the CRM data with further valuable information.
Business rules are intended to simplify working on the various entities in Dynamics 365. With the help of this feature, you can avoid potential sources of error directly at the point of origin. Thus support your employees in a targeted manner by giving them more time in their daily operative business.
The diagrams and dashboards created, even entire reports, can then be easily integrated into Dynamics. In this way, they are available to the user where he needs them and can serve as a basis for better decisions regarding the customer. The integrated Power BI representations do not have to replace Dynamics’ own, but rather complement them. Depending on the application, the following example applications result:
- centrally created Power BI dashboards for more complex data representation
- Dynamics dashboards & personal views, charts & dashboards for optimal management of everyday work
- Power BI data visualizations filtered for the data set (e.g. sales development of a customer)
Conclusion
The visualized provision of the data helps the user to recognize the relevant information at first glance. Thus to make better decisions for his customers. Microsoft Dynamics 365 already offers basic display options, for example for personal task tracking. The additional use of Power BI is ideal for visualizing more complex relationships. And enriching the CRM internals with external data.
The integration of Dynamics 365 and Power BI is very easy. And helps you to get the most benefit from your data.
Business rules are an easy way to customize Microsoft Dynamics 365 to your specific needs. And steer the process flow in the right direction. Show your employees and colleagues only the fields that are important in certain situations. Get the information they need right there in the form of mandatory fields.
In this way, you not only optimize your processes and give your employees more time, but can also reduce errors and increase the success of your company.
