In my last blog, I discussed the concept of XRM (Xtended Relationship Management), which is building unique business applications by leveraging the extensibility of . In that blog, I gave an example of an XRM deployment that we did for a client where we did not use any of the standard sales, marketing, or customer service functionality of Dynamics CRM. Instead, we used Dynamics CRM as a framework to deliver a tailored line of business application to meet their unique requirements.
But what if you need traditional CRM Sales, Marketing, or customer service functionality but you need it tailored to your industry or business? Or what if you need traditional CRM process integrated in to specialized operational processes? XRM can help here too.
In many cases, XRM can mean adapting standard functionality to fit specific requirements for sales, marketing, and customer service. Whether it is industry or organizational requirements that need to be met, the point and click extensibility tools in can be deployed to quickly tailor the out of the box functionality to fit specific situations. XRM can also mean extending CRM beyond the typical sales, marketing, and customer service processes for integrated end-to-end business operations management.
We recently completed a deployment for a manufacturer’s representative of customized emergency equipment (fire trucks, ambulances, etc.) The company needed traditional sales management functionality to help them with their sales process and to provide visibility into their sales pipeline. Additionally, they needed help managing the details of the customized elements of the vehicles. Lastly, they needed help with the process of procuring, building, and delivering the vehicles once the customer had approved the quote.
The solution uses out of the box sales functionality that has been adapted to meet the specific requirements of the company and the emergency equipment industry. This includes functionality to track required information about each vehicle and vehicle option being proposed to the customer. When the customer approves the quote, a work order is automatically created and workflow kicked off to automate and manage the consistent and successful delivery of the vehicles. The result is both higher sales and higher customer satisfaction.
In conclusion, XRM is often thought of in terms of quickly deploying unique business applications by leveraging the extensibility of Dynamics CRM. We have learned that XRM can also mean tailoring traditional CRM functionality to meet specific industry or organizational requirements, as well as extending CRM into integrated operational functionality. To learn more about
By NexusTek –
