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Overview
Getting new customers and retaining existing ones are the main goals of every business. To turn every new customer into a loyal patron would be a dream come true. Today, a customer relationship management (CRM) software makes this goal possible. Applications like Microsoft Dynamics 365 and Freshsales CRM allow users to manage interactions with current and potential customers. These tools can help you build a long and profitable relationship with your customers that will grow your business.
This Microsoft Dynamics vs Freshsales CRM comparison aims to show how two available solutions can help businesses of all sizes find the more suitable application for their sales CRM requirement. According to a 2017 Forbes Agency Council article, a CRM software is an in essential tool for creating customer loyalty and generating business revenue that result in increased profits. These two popular solutions have common features that will be examined in more detail.
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Microsoft Dynamics 365
Microsoft Dynamics 365 is a CRM and ERP solution from the Redmond, WA-based company. It offers a flexible and customizable solution that can help small businesses grow, as well as help enterprises connect and engage better with their customers. Some of the organizations that use the software are UNICEF, Virgin Atlantic, and HP. Adopting Microsoft Dynamics as a solution has helped businesses win more deals, find the right leads, and optimize operations, to name a few.
Microsoft Dynamics 365 is a collection of applications that can be used individually or in combination. It has the following applications:
- Sales
- Marketing
- Service
- Finance
- Operations
- Commerce
- HR.
It also integrates with other Microsoft products to give you a custom and complete business solution. This solution is advanced because data in all its applications are connected, so you only have to enter it once. Furthermore, it applies intelligence to all forms of data, so it gives you insights across your organization.
Freshsales CRM
Freshsales CRM is a product of Freshworks Inc. based in San Mateo, California. The company was founded in 2010, and is known for its flagship product Freshdesk, an online helpdesk and customer service software. Interestingly, Freshdesk won $40k from Microsoft in a startup challenge in 2011. To-date, the company offers about a dozen products, and has raised more than $300M in funding from investors such as Accel Partners and Tiger Global. Organizations such as Bridgestone Tires, Pearson, and Purdue University are among the 150,000+ customers that use their products.
Freshsales CRM is a sales tool with additional CRM features that can help you pursue the best leads, engage potential customers with integrated email and phone apps, manage the sales pipeline easily with smart views, and close deals faster. It also has real-time data capturing and tracking features, analytics, and reports to show you customer behavior and other important information to help you design your tasks, activities, and campaigns. Aside from its tools, users can also learn new tips and techniques to improve their sales process, like designing prospecting email templates.
Feature comparison
Leads and deals
Microsoft Dynamics 365 leverages its AI in showing the capabilities of its software. Almost all features are now assisted and enhanced by the artificial intelligence built in the software. It has lead and opportunity scoring based on data models to help you identify the right customers. It gives suggestions so sellers can be proactive and responsive when communicating with customers through email. Pipeline analysis and deal insight tools also help sales managers increase their performance.
Freshsales CRM presents all relevant customer information from a single screen. Some of this information includes:
- Personal conversation
- Deals, and their status
- Touchpoints
- Tasks
- Appointments
- Web/product interactions.
It also has lead scoring based on customer profile and level of engagement. It enriches information automatically from social profiles, company details, and photos. Deals management is made easy through a Kanban board-style pipeline. You can quickly see how many deals there are and what stage they are in. Filters allow you to see which ones are near their expected close dates, while a drag-and-drop interface enables you to push up (or down) others along the column.
Relationship management
Because of connected data and its other products, Microsoft Dynamics 365 can easily reach customers and help you build relationships. For instance, Microsoft Relationship Sales joins together LinkedIn Sales Navigator with Dynamics 365 Sales, so you can have more personalized and meaningful engagement with your buyers. It can easily navigate the over 600M professionals on LinkedIn and get you connected to the right customers, decision-makers, and influencers. Keeping track of your contacts is easy with an interactive org chart. Getting data from surveys through Forms, or personalizing sales documents is also easy with embedded Office tools.
Freshsales CRM uses built-in communication tools to help you engage your customers. The phone feature within the software makes it easy for sales rep to make calls, while automatically logging all calls. With the entire conversation history accessible, you can easily make the next sales call or schedule an appointment from the same screen. Creating personalized greetings by recording a voicemail message or typing the message and converting it to audio are also possible. The software also has email tools for creating and sending campaigns, for getting real-time notification when emails are opened and clicked, and getting metrics of email templates that you use.
Read also: Choosing The Best CRM Platform: Vendors And What Features To Look For
AI and automations
Microsoft Dynamics 365 has Sales Insights and Customer Insights that unify all customer data from across sources so you get a complete view of your customers. It can recommend personalized talking points as well as suggest the next best actions. The software can analyze customer data from your sales calls, so you can identify what works and what does not, to replicate or refine your call strategies. Machine learning helps prioritize leads and opportunities that have the highest chance of conversion. It can also optimize email interactions, train sellers faster with built-in coaching tools, suggest new records to create, and minimize other routine tasks.
Freshsales CRM promotes automation with its Intelligent Workflows feature. For example, events, like a change of status, can trigger the automatic updating of fields. You can also set follow-up tasks around events, like reminding a sales rep that a customer’s subscription is up for renewal. In combination with a template, workflows can automatically send a welcome email whenever you have a new lead. The software also has several types of visual reports, a dashboard for viewing multiple reports on a single screen, and revenue analytics that can show which campaigns worked, which sales reps performed, or which territories led.
Integrations
Microsoft Dynamics 365 is a powerhouse in terms of its integration, both with other Microsoft products and with other third-party solutions available on AppSource. Freshsales CRM has fewer native integrations, with some products from its own company as well as with other providers like Google Apps, HubSpot, MailChimp, Office 365 Calendar, and Zapier.
Which best suits your business?
Although both software aim to help businesses boost sales and build better customer relationships, their approach based on their platform differs. From some of the features discussed, we can see that Microsoft Dynamics is an enterprise-grade application that can be customized for smaller businesses. Freshsales CRM, on the other hand, is a simple solution with extended features that can be used across the organization.
Your choice depends, however, not only on company size, but also with business requirement, type of customers, work processes, and other objectives and preferences.
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