Statistics highlight that Microsoft Teams saw a surge in its use from 20 Million daily active users in 2019 to 75 Million in April 2020. The number is 280 million in 2023 and counting!
Intriguing Numbers, right?
The changing face of daily global and local web communication cannot be defined more evidently than this. Work From Anywhere and Hybrid Work Models have further deepened the existence and use of communications platforms like Microsoft Teams and others. Teams is among the global Top 5 in its category because of its extensive collaborative nature. Let us explore Teams’ uniqueness.
Microsoft Teams as a Global Collaborator
Not only daily one-on-one or Team meetings are conducted on Teams but so are office gatherings, events, ceremonies, family get-togethers, etc. Global Conferences have been a beloved form of networking for the Tech World. These too have shifted Online and experienced with zeal. Global travel has bounced back in the past 2 years, however, the existence of Online work modes or Online Conferences is now rooted in our systems.
With Teams, Microsoft facilitates several global collaborations. Off late, we have been hearing of many technical communities hosting events online or in a hybrid model using Microsoft Teams. Enthusiasts join in from different countries at the event location in person or via online meetings using Teams. 5 years back, this scale of a hybrid collaboration would have sounded too good to be true. Microsoft Teams definitely is a global leader in collaborations.
Integration between Microsoft Teams & Microsoft Dynamics 365 CRM
Not just collaborating, Microsoft Teams also integrates with apps for better efficiency and output. It is said to offer integration with 600+ apps, and the number is fast growing. One such glorious integration of Microsoft Teams is with Microsoft Dynamics 365 CRM, the go-to CRM application for several business organizations. It is one of the leading CRM providers in the industry with a market share of almost 75%. With interesting updates like accessing Dynamics 365 CRM records directly from Teams, connecting Teams chat to activities and CRM records, and Co-Pilot capabilities, this integration will take collaboration to the next level. Isn’t it cool and convenient? Get a glimpse of Microsoft Dynamics 365 + Teams integration benefits in one of our latest blogs.
Maps Integration within Microsoft Dynamics 365 CRM and Microsoft Teams
80% of CRM Data has a locational component associated with it. Leveraging it helps in making effective business decisions. Maplytics by Inogic acts as a perfect add-on that enhances the quality of the insights derived from the location component. These enriched insights can then be analyzed and discussed in Team meetings offline or on Microsoft Teams and used for further strategizing. Maplytics is known for its seamless integration of Microsoft Dynamics 365 / Dataverse and Bing Maps. This integration empowers users with location intelligence enabling them to visualize records on maps, create sales territories, plot optimized travel routes, pre-schedule client meetings, and a lot more. With 10,000 + active users across continents, Maplytics is a leader in location intelligence. Thus, the integration of Teams with Dynamics 365 CRM brings the leading apps of –
- Global Collaboration
- Customer Relationship Management and
- Location Intelligence
together on one platform and the expertise of all three can be exploited together.
Let us see how Maplytics can be accessed in Microsoft Teams using Microsoft Dynamics 365 CRM (To get Maplytics for your Dynamics 365 CRM download free trial or email crm@inogic.com)
Steps for Integration-
1. Log in to Teams with your CRM credentials
2. From the Apps section on the left add Dynamics 365 CRM.
3. Once added, it can be pinned for easy access
4. Maplytics resides within Dynamics 365 CRM and can be accessed through it
Once the set-up is ready, all the features of Maplytics are available and can be accessed from Teams
Here is a scenario of how this integration can be used-
Consider a Sales Manager, John based in Austin has his Sales Rep, Sam in Staten Island. John is the Territory Manager of the sales Territory of Staten Island and Sam is the rep working in it.
Both work closely on finding leads and cracking deals. Microsoft Teams is their go-to tool for regular contact. One such Friday, they were on a Teams call fixing up a meeting schedule for the upcoming week for Sam. John was sharing his screen.
“So, the new leads are ready for a Wednesday meeting. Will you be able to cover them all in a day?”, John asked. “Yes, if they are nearby”, Sam reverted. John opened the Radius Search feature, added Sam’s location as the current location, and added the distance she was comfortable traveling in terms of Radius. All the new leads fell within the travel distance.
“Great! I can cover all 5. Kindly schedule”, chirped Sam. John used the Auto Scheduling Feature of Maplytics and scheduled the 5 appointments, and the durations for all, made provision for travel time, added buffer time, secured a slot for a lunch break, and got a schedule ready for Sam. The schedule created an optimized travel route with the addition of each record. This route was traffic-free, highway-free, toll-free, and shortest in terms of the distance traveled or time of travel.
Sam could access it on her mobile/ tablet while being on the go!
Teams, Dynamics 365 CRM, and Maplytics together have also made it possible for John and Sam to be on a Teams call with John in his office and Sam on the field. They could connect over queries during her travel and John could track her live location using Real-time Tracking or check the travel History of her previous business travels.
Along with this, Sam and John can leverage other features such as Heat Maps for quick data analysis, data Overlay using ArcGIS Feature Layers, demographic analysis using Census Data, etc. on personalized Dashboards across devices.
This is just the beginning of an era of glorious integration. Teams, Dynamics 365 CRM, and Maplytics are all on a growth spree. The collaborations and integrations would soon step-up levels and the users would be in awe!
Until then,
Happy Mapping!
