How to Improve Data Quality in Microsoft Dynamics

The data in your Microsoft Dynamics system is the lifeblood of your sales cycle. When the data is complete and accurate, it’s an invaluable resource for engaging potential customers and guiding them through the sales funnel. When the data is not perfect, however, it may be impossible to connect with someone who is expressly interested in what you have to sell. The difference between a promising lead and a lost opportunity can depend on just one letter or number. 

Poor data quality might not sound like a pressing issue until you consider the scale of the problem. Salesforce estimates that 70% of all CRM data becomes incomplete, inaccurate, or irrelevant on an annual basis. That is especially troubling considering that bad data has been blamed for wasting 550 labor hours and losing $32,000 for each sales rep. Even if the individual errors are tiny, the cumulative effect is titanic.

Trying to operate with anything less than perfect data is unsustainable. Unfortunately, trying to find and fix all the data errors manually is unrealistic. It would take an army of analysts and still probably fall short. Thankfully, automation can fully replace that army and deliver spotless data in less time. 

To understand what data quality automation looks like in practice, consider how it systematically cleans up errors in the most massive data sets. 

1. Users enter the info for a new contact, account, or lead. Manually entering the information invites human errors, but importing it carriers whatever errors already existed into the CRM. Either way, it’s this early step when addresses, phone numbers, email contacts or other crucial details can go from correct to corrupt. 
2. A plug-in that works directly within Microsoft Dynamics checks the data that has been entered against data that is already known. Anything that is inaccurate (a misspelled name) or incomplete (a missing zip code) is automatically changed/added in the CRM record. 
3. Once the data has been cleaned up, the same plug-in searches for any duplicate records even if they only contain some of the same information. Users can then view those records and automatically merge any or all of them into a single record. Afterward, the most complete/current record is made active and everything else is set as inactive. 

Beginning to end, this process takes just a few minutes and leads to the most comprehensive customer profiles possible. Trying to clean up the data manually could take hours and still not achieve the same quality and comprehensiveness. Automatic data cleansing gives sales staff the resources they require while saving them a lot of time and stress in the process. Instead of trying to manage their connections, they can spend a lot more connecting. 

Precisely Trillium provides real-time and batch data quality services integrated with Microsoft Dynamics 365 to get the most from your Dynamics platform – in just 30 days.

To learn more, view our webcast: Boost Your Customer Outreach with Strong CRM Data