Maximize Business Performance with ERPs, CRMs, and Data Integration

Business optimization is a never-ending quest. For those unsure of where to begin, ERPs (Enterprise Resource Planning Systems) and CRMs (Customer Relationship Management systems) are vital tools for workplace efficiency and regimentation.

While distinct, optimizing a company’s process usually means integrating the two systems; while they may appear superficially similar, there are important distinctions, and each has its focus. Regardless, data integration services like RapidiOnline allow them both to shine by syncing Salesforce to your current ERP or legacy systems.

To begin with, let’s go over the primary features of each.
ERPs such as Microsoft Dynamics NAV, AX, or 365 allows a business to:

• Effectively manage projects
• Manage payroll and oversee human resources
• Store and track information about employees
• Oversee supply chains and manage distribution

In summation, ERPs are geared toward managing a network of different business operations. ERPs are structured to address internal management, or “back-office functions”, while CRMs are often used more to compile data regarding customer interactivity or “outward-facing” functions.

Examples of popular ERPs include SAP, a cloud-based ERP with advanced machine learning and analytic capabilities, and several ERP varieties from Microsoft, including Dynamics NAV, AX, and their latest solution, D365, seen here. Most of these ERPs are robust and modal enough to be implemented by huge organizations managing input from installments worldwide. For example, Amazon implements SAP, while Sempra US Gas & Power utilizes Microsoft Dynamics AX. Meanwhile, NAV is aimed at small-to-medium-sized companies and is generally less complex, requiring fewer technical resources.

Other tiers are generally intended for mid-sized and smaller businesses less likely to operate across multiple locations or in various markets. There are also free or budget options, but they often lack the scale of support, scalability, and versatility of the higher-tier programs. Microsoft is a company that provides many apps for small, medium, and large businesses. Since its acceptance is great, we can see several powerapps consulting services provides the best Microsoft experience for each company.

Meanwhile, CRMs such as Salesforce allow a business to:

• Track relevant customer data
• Clarify and analyze purchasing patterns, manufacture data reports
• Manage marketing campaigns and discover potential leads for further sales
• Facilitate compact and streamlined customer relations

CRMs are well suited to optimizing customer interactions and processing large sales quantities. They track data relating directly to the customer, including shipping information or notes on-field team interactions with a given customer. In addition, businesses often use CRMs to formulate predictions or projections about future sales and increase efficiency in customer outreach; for example, a business can examine the details of a customer’s CRM record to customize outreach to that customer’s specific interests.

An example of top-tier CRMs is Salesforce and Netsuite CRM. According to CRS Info Solutions, Salesforce is the most well-known CRM and is used by Spotify, USBank, and Toyota, among others. As is the case with ERPs, there exist budget (and even free) options. Still, the higher-rated and more widely known CRMs generally have the advantages of being more widely supported, adaptable, user-friendly, and scalable.

Is ERP-CRM integration inevitable? And which comes first?

Often, organizations wonder which to implement first: CRM or ERP. Different approaches to particular facets of the business process often preclude one or the other, though the most sustainable businesses generally implement both at the end of the day. When you start with just one or the other, keep in mind that integration with its counterpart is likely, further on down the line.

The natural consequence of investing in better communication between systems is better communication between people. This is vital for teams that need to work in tandem quickly and effectively. In addition, better communication means more efficiency and a better, more effective business model. An example of a data integration service is Rapidionline.com, which has been around since the 1990s. While both hybrid and cloud-based solutions now exist, the unchanging core of Rapidi’s process is synthesizing information to promote ease of access and use.

Is data integration really necessary?

You might be thinking: who’s afraid of a bit of redundancy? Or maybe, why shell out for data integration services when there are—and always have been—long-standing manual workarounds? It may take a little more time and effort, but it can’t be that bad. Here’s the thing: if you have chosen to invest in technology specifically designed to facilitate your business’s success, the way to get the most return on your investment is to help the technology help you.

After all, time is money, and time lost manually entering the same data into two different databases or calling between departments searching for the latest information is money lost. On top of that, ERP and CRM integration minimizes user error, which means there’s less likelihood of potentially costly mistakes.

When you use high-end data integration technology such as Rapidi, there’s no interruption to your business’s operations; the integration requires no programming and can be completed in hours. When it comes down to it, ERPs and CRMs work better together. Businesses can have a conducive customer-facing operation with the combined systems while also benefiting from a streamlined internal organizational process.