When you first start to use them, Dynamics 365 or CRMs can seem complex. But if you use them properly, they can really drive your efficiencies forward. What are the best ways to make those gains in efficiency?
Follow our top tips for some quick wins that will give you the insight to become more efficient with Dynamics 365
1. Keyboard shortcuts
Keyboard shortcuts help accessibility and can make it easier and more efficient to navigate around a page.
There is a huge number of shortcuts available for things like sorting columns in ascending or descending order, moving to the first (or last) field in a row, opening records, moving rows, opening and closing the filter panes and resetting filters, to mention just a few. Some of the shortcuts (Iike copying and pasting) will be familiar from working in Word and Excel, while others will be new. But the more of them you use, the more efficiently you will be able to work.
Most of the shortcuts are the same whether you are using Windows or macOS, so once you have got to grips with them, it’s easy to use them wherever you are working.
2. Quick create forms for business rules
Did you know that you can add business logic rules on Dynamics 365 using quick create forms? In Dynamics 365 for customer engagement apps, quick create forms appear when you select the create button in the navigation bar or when you choose + new when creating a new record from a lookup or sub-grid.
At first glance, when you set up a quick create form, it appears that business logic rules are not available. You won’t see the business rule button that is available from other forms, and when you create a business rule, the quick create forms won’t be listed in the scope dropdown. However, it is possible to add business logic rules to quick create forms.
Go to settings->customization–>entity where the quick create form lives. Expand the entity customization and go to business rules section and define your business rule there. If scope is set to all forms, the rule will apply to quick create forms too, as long as all fields referenced by the business logic rule are there on the quick create form.
3. Lookup fields
Many people start out using option sets in Dynamics 365, but there is a better way. Option sets work well until you want to start replacing a value in a field with another one. That’s when you can start losing data and suddenly option sets don’t look so good.
A lookup field is somewhere you can store inactive data. While the particular data may not in itself still be needed, the data attached to it often is. Using lookup fields means you are still able to report on old values that you have deactivated along the way.
So if you rely on option sets and change values frequently, lookup fields will ensure you don’t lose the data. This deactivated data can still be used to give you insight into clients or to build marketing lists.
4. Create a Sharing View
If you need to create advanced find views in Dynamics 365/ CRM, so you can narrow down leads, accounts or contacts, filtered by your own sets of criteria, it makes sense to use sharing view. You can then share that view with other CRM users within your business and it will show up in their views.
It is a fairly simple process to share a view you have already created and saved:
- Go to advanced find
- Click on saved views
- Select the view you want to share
- Select the share icon
- Select the user(s) you want to share this view with
- Set up permissions for them – they can be different for each user
- Once you have permissions selected, click share and your colleagues will see the view you have shared
5. Dashboards with security roles and permissions
When a user logs into Dynamics 365, they will initially open their dashboard. But the likelihood is that you won’t want everyone in your company to see the same default dashboard, with the same security roles and permissions.
Users can change their default dashboard, and system administrators can configure which dashboard users will see.
To change the default dashboard, a user can go to the settings icon on the top right, and select options. Initially on the general tab, you will see the default pane, and the default tab.
From there you can either set this as default for everyone in the organisation or you can limit dashboard access for particular roles e.g. sales managers can only see dashboards which are relevant to them. To do this, go to customizations, select dashboards and find a dashboard. Select enable security roles. From here, select the security roles that will be able to see this dashboard, e.g. sales manager.
If default based on user role is selected, it will default based on the security role you have selected.
In this way, you can be sure that confidential information isn’t shared with everyone in the business and individuals within the business aren’t overwhelmed by information that isn’t relevant to their role.
6. Automated birthday emails
Automated birthday emails are a simple way to engage with your audience and give a personal touch.
To make sure you reach all contacts, the date of each contact’s next birthday should be in their record, using a custom date field. Anyone who takes down a contact’s details must make sure they fill in the ‘next birthday’ field when they enter the contact’s date of birth. Contacts can then be selected and added to a birthday marketing list. Create a view of contacts with a birthday today, select those contacts every day and add them to your marketing list for the really personal touch.
That’s our top tips when you are looking at how to become more efficient with Dynamics 365. Are there any more that you would add?
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