If you’re using D365 Sales, Field Service, or any of the “CRM versions,” or D365 F&O, Talent, or any of the “ERP versions,” you probably know the difference a targeted business solution can make.
For example, Dynamics 365 Field Service: while there are many types of field service companies (in energy, in maintenance, and so on), the general business needs are the same: Where are my problems in the field? Where are my people in the field? How do I reduce the former, and best utilize the latter? Hence a targeted version of Dynamics with feature sets unique to field service companies.
And when you extend D365, you’ll likely seek out applications relevant to your line of work, too: e.g., if you’re in accounting, chances are you’re more likely to extend D365 F&O with a digital document signing application than a social media monitoring tool.
But adding CPQ to Dynamics is a little different. Because CPQ, like Word, like Excel, like PowerPoint, is essentially a horizontal tool. Any business that’s in the business of selling stuff benefits from automating the sales proposal process, and therefore benefits by extending D365 Sales, Marketing, PSA, F&O — you name it — with CPQ.
Here are a couple of things to look for if you’re looking to extend your Dynamics solution with CPQ.
D365 CPQ SSO
No, we’re not speaking in code: SSO = single sign-on. But if you’re in the Dynamics spaces and/or a regular reader of our blog or any business tech blog, you know that already.
The general benefits of single sign-on are likely known to you as well: it improves security, adds speed to the user experience, improves identity protection, and more.
The benefits of a CPQ single sign-on solution with Dynamics, especially D365 Sales, go a bit further. It starts with an unvarnished truth known to all sales managers and team leaders: sales reps don’t go into CRM often enough. Yes, they’ll do the minimum (log a call here, update a contact there), but it’s the rare organization that has every rep in there everyday doing everything the right way. But that changes when you embed CPQ into your D365 instance.
Namely, by integrating CPQ in CRM, you “force” (such an ugly word, but…) your reps to log in waaaaay more often. Because while they might not wake up thinking, “I really gotta update Widget Company’’s billing contact today,” they absolutely wake up thinking, “I wonder if Widget Company signed their quote yet?” And to find that out, they gotta go into Dynamics and see, which makes going into Dynamics an everyday thing.
D365 CPQ SSO, part 2
In addition to single sign-on, there’s another SSO to look for when you want to ensure the CPQ you’re adding to Dynamics is the very best: make sure the vendor supplying it supports it in every way possible. You’re looking for a Single Sign-On (SSO) and a Superb Support Organization (SSO).
Why support for what many consider to be only an app? It’s not like you need support when you add, say, DocuSign. But CPQ is different because it’s foundational to your bottom line business, and even your brand.
You’ll want your CPQ vendor to help create and integrate customized proposal templates that reflect your brand. And you’ll definitely need help when you create the product and pricing configurations that give CPQ ⅔ of its acronym. Finally, you’ll probably want support as you increase the granularity of your quote tracking.
Many CPQ vendors don’t offer this level of support, but at IQX we’re delighted to say that we have both SSOs for Dynamics users: it’s a single sign-on solution, and we offer support from implementation through everyday use. D365 + IQX means SSO x 2 (and more… stay tuned!).
