Microsoft Dynamics 365 is a powerful suite for Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP), securing an estimated market share of 24.93%. However, not everyone using Dynamics 365 achieves optimal results. The key to maximizing its potential lies in the quality of data feeding into it. Simply put, good data leads to better conversions and stronger customer loyalty.
Why does data quality matter?
Data quality is a measure of how well data meets the set standards of accuracy, completeness, consistency, reliability, and timeliness. Data quality influences Dynamics 365 outcomes in several ways. This includes:
Informed Decision-Making
Business decisions should be made on facts, not assumptions or gut feelings. Having accurate, current data is the foundation for data-driven decisions. Reports and insights based on high-quality data can be trusted for sound decisions. On the other hand, decisions based on poor-quality data may be detrimental to business operations.
Efficiency
Poor quality data may have several errors. In turn, the reports and decisions made based on this data may have errors too. Additional efforts may be required to correct these mistakes, reprocess orders and resolve complaints. This makes processes slower and increases operational costs. But, when the data is reliable, the errors and fewer and in turn, the costs too are lower.
Risk Management
Data plays a critical role in ensuring regulatory compliance. If the data is unreliable, it could cause legal issues and trigger compliance breaches. In turn, this could increase the risk of financial penalties. It could also damage the organization’s reputation. However, having a strong compliance program and using good-quality data can help avoid this.
Customer Satisfaction
Relying on incorrect or outdated information can lead to mistakes in orders and communication. According to a survey, 23% of shoppers who face order delays are unlikely to shop from the same store again. However, having reliable data helps businesses tailor their products and services to the customer’s needs. This increases customer satisfaction and earns their loyalty.
Improving data quality for Dynamics 365
Given the significance of data quality, data users must do their best to ensure they work with reliable data. Dynamics 365 has certain built-in features to improve data quality. In addition, there are many data cleansing tools available today.
Dynamics 365 Data Cleansing Features
Dynamics 365 has several features that support data cleansing. The most important among them are the software’s ability to detect duplicates and delete data across multiple entities to remove poor-quality data. It uses algorithms to compare records from different sources to match and merge these records.
Choosing a data quality tool
The best way to improve the overall quality of your database is to keep incorrect and incomplete data from entering it. Verifying data at the point of entry is the first step to achieving this. Some of the features to look for when picking a data quality tool are:
- Real-time data verification
Verifying authenticity is the first step to improving data quality. 47% of all new data records have at least 1 error that could impact work. Data verification tools compare the data to be entered into the database with data from third-party databases to ensure they match. The tool chosen for this task should be able to deliver verification results in real time to maintain smooth data processing.
When entering data on forms, an autocomplete function gives suggestions on complete, verified postal or email addresses. This reduces the risk of typographic errors. Further, the tool’s ability to autocomplete entries can improve the user experience by reducing the number of keystrokes required and saving up to 50% in data entry time.
Data is gathered from multiple sources and often is collected in varied formats. For example, order values for customers from India may be recorded in INR while those for customers in the USA may be recorded in Dollars. If the formats are not standardized, it may affect analysis and reporting. It could also increase the chances of having duplicates on file. Hence look for a data cleansing tool that can standardize formats.
Once data formats have been standardized, the tool should be capable of identifying and eliminating duplicates. Depending on requirements, this may involve merging records to keep only the most recent data entry.
In addition to verifying data entering the database, the data cleansing tool should be able to validate data existing in the database. This helps fight data decay and maintain up-to-date records.
The tool chosen should be easy to integrate with Dynamics 365 and any other tools being used. This enhances efficiency and keeps processing flowing seamlessly.
Lastly, in addition to verifying and validating data, the data quality tool should be able to enrich data. For example, if users enter postal addresses without a street name, the verification tool should be able to add these missing details. In addition, it should be able to add demographic & firmographic data that help build complete user profiles.
The ideal Microsoft 365 data cleansing solution
Measuring data quality metrics and improving the accuracy, consistency, and reliability of data is crucial to maximizing the potential of Dynamics 365 Data Quality. Melissa provides comprehensive data cleansing and verification services for Dynamics 365 users across various industries, including e-commerce, healthcare, financial institutions, and logistics.
It can be seamlessly integrated with all standard Dynamic CRM forms and supports the Dynamics 365 online version 9.0 and above. The tool offers real-time verification for user identities, addresses, phone numbers, email addresses and other such types of data. Melissa can verify addresses in 240+ countries and territories. It also has batch processing options that fight against data decay. Further, it can append missing data to ensure completeness.
Ensuring accurate, timely and reliable data for Microsoft Dynamics 365 applications maximizes its benefits. In summation, it supports better decision-making, enhances operational efficiency, reduces risk, and improves customer satisfaction.
Looking for seamless integrations? Explore Melissa’s solutions for enhancing data quality across a wide range of platforms, from CRMs to e-commerce and beyond. Visit our Integrations page to find the best tools for accurate, reliable, and enriched data that powers your business.