It was a Spring Sunday morning, Nina was sipping on her coffee and making her spring cleaning plans when there was a knock at her apartment door. Nina got down from her comfy chair and made her way to open the door. “Hey there, Good Morning,” rushed Lisa with a laptop in one hand and Starbucks in another. “I’ve got us some breakfast and good coffee. I know I’m barging in unannounced but you have to help me convince my management. I’ve drafted a presentation on Maplytics, its features, and its industrial application and you have to check it for me. This is my only shot at getting a Maplytics license for my operational use. Please don’t say no,” she gushed out in a breath while laying her laptop atop the kitchen island. Nina contemplated for a moment, saw Lisa’s enthusiasm, and nodded. After all, she was the one who introduced Lisa to Maplytics.
The Sunday journey of Maplytics began with a comprehensive summary, followed by the use case based technical details of the features, and industrial applications. Nina began scanning the all-inclusive feature summary.
In today’s day and age of a fast-paced world and global businesses, Microsoft Dynamics 365 CRM users often feel restricted due to the lack of geo-location-based intelligence while viewing their CRM data. This often results in delayed or inaccurate decision-making, sub-optimal operating efficiencies, lack of real-time visibility into daily operations, inadequate control of travel expenses, and loss of productivity.
In combat against the situation, Inogic has created an all-inclusive, comprehensive geo-mapping app that empowers business decision-makers to harness the power of geo-analytics by visualizing CRM data on the Map, named Maplytics or Map-Analytics. Let us have a look.
What is Maplytics?
Maplytics™ is a comprehensive and powerful Geospatial and Analytical Mapping solution for Microsoft Dynamics 365 CRM users. It is designed to enable Microsoft Dynamics 365 CRM users to leverage the power of location intelligence to plot, plan, analyze, and take action on their CRM data. It empowers users across industry verticals with Geographical Data Visualization, Optimized Routing, Appointment Planning, Proximity Search, Heat Maps, and Territory Management to drive better sales, improve business processes and engage customers at the right time.
What is the value/benefit?
The key benefits of integrating Microsoft Dynamics 365 CRM with Bing Maps using Maplytics are:
- Better understanding, analysis, and improved decision-making in real-time
- Strong relationships and improved quality of customer engagement and discussions
- Reduced fuel consumption and shortened time of travel
- Effective targeting in new markets
- Strong and good client relationships
- Upscaled Business Productivity
What are the features of Maplytics?
Plot Records- Microsoft Dynamics 365 CRM records can be plotted over the Map with respect to their location, region, territory, etc. The whole-sellers of the Beverage giant can be displayed easily in this manner. Plotted records can be used for further business decisions
Radius/ Proximity Search- If the current location of an on-field rep is provided and if he intends to find a retailer within a radius of 5 miles or kilometers around him, he could provide his desired number and the proximity of existing/potential retailers within that circle could be searched using the maps within Microsoft Dynamics 365 CRM. He could even plot them based on the number of hours/ minutes required to reach them from his current location. The rep could plot multiple circumferences by providing up to 3 radii options.
Along the Route- The records/ Clients that fall in a defined proximity and along the plotted route can be searched and added on to the existing route. If a rep is on his plotted route and has some spare time to accommodate an additional Client Meet, he could search for an available Client on his route and meet him.
Optimized Routing- If a sales rep has been allotted 4 restaurants, to pay a visit to in a day, this feature helps in plotting an optimized travel route that is shortest in terms of the distance he’ll have to travel and the time taken to travel. It also helps in finding possible traffic-free and toll-free routes.
POI (Point Of Interest) Locations- Places such as Cafes, Hotels, Airports, etc. along a route or near a Client can be searched specifying a particular location of interest. The rep could conduct his meetings at such places, have his food, refill his car, etc.
Auto Scheduling- Client appointments for a day/s can be auto-scheduled using maps within Microsoft Dynamics 365 CRM. The schedules can be updated in case of ad-hoc changes. This way both the reps and the managers are pre-planned, organized, and ready for the appointments.
Real-Time Tracking- The resources/ field reps can be tracked when in real-time. Their routes can be monitored and saved for future use. This prevents waste of time, unhandled emergencies, and untapped travel.
Check-In/ Check-Out- The on-field professionals can check into a meeting while being on the field and check out from the same once done. This can be done when the reps are within a specific distance of the meeting location and thus helps their managers in monitoring their availability, activity, and spare time. If enabled by the managers, the reps get an option to apply for pending Check-Ins/ Check-Outs days after the completion of the meetings.
Territory Management-Territory Management, a powerful feature, is used to sort and plot data based on Territories. The ease of the feature aids multiple users in creating multiple territories based on the record required, categories selected, physical shapes drawn, altered, or edited existing marked territories, and so on. One can create, draft, align and manage territories as per one’s business needs. Auto creation of territories is one of the upgraded benefits.
An organization can mark multiple territories to plot and manage multi-level territories popularly termed hierarchical territories. Thus, in case there are any child territories created and associated with the selected territories, those too will get plotted on the map along with the selected territories. If Austin Texas has a child territory of Wimberley, it too shall be plotted when Austin shall be selected.
Detail Map- All the desired displays are visible because of Detail Maps. The Detail Map is used to plot data on a Road Map or in an Ariel View. In a Detail Map, the Beverage Company’s sales team can plot the Records of the Clients based on the selected Data Source, Category, and Proximity from the Current Location or Overlay.
Heat Map- Heat Map is a visual data analytics tool that displays actionable insights through a visual representation. The user can visualize the data in the form of colored boundaries, pie charts, or column charts.
Land Area Mapping- Users can assign specific land regions to the records. These regions can then be visualized on the map to understand the coverage of the area for each of the records.
Mobility across Devices- Maplytics can be accessed from the Microsoft Dynamics 365 App for Phones and Tablets using a dashboard for the Detail Map. The current GPS Location can be picked up for advanced auto-scheduling. Maplytics is compatible with desktops, laptops, mobile, tablets, windows, iOS, and Android.
Truck Routing-The routes of the Trucks /Trailers delivering goods can be plotted, traced, and tracked with the specifications of the vehicle in the record. A truck carrying vaccines or ammunition can be routed and traced for safety and quick clearances.
Multiple language support- Maplytics is a multi-language solution. It is currently available in eleven different languages namely German, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Turkish, Hungarian, Dutch, Arabic, Polish, and Russian along with English as the default language.
Census data visualization- The Census data is visualized on the Map to help the users take strategic decisions for an entire country or a region keeping their business goals and plans in mind.
Maplytics Configuration (Personalization)- A user can configure the zoom levels, current location, origin, destination, etc. as per his preference. The same can be saved and re-used.
Overlay- The users can mark and view the Microsoft Dynamics 365 CRM records along with the shape/excel files/ ArcGIS and the existing territories plotted on the Map. An overlay record can also be converted into a different territory.
Shape Operations- The users can perform Binary Operations on the shapes drawn on the Maps. Through these operations, the overlying shapes could be eliminated, intersecting shapes could be highlighted, and overlapped shapes could be merged as one, and so on.
Maplytics Dashboard- With the help of Dashboards, one can visualize and analyze Dynamics 365 CRM data and insights. The Dashboard view for Maplytics can also be customized.
To get more acquainted with Maplytics and experience it first-hand, one can write to them at crm@inogic.com. To explore the product in depth, with a free trial of 15 days, or a personalized demo within Microsoft Dynamics 365 CRM / Dataverse get in touch with the Team.
For applied knowledge, do visit the Website or the Microsoft AppSource. For a quick query resolution, one can hop on to the detailed Blogs, Client Testimonials, Success Stories, and Video Library.
“You have captured the essence of Maplytics very well, Lisa,” Nina complimented on reading the entire functional draft. “You can mention at the beginning or as a fun fact that Maplytics is a 5-star rated, popular app on the Microsoft AppSource. Also put in as a gist the plethora of industries that Maplytics has found its successful application in i.e. Manufacturing, Healthcare, Hospitality, Consultancy, Cosmetics, and so on!” she concluded as Lisa took notes.
Let us have a look at the technical details based on use cases drafted by Lisa in the coming time.
Until then,
Map Along the Way!
