Wednesday, February 24, 2021
Microsoft pivots to digital selling with Dynamics 365 to reach more customers
Microsoft has flipped the traditional sales model over the past few years, from inside sales teams supporting field sales teams to those inside teams now outnumbering their field counterparts. Today, more than 2,500 digital sellers serve customers from eight sales centers around the world. As more customers move to digital buying, the volume of leads generated has grown exponentially. To keep up, Microsoft Digital Sales turned to Microsoft Dynamics 365 Sales and Sales Insights to scale for increased demand, engage customers remotely, and increase seller productivity.Scaling for increased demandAs millennials move into the ranks of decision makers, they're expecting digital buying experiences. In response, inside selling increased 89 percent in just four years, according to a 2017 InsideSales.com study. That has resulted in more leads, more contacts, more activities, and more digital channels—and traditional tools and processes no longer meet these new challenges. Microsoft found the answer in its own business solutions, Dynamics 365 Sales and Sales Insights.
9 tips for meeting with Microsoft Teams
Microsoft Teams enables you to host and participate in more productive meetings and invite anyone to join you. This makes Teams a perfect solution where you can communicate and meet with anyone inside or outside your organization - even if they are not a Teams user. This blog offers 9 tips to having more productive meetings with attendees in and outside your organization.
Tuesday, February 23, 2021
Digital transformation isn't what you think it is--so what is it?
When the same phrase is used so frequently and over an extended period of time, two things typically happen: first, it officially achieves buzzword status; and second, it begins to lose its meaning. Among the tech industry's pool of du jour buzzwords, perhaps none is more prominent and overhyped--if not misunderstood--than "digital transformation." In his insightful Forbes article entitled "Digital Transformation Is Not What You Think It Is," author Jamie Notter argues that it is culture, and not digital, that today's organizations should focus on when it comes to digitally transforming themselves. In other words, identify what cultural changes will help make your business successful, then adopt technology to support and advance those goals. Check out the full article to get Mr. Notter's unique take on what "digital transformation" really means for your business--and more important, what it really entails.
Saving Money with Microsoft Teams
Microsoft Teams helps companies improve access to information and free up workers to focus on high-value activities, thus reducing operating costs, accelerating time-to-market, and fostering greater innovation.
Prioritize culture during digital transformation
For many organizations, digital transformation means integrating digital into every facet of the business, making digital the focus of every activity and process. But is that really the right approach? For a growing number of businesses, digital is increasingly being viewed as an enabler of broader business objectives rather than the end state or goal. In other words, many businesses are identifying what cultural changes need to take place to bring about success, and then adopting digital technologies to achieve that success. Like digital transformation itself, this shift in mindset is a journey--starting with recognizing the obstacles to digital transformation, the key attributes of a true digital culture, and how to overcome the former to become the latter. View the infographic to see what the journey's all about.
Ciacci Piccolomini d'Aragona winery creates a perfect blend of tradition and technology with Microsoft Teams
Microsoft Teams provides virtual solutions in response to an unexpected crisis.
For three generations, the Bianchini family has been creating exceptional wines on their idyllic estate, maintaining the traditions of a historic estate while staying one step ahead of the latest developments in the world of wine. With the recent COVID-19 pandemic and trade shows postponed and international travel impossible, everything changed. The Ciacci winery responded by turning to Microsoft Teams. To keep the business thriving, they moved quickly to replace in-person gatherings with virtual wine tastings using Teams meetings. Family members also used Teams to work together and connect with partners and suppliers, making the adjustment a perfect balance of tradition and technology.
Monday, February 22, 2021
ComAP: digital transformation of sales
The Czech company ComAp makes control units for diesel, gas, dual fuel, and other kinds of power generators for clients all over the world. Its devices can be found in hospitals, banks, and data centers. Since its foundation in 1991, ComAp has put emphasis on readiness in providing services to its customers. The effort to be always there for its customers has become one of the company's essential values. For ComAp, digitalization of sales with Microsoft has enabled global consolidation and consistency throughout their offices.
Wednesday, February 17, 2021
Don't just see your data--visualize it with Power BI. Subscribe now and never overlook a post.
Anyone can see their data--very few can make sense of it. But with Microsoft Power BI, you'll be able to not only visualize your data, but also extract insights from it to help modernize and streamline your business. Power BI, alongside Microsoft Azure and other Microsoft tools, offers an unbeatable solution for performing real-time analytics, visualizing the results, and leveraging insights to improve business processes, increase productivity, and ultimately gain a competitive edge. Subscribe now to learn how Power BI can help you see your business in a whole new way.
View: Don't just see your data--visualize it with Power BI. Subscribe now and never overlook a post.
Microsoft Transforms its Sales Practices
As software customers become better informed through their own online research, sellers must adapt their sales practices to engage with them at the right time and with the right insights to deliver value. By adopting a relationship sales approach that encompasses social listening, customer research, and innovative technology, the Inside Sales team at Microsoft has undergone a digital transformation that drives better interactions and establishes a model from which both partners and customers benefit.
Tuesday, February 16, 2021
Increase sales with AI-prioritized activities and cadences
Increase sales and adjust to fluctuations in demand by scaling sales resources and arming digital sellers with training/skilling and next best action enablement tools. Learn how Microsoft makes it possible. Subscribe now.
View: Increase sales with AI-prioritized activities and cadences
Data analyst and "oldest nerd in Guatemala" with ALS types with his eyes to modernize his clients' businesses
Can you teach an old nerd new tricks? For Otto Knoke, the self-proclaimed "oldest nerd in Guatemala" who has suffered from ALS for 20 years, the answer is a resounding yes. An admitted (and proud) workaholic, the 60-year-old data analyst is a well known fixture of the Guatemalan business community, having helped modernize the banking industry by introducing ATMs into the country 20 years ago. Sadly, right around that same time, Knoke was diagnosed with ALS (better known as Lou Gehrig's disease), and was told he only had two years to live. But rather than give in to the disease, Knoke relentlessly researched ways in which technology could help him overcome his condition and thrive--a determination and drive which has paid off. Today, some two decades later, Knoke has become the first person in Guatemala to use Microsoft's new eye-tracking software for Windows 10, called Eye Control, enabling him to literally type with his eyes and use Microsoft Power BI to analyze his clients' business data. For Knoke, who has always been a tech early adopter, this revolutionary Microsoft technology has not only helped his business continue to boom, but more important, it's enabled him to communicate more meaningfully with his loved ones and strengthen those relationships. Watch this truly fascinating and inspiring video to learn Otto Knoke's full story.
McCann & MullenLowe - Microsoft Teams Case Study
When bringing two companies together through acquisitions, you are often bringing in a different culture with different technology. This can often make it difficult to efficiently collaborate. Sharing files and streamlining communication is a common problem. Two of the leading agency networks, McCann and MullenLowe, needed help to create a single platform which enabled their employees to work together through close collaboration. Microsoft Teams provided the solution they were looking for.
Ste. Michelle Wine Estates crafts luxury customer experiences with Dynamics 365 Commerce
Ste. Michelle Wine Estates, one of the largest premium wine companies in the United States, prides itself on superior consumer experiences. To unify its consumer data and provide opportunities for innovation, Ste. Michelle is deploying Microsoft Dynamics 365 Commerce across all its wine brands. The company is already seeing better mobile experiences, and it expects that by enhancing its omnichannel commerce platform, Ste. Michelle will increase sales and conversion rates, attract new business, and boost loyalty among existing consumers.
Wednesday, February 10, 2021
Themes for sales success
This infographic provides 4 key themes for sales success, including building and strengthening relationships with key prospects and engaging with the whole buying committee. It also notes that success is all about scale and cross-platform is key.
5 ways to lead effective virtual meetings with your remote teams
With virtual meetings, your team can connect from across the globe. In this article, read 5 tips to help you ensure high productivity and efficiency during your virtual meetings. You'll also learn techniques for keeping cameras on, connecting with your people with empathy, asking if there's anything they need, ensuring there's space for attendees to share their thoughts, and setting an agenda with an outline.
Stitch Fix's radical data-driven way to sell clothes is reinventing retail
When you think of AI powerhouses, a fashion house may not be what first comes to mind. But capsule wardrobe company Stitch Fix is perfecting the art. In this article in Fast Company, learn how Stitch Fix relies on algorithms to drive all aspects of the business from selecting clothes for clients to running the warehouse. Their innovative Style Shuffle allows clients to rate clothing images each day, feeding the algorithm and refining the clothes offered to that customer. Customer comments after they've received a Fix give valuable feedback to clothing manufacturers on the minutiae of fit as well as style--a level of feedback they never get from retail.
This is the kind of pooling of data you get with the modern business intelligence of Power Bi and Azure. You can build and innovate with choice and flexibility. And you have visual drag and drop data exploration and interactive reporting right at your fingertips.
Tuesday, February 9, 2021
Streamline solutions with Microsoft Teams
Using Microsoft Teams helps you save time by having all solutions in one place for improved collaboration and information sharing. Foster a collaborative environment and embrace the upside of teamwork - frictionless sharing that makes good ideas exceptional.
Customer centricity: A key priority across all lines of business
Customer experience is expected to overtake price and product as the key brand differentiator by 2020. Get ahead of the competition now by personalizing your organization's customer experience strategy. Read the Customer Centricity e-book to learn how to unify your siloed marketing, sales, and service data into a single, intelligent 360-degree customer view by adopting a customer data platform.
View: Customer centricity: A key priority across all lines of business
5 reasons to choose Microsoft Power BI over Tableau
How do Microsoft's Power BI and Tableau compare? And how do you choose? Check out these five factors to consider as you evaluate the best solution for your data needs.
How NASCAR team Hendrick Motorsports uses Microsoft Teams to win races
For the 2018 racing season, NASCAR imposed new regulations on competitors, including limiting the number of team members allowed on the track during races. For legendary race team Hendrick Motorsports, this meant that many of the race-day crew would now need to perform their critical duties remotely from the team headquarters in Concord, NC. Hendrick Motorsports adjusted to the new regulations with technology, by making Microsoft Teams their new hub for all race communications and decision making.
Wednesday, February 3, 2021
Curate an end-to-end digital buying experience with AI-generated customer insights
Learn how to curate an end-to-end digital buying experience with AI insights. Subscribe now!
View: Curate an end-to-end digital buying experience with AI-generated customer insights
Microsoft Power BI Premium
If you're trying to find the best solution for your data analysis needs, read this white paper to get the inside details on what Power BI offers. Dedicated capacity, ability to work within your firewall with an on-premises server, the ability to build and distribute solutions broadly, higher dataset refresh rates and much more, including a peek at future feature sets.
Tuesday, February 2, 2021
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Learn more about Microsoft Teams for remote work. Subscribe now!
Thought Leadership: Teams Future Features
This article describes various new features in Microsoft Teams, including enabling calls in separate windows and pinning meeting controls to the top of your screen.
The Adecco Group connects a global workforce through innovative and collaborative technologies
As a global leader in professional staffing, career transition, and talent mobility, the Adecco Group has been transforming the world of work. They help customers embrace the changing employment landscape and develop new ways of working. With 34,000 team members across the globe, they needed more effective ways to collaborate in real time and a better way to access data for driving good decisions.
Microsoft 365 equips HR leaders with the people data needed to drive business and cultural transformation. Now these leaders can tap into the idea of working out loud and stimulating employee creativity with Microsoft Teams. And with Power BI, they've unlocked data so they can get the analysis they need, right on the spot!
Check out how Adecco is creating the future of work in these two brief videos!
A company crazy about chocolate, serious about people, uses Microsoft Teams to build personal relationships
Dutch startup Tony's Chocolonely grew out of a journalist's exposé of child slave labor in the cocoa industry and his dream of making the chocolate trade slavery-free. The Amsterdam-based company grew quickly, but its original collaboration apps didn't support its international expansion or its work-life balance ideals. Teams enables Tony's Chocolonely workers to communicate on a personal level with their colleagues in Europe, America, and Africa. Adding telephony capabilities makes it even more powerful, with everything available in one single interface.
Monday, February 1, 2021
Grant Thornton closes new opportunities faster with Dynamics 365 Sales Insights and AI
To best serve its clients, Grant Thornton must tie its extensive knowledge of macro-level economic and industry trends to the micro-level business needs, motivations, and challenges faced by individual executives within its client base. The global accounting and consulting firm does this by using Microsoft Dynamics 365 Sales, Microsoft Azure, and LinkedIn Sales Navigator to "connect the macro with the micro" and deliver that information quickly and accurately to geographically distributed team members. They also use Dynamics 365 Sales Insights to understand the health of client relationships and where new opportunities may lie, take actions based on those insights, close new opportunities faster, and win more deals.
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