Unveiling Enhanced Revenue Intelligence Capabilities in Dynamics 365 Sales

Introduction

Welcome to Avantiico’s exploration of the latest enhancements to the revenue intelligence capabilities within Dynamics 365 Sales, released as part of Microsoft’s Wave 1 Release 2023. These powerful tools are designed to empower your sales team to effectively manage revenue through versatile pricing and discount structures for products, establishing sales targets, accurately predicting sales outcomes, visualizing the progress of deals, and overseeing the top line with increased proactivity and efficiency.

In this blog post, we are excited to discuss new functionalities planned for the upcoming release wave, which are set to further augment the efficiency of revenue intelligence within Dynamics 365 Sales.

Introducing Revenue Intelligence Functionality in Dynamics 365

The revenue intelligence functionalities in Dynamics 365 Sales equip your sales personnel to efficiently handle revenue generation. This is achieved by establishing price points and discounts for products, setting goals, projecting sales, visualizing deal progress, and proactively managing their top line.

To augment the revenue intelligence in Dynamics 365 Sales, the following capability is slated for introduction in this release wave:

A revamped opportunity management feature, providing a visual representation of your sales pipeline while tracking deals and offering the ability to modify opportunities instantly.
The option to formulate forecasts with annual and weekly recurrence.
Support for modifying forecast values at the detailed level.
The capability to customize forecasts for each business division within your organization.

Introducing Relationship Insights Basics

At present, access to the relationship intelligence feature, which provides key relationship indicators and “Who knows whom” information, is contingent on activation by the Dynamics 365 administrator. This enhancement, however, allows sellers to have immediate access to these fundamental relationship KPIs and connections, all based on Dynamics 365 data, without requiring administrative activation.

As a sales representative, you’ll be able to:

Discover which individuals within your organization are connected to the current record.
Access essential relationship KPIs, all based on Dynamics 365 data, such as:
Customer interactions: This offers a comparison of the total number of activities (tasks excluded) initiated by us versus those initiated by the customer.
Relationship activities: This provides a day-to-day breakdown of activities initiated and received (covering the last 60 days).
Email sent/received ratio: This compares the ratio of emails sent out by us to those received from the customer.
Most contacted: This indicates the customer who has been most frequently contacted about the current record.
Most contacted by: This reveals the sellers who have reached out most frequently to customers regarding the current record.
Email engagement: This displays metrics about the number of clicked links, opened attachments, and the total email open count (this requires enabling email engagement).

Release Information:

Enabled for: Users, automatically

Public Preview: TBD

Early Access: February 6^th, 2023

General Availability: April 3^rd, 2023

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Manage Opportunities in a Pipeline View

The updated opportunity view in Dynamics 365 Sales offers an expansive, high-level perspective of your sales pipeline, simplifying opportunity management in an unprecedented way. This improved opportunity experience is tailor-made for sales professionals, aimed at boosting sales efficiency by eliminating superfluous steps and dedicating more time to actual selling. It reduces the numerous tasks traditionally assigned to sellers, integrating everything into one cohesive workspace. Sellers can easily identify the deals that require immediate attention and respond promptly. Furthermore, the updated view can be customized to suit their individual needs and preferences.

As a sales professional, you can:

Arrange your opportunities in a manner that best suits your work style.
Modify your views to your preference.
Promptly amend details using an adjustable grid and side-panel.
Attach notes and tasks, among other things.
View aggregated data for pipeline value, deal count, and various other metrics.

As a system administrator, you have the ability to:

Alter the record side panel forms by incorporating custom attributes.
Support the execution of business rules.
Adjust the display charts.

Release Information:

Enabled for: Users, automatically

Public Preview: TBD

Early Access: February 6^th, 2023

General Availability: April 24^th , 2023

Improve Forecast Accuracy

Companies monitor their sales goals at different periods and seek the capability to project appropriately. Now, salespeople can enhance their quarterly and monthly predictions with an annual forecast that reveals the advancement and forecasts for the full year. Additionally, for sales organizations with brief sales cycles, weekly repetitions can be set up to gauge weekly progress towards sales targets.

In the roles of an administrator or forecast manager, you have the ability to:

Establish forecasts recurring on an annual basis. Set up forecasts with weekly repetitions.

As a salesperson or sales supervisor, you are empowered to:

Monitor your annual and weekly predictions.

Release Information:

Enabled for: Admins, Makers, Marketers, or Analytics, automatically

Public Preview: TBD

Early Access: TBD

General Availability: September 2023

Conclusion

As we conclude our exploration of the latest revenue intelligence features in Dynamics 365 Sales, it’s clear that these new capabilities are set to transform the way your sales team manages and forecasts revenue. From the refined opportunity management experience to the flexibility of configuring forecasts for each business unit, these enhancements underscore a pivotal shift towards a more nuanced, adaptable, and data-driven sales strategy.

Incorporating yearly and weekly forecasting alongside the ability to adjust forecasts at the drill-down level ensures your sales predictions are both macro and micro-adjustable, fitting seamlessly into your unique business rhythm. Together, these features contribute to a more proactive, streamlined, and efficient sales process, driving both performance and profitability.

By embracing these upcoming changes in Dynamics 365 Sales, you’re equipping your team with the tools they need to manage and optimize your top line effectively. Remember, change is the driving force of progress, and in the fast-paced world of sales, staying ahead of the curve is paramount. We eagerly await the impact these enhancements will make on the sales industry, and we look forward to supporting your team in mastering these new capabilities.