Real Results: A Case Study on CRM Integration for Housing Providers

In today's fast-paced business environment, customer data is often spread across multiple applications, such as email platforms, CRM tools, marketing software, support ticketing systems, and more. This fragmentation leads to several critical challenges:

• Inefficiency & Wasted Time – Employees spend valuable time switching between applications to gather customer insights, slowing down decision-making and response times.

• Inconsistent & Incomplete Data – Different teams may have access to different versions of customer information, leading to discrepancies, duplicated records, and gaps in data.

• Poor Customer Experience – Without a centralised view, customer interactions can feel disconnected, as teams lack the full context of previous engagements, preferences, or pain points.

• Limited Analytics & Insights – Siloed data makes it difficult to get a holistic understanding of customer behaviour, making strategic planning and personalised engagement less effective.

• Scalability Challenges – As businesses grow, managing multiple applications becomes more complex, increasing costs and the risk of operational inefficiencies.

By centralising customer data within a single CRM, businesses can streamline workflows, improve collaboration, and enhance customer satisfaction through a more unified and informed approach.

The Problem

Disjointed Systems Requiring Multiple Applications:

Many businesses rely on a variety of software solutions, email marketing platforms, CRM systems, customer support tools, and more to manage different aspects of customer interactions. Without seamless integration, employees are forced to navigate multiple applications to gather relevant information, leading to:

• Data silos – Different teams work with isolated data, preventing a comprehensive understanding of the customer.

• Duplicate or outdated records – Inconsistent updates across platforms create discrepancies in customer profiles.

• Manual data entry – Employees waste time inputting data across multiple systems, increasing the risk of errors.

Time Inefficiencies and Lack of Real-Time Insights:

• Employees spend excessive time switching between tools, slowing down response times and reducing overall productivity.

• Real-time customer insights are difficult to obtain when information is scattered across multiple platforms.

• Decision-making is delayed as leaders struggle to access accurate, up-to-date reports from disconnected sources.

Negative Impact on Customer Experience and Decision-Making:

• Customers experience frustrating interactions when businesses lack a full history of their past engagements, forcing them to repeat information.

• Support teams miss opportunities for personalisation and proactive service due to incomplete customer data.

• Delayed responses and inefficiencies lead to lost trust, lower customer satisfaction, and reduced retention rates.

A centralised CRM solution eliminates these pain points by consolidating customer data into a single platform, providing a 360° view of each customer for more efficient workflows, real-time insights, and a seamless customer experience.

The Solution: A Single-Platform CRM for a Unified Customer View

To overcome the challenges of fragmented customer data, businesses can integrate a centralised CRM that consolidates information from multiple applications into a single, streamlined platform. This eliminates the need for employees to juggle multiple tools, improving efficiency, decision-making, and customer interactions.

How a Single-Platform Solution Works:

A centralised CRM integrates with various business applications to pull all relevant customer data into one place. This ensures that every team member has access to a complete, real-time view of customer interactions, preferences, and history.

Key Features & Benefits

• Centralised Customer Profiles

  • A single, unified record for each customer that includes communication history, purchase behaviour, support tickets, and engagement data.

  • Eliminates duplicate records and inconsistencies across different platforms.

  • Enables sales, marketing, and support teams to access the same up-to-date information for a seamless customer experience.

• Automated Data Synchronization

  • Real-time integration with external applications ensures that customer records are always accurate and updated across all departments.

  • Reduces manual data entry, minimizing errors and saving valuable employee time.

  • Keeps customer information aligned across sales, marketing, support, and finance teams.

• Real-Time Analytics and Reporting

  • Provides actionable insights through dynamic dashboards and reporting tools.

  • Helps businesses track customer trends, measure campaign effectiveness, and make data-driven decisions.

  • Enables predictive analytics to identify potential churn, upsell opportunities, and personalised engagement strategies.

• Improved Team Collaboration

  • Breaks down silos between departments by giving everyone access to the same customer data.

  • Enhances cross-functional coordination—sales can see customer support interactions, marketing can tailor campaigns based on purchase history, and leadership can access overall performance metrics.

  • Improves workflow efficiency by reducing redundant communication and ensuring seamless handoffs between teams.

The Result: A More Efficient, Customer-Centric Business:

By implementing a single-platform CRM, businesses can streamline operations, provide a more personalised customer experience, and make informed decisions based on real-time data. This transformation leads to higher productivity, improved customer satisfaction, and increased revenue growth.

The Results: Transforming Business Operations with a Centralised CRM

Implementing a single-platform CRM delivers measurable improvements across efficiency, customer experience, data accuracy, and cost savings. By consolidating fragmented customer information, businesses can operate more effectively and provide seamless service.

1. Increased Efficiency & Reduced Time Spent Switching Between Applications

• Employees no longer need to toggle between 10+ applications to find customer data.

• Automated workflows reduce manual data entry and administrative tasks.

• Faster response times lead to higher productivity and improved employee satisfaction.

2. Enhanced Customer Experience with Faster, More Informed Interactions

• Sales, support, and marketing teams have instant access to complete customer histories.

• Customers don’t have to repeat their issues across different departments.

• Personalization becomes effortless, leading to higher engagement and retention rates.

3. Improved Data Accuracy & Decision-Making Capabilities

• Real-time synchronization ensures that all departments work with up-to-date, consistent information.

• Advanced reporting and analytics provide deep insights into customer behaviour, helping businesses optimise sales and marketing strategies.

• Predictive analytics help identify customer needs and proactively address pain points.

4. Cost Savings from Eliminating Redundant Software

• Consolidating multiple platforms into a single CRM reduces software licensing costs.

• Less reliance on manual labour and third-party integrations saves operational expenses.

• A unified system streamlines IT support and maintenance costs, improving overall budget efficiency.

The Bottom Line:

By centralizing customer data, businesses unlock efficiency, enhance customer relationships, and reduce operational costs. A 360° customer view leads to smarter decision-making, improved service, and sustainable growth.

Key Takeaways

• The Importance of a Unified View for Better Customer Relationship Management

• A 360° customer view ensures that all departments have access to consistent, up-to-date data, leading to better customer interactions.

• Businesses can personalize customer experiences, improve engagement, and enhance satisfaction by having a complete history of interactions in one place.

• A centralised CRM eliminates data silos, reduces inefficiencies, and empowers employees to make informed, real-time decisions.

• Best Practices for Businesses Looking to Streamline Their Systems

• Assess Current Systems & Identify Redundancies – Evaluate existing software and eliminate overlapping tools to reduce complexity and costs.

• Choose an Integrated, Scalable Solution – Select a CRM that integrates with existing applications and can grow with the business.

• Automate Data Synchronization – Implement real-time data updates to ensure accuracy and minimize manual entry.

• Train Teams for Adoption – Provide proper training and support to ensure employees fully utilize the new system.

• Leverage Analytics for Continuous Improvement – Use real-time reporting and predictive analytics to refine customer engagement strategies.

Conclusion

Summary of the Transformation and Long-Term Benefits

The shift from fragmented, multi-application systems to a centralised CRM marks a significant transformation in how businesses manage customer relationships. By consolidating data into a single platform, companies experience:

• Increased efficiency by reducing time spent navigating multiple tools.

• Enhanced customer interactions through real-time access to complete customer profiles.

• Improved decision-making with accurate, synchronized data and actionable insights.

• Cost savings by eliminating redundant software and streamlining workflows.

In the long term, businesses that implement a 360° customer view are better positioned for growth, customer retention, and operational agility in an increasingly competitive market.

For businesses struggling with scattered customer data and inefficient processes, now is the time to embrace a centralised CRM solution. By unifying customer information in one platform, you can:

• Boost productivity and streamline workflows.

• Deliver personalised, efficient customer experiences.

• Make smarter, data-driven decisions.

• Reduce costs and maximise ROI on technology investments.

Start your transformation today by exploring a CRM solution tailored to your business needs. The future of seamless customer management begins now.

F-Tek has encountered and resolved such issues in a number of business environments.

In one such instance, a large housing association was facing an issue with its view of the customer. The data was held in disparate systems, and customer service agents were required to navigate several IT systems to gain an accurate representation of the customer's situation. This led to inaccurate information and frustration from the customers when they potentially needed to reiterate issues already previously explained.

The information held on customers ranged from tenancy details (Northgate NEC) to repairs (DRS), billing, and complaints. In addition, the housing association needed information on the property, which was held in yet another system.

The requirement presented was to bring the data together into a single view, allowing a customer service representative to see a timeline of the customer's interactions in a simple and obvious way.

After workshops and discussions with the client, it was decided that the data would be presented in Microsoft Dynamics. To achieve this, an integration design leveraging Azure data factory and, where required, Azure functions was selected to build the single customer view. This design represented a simple but effective way to build the required integrations in the most cost-effective and efficient way, as these technologies are well-understood by development teams and have low running costs.

As a result, customer frustration and complaints focused on interactions with the client were reduced. In addition, the operational efficiencies it enabled allowed the call centre to achieve a higher throughput of customer calls. Other tools integrated into the process allowed the customer record to be automatically presented to the customer service agent on dialling the customer’s phone number, further improving the efficiency of the customer service function by reducing the time wasted by miss-keying names, addresses etc.