How to Implement CTI (Computer Telephony Integration) for Microsoft Dynamics CRM 365

The customer service industry is changing rapidly because of technological advancements and ever-evolving customer expectations. As per a report by Salesforce, “ Out of 14,300 customers, 80% of modern customers consider the experience a company offers is equally important as its products and services”.

Today’s customers anticipate that the customer support team should know everything about their current and previous purchases, queries and solutions, required personal information, and more.

Fulfilling these expectations becomes challenging for agents, because of multiple reasons, such as screen toggling, lack of required data, low call volume rate, poor efficiency, etc. These reasons hamper agents’ performance and negatively impact customers’ experience.

One of the ways to overcome these challenges is to connect telephony systems with CRMs using CTI (Computer Telephony Integration). The integration of telephony systems with CRM allows agents to get the relevant information and data handy and resolve customers’ queries quickly.

CTI Connector and How to Implement it for CRM

CTI connector boosts agents’ productivity by linking telephony systems with business applications or CRMs like Microsoft Dynamics to manage calls and queries more efficiently. It helps simplify agent-customer interactions and automates the workflow.

Once the CTI connector is integrated seamlessly, agents get all the information like – the caller’s name, address, last query, last purchases, last solution offered, call controls, and more on a single screen. This saves agents’ and customers’ time and boosts productivity with customer satisfaction.

But, how to implement CTI for CRM? Different businesses and industries use different CRMs such as – Salesforce, Zendesk, Microsoft Dynamics, etc. Here, we will understand the implementation of CTI for Microsoft Dynamics CRM.

Screen-pop, click-to-dial, and quick call controls are some of the features that agents get after implementing CTI integration with Dynamics 365 from NovelVox.

A CTI connector can be installed in MSD using Ribbon Workbench, a tool for customizing the ribbon as per the business needs, and a cloud-to-cloud extensible framework like Channel Integration Framework (CIF). The installation process and features of both elements are different, however, the core purpose is the same, i.e., making agent-customer interactions seamless.

Below is the implementation process of Ribbon WorkBench and Channel Integration Framework (CIF) for Microsoft Dynamics CRM 365.

CTI Implementation Process Using Ribbon WorkBench

Before implementing CTI for Microsoft Dynamics using Ribbon Workbench, we need to have the following prerequisites in place.

• Must have MSD account
• Access to add a solution or to create a new solution
• Import Ribbon WorkBench solution and create a CTI button using Ribbon WorkBench

Once done with these required steps, let’s begin with the implementation process.

⦿ Login and Begin

To configure CTI using Ribbon WorkBench in Dynamics 365, log in to your Microsoft Dynamics account with your credentials.

⦿ Step ahead with Settings and Solutions

Navigate to the ‘Advance Setting’ option from the top right and click ‘Solutions’ from the dropdown menu. Then click on import and add the required package from solutions. You can also create a new solution by clicking ‘New’ and filling in the details and the added solution will appear in the solutions list.

⦿ Add Existing Entities to the Imported Solution

After adding the new solution, add entities by clicking on ‘Entity’ from the component type, and add an entity. Add the entity as an Account, Contact, or Lead, and the CTI button will become visible from these entities.

⦿ Publish and Save

Once the solutions and entities are added, publish all customizations and your CTI implementation process for Ribbon WorkBench is successfully completed.

CTI Implementation Process Using CIF

Some essential prerequisites before installing the Channel Integration Framework (CIF) are as follows.

• Must have MSD account
• Access to add a solution or create a new solution
• Install CIF using this link.

After the prerequisites are in place, step ahead with implementing the Channel Integration Framework (CIF).

⦿ Install CIF

The first and most important step is to install CIF. Once the CIF is installed successfully, you will see it in the Apps section under published apps in Microsoft Dynamics.

⦿ Import Solutions

Just like Ribbon WorkBench, you need to import solutions while implementing CIF. Go to the ‘Advance Setting’ option from the top right. Then click ‘Solutions’ from the dropdown menu. Further, click on import and add the required package from solutions. You can also create a new solution by clicking ‘New’ and filling in the details and the added solution will appear in the solutions list.

⦿ Add Existing Entities to the Imported Solution

The next step after adding solutions is to add entities. Click on ‘Entity’ from the component type, and add an entity. Add the entity as an Account, Contact, or Lead, and the CTI button will become visible from these entities.

⦿ Publish and Save

Once the solutions and entities are added, publish all customizations and complete your CTI implementation process for the Channel Integration Framework (CIF).

⦿ Connect Solutions with the CIF

To use the optimum features of the CTI, you need to connect the solutions with the CIF. Go to Solutions and copy the URL from the API file.

Then open the Channel Integration Framework from the apps section and click on the new icon. Fill in the required details, like – name, and label, and paste the copies URL under the channel URL. Add further details as per the business requirements. Select the unified interface apps for the channels and then select the roles for the channel.

Once all the details are filled the solution is ready to connect with the CIF, click save and close, and you are done.

To check the installed CIF, go to any of the selected unified apps for the channels and you can see the added CTI on the right side of your screen in any of the entities.

This is how we can use either Ribbon WorkBench or CIF for implementing CTI for Microsoft Dynamics 365 CRM.

Ribbon WorkBench VS CIF

CTI implementation can be done using both Ribbon WorkBench and CIF. However, many will wonder which is better, to choose the one that fits your business, below is a quick comparison between both.

Both Ribbon WorkBench and CIF have their own benefits and features, businesses can use any of these methods according to their requirements.

Apart from the implementation process, the thing that matters the most is integrating an advanced CTI with excellent features that meet the current industry standards. A good CTI connector will boost productivity, help meet customer expectations, and improve the overall workflow, so trusting the leading contact center solution providers like NovelVox for Smart CTI connectors can be the prime choice.