Vitality Enhances Customer Engagement with Microsoft Dynamics 365

Vitality Boosts Sales by 87% with Microsoft Dynamics 365 CRM

Through a complete sales process redesign and the implementation of Microsoft Dynamics 365, Vitality automated lead management, improved team performance, and achieved record-breaking growth in just seven months.

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The CRM Team

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Oct 12, 2025

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11 Mins Read

About Vitality

Vitality is one of the UK’s most innovative and fast-growing life and health insurance providers, known for its unique approach to rewarding healthier living. As part of the Discovery Group, Vitality focuses on combining financial protection with well-being and engagement programs that help customers lead better lives.

To enhance operational efficiency and strengthen customer engagement, Vitality partnered with The CRM Team to completely transform its lead management and sales process through Microsoft Dynamics 365 CRM. This digital transformation delivered exceptional results — doubling the team’s contribution to group income within just seven months, and paving the way for sustained growth and higher sales targets.

The Challenge

Vitality’s UK Direct-to-Customer (D2C) division relied on a slow, manual lead management process. Leads from its website required manual handling and Excel-based extraction before reaching sales agents — often delayed by over an hour. This lack of automation caused missed opportunities and reduced conversion rates.

Key Challenges Included:

Manual workflows with poor visibility into sales leads.
Data gaps between website inquiries and advisory teams.
Delayed response times and lead leakage.
No unified view of the customer journey.

Vitality needed a solution to centralize its customer data, automate workflows, and improve conversion speed.

The Solution: Microsoft Dynamics 365 CRM

With guidance from The CRM Team, Vitality implemented Microsoft Dynamics 365 CRM Online to automate and optimize its entire lead management process. The solution was designed using agile delivery principles, allowing for rapid deployment and continuous improvement.

Key Features Implemented:

End-to-end lead management automation.
Real-time lead routing and tracking.
Integration with telephony and analytics tools.
Unified dashboards providing full visibility of customer data.
Machine learning and predictive insights for smarter targeting.

The CRM Team delivered the initial working solution in just six weeks, which was then refined to suit Vitality’s growing sales goals.

The impact

The transformation was immediate and measurable. With Dynamics 365 in place, Vitality’s D2C team eliminated manual bottlenecks and achieved outstanding business results.

Results Achieved:

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87% increase in sales within seven months.

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360° Customer View

Teams have unified visibility into customer preferences, interactions, and purchase behaviour.

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Lead response time dropped from over an hour to seconds.

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Improved collaboration and accountability across the sales team.

Functionality Exceeding Expectations

Vitality’s leadership recognized early on that Microsoft Dynamics 365 offered flexibility and integration unmatched by other platforms. The CRM system introduced new capabilities like propensity modeling, web chat support, and predictive analytics, giving the sales team deeper insights into customer behavior and needs.

The improved workflow enabled agents to act faster, reach more leads, and deliver personalized service at every touchpoint.

Digital Transformation to Drive Growth

Vitality’s adoption of Dynamics 365 set a new benchmark for digital transformation in the insurance industry. The platform now serves as the backbone of its customer engagement strategy — combining automation, analytics, and human expertise.

With The CRM Team’s ongoing partnership, Vitality continues to evolve its CRM capabilities to support expansion and innovation in a fast-changing market.

Conclusion

Through collaboration with The CRM Team, Vitality reimagined its sales operations with Microsoft Dynamics 365 CRM. The results speak for themselves:

Higher efficiency
Smarter engagement
Real-time insights
Measurable business growth

Vitality’s success illustrates how technology, when strategically applied, can transform traditional sales processes into intelligent, scalable growth engines.

Accelerate Your Sales Success with Dynamics 365

Discover how The CRM Team helps businesses like Vitality boost performance and deliver exceptional customer experiences through Microsoft Dynamics 365 CRM.

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Digital Transformation in Action: First Group + Microsoft Dynamics 365

Microsoft Case Study

First Group Transforms Customer Engagement with Microsoft Dynamics 365

By implementing Microsoft Dynamics 365 Marketing and Customer Insights, First Group automated key business processes, improved efficiency, and gained an integrated customer view across operations.

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The CRM Team

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Oct 12, 2025

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6 Mins Read

Background & Challenges

Before implementing Microsoft Dynamics 365, First Group relied on manual systems and processes to manage customer relationships and operations. The organisation used a self-developed property management tool with no CRM integration, resulting in inefficiencies, data silos, and slow decision-making.

Key Challenges Included:

No central CRM or marketing system to manage customer data and engagement.
Manual administrative processes leading to higher operational costs.
Limited visibility into customer interactions and preferences.
Fragmented data across different systems.

The solution: Dynamics 365 + The CRM Team

With support from The CRM Team, First Group implemented Microsoft Dynamics 365 Marketing and Customer Insights, transforming how customer information is collected, analysed, and used across departments.

This digital shift enabled the organisation to move from manual tracking to intelligent automation, unlocking data-driven insights for improved engagement and strategic decision-making.

With Microsoft Dynamics 365, First Group:

Automated marketing campaigns and workflows.
Unified customer data for a complete 360° view.
Reduced administrative costs through automation.
Improved segmentation and personalised customer communication.
Enabled leadership with real-time reporting and analytics.

Real impact, real results

Key Outcomes:

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Automation & Efficiency

Core administrative tasks that once took hours are now completed automatically.

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360° Customer View

Teams have unified visibility into customer preferences, interactions, and purchase behaviour.

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Lower Costs

Reduction in manual labour and reporting overheads.

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Scalable CRM Foundation

The platform allows First Group to scale and add new Dynamics 365 modules as they grow.

Conclusion

With the guidance of The CRM Team, First Group successfully transitioned from fragmented systems to a unified CRM environment using Microsoft Dynamics 365.
The solution provides measurable improvements in efficiency, data accuracy, and customer engagement, positioning First Group for future growth.

Streamline Your Operations Today

Discover how The CRM Team can help your organisation build smarter customer connections and achieve operational excellence with Microsoft Dynamics 365.

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Transform your contact centre into a strategic growth driver

Microsoft Blog

Transform Your Contact Centre into a Strategic Growth Driver

Modern customer service demands more than quick responses — it requires intelligence, agility, and seamless collaboration. Discover how AI and Dynamics 365 Contact Centre empower your business to deliver smarter, faster, and more personalised support.

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AI-POWERED CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE TRANSFORMATION

The Future of Customer Service: Smarter, Faster, Friction-Free

Experience how AI and Dynamics 365 Contact Centre are redefining customer engagement.

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Taryn Engelbrecht

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May 14, 2025

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9 Mins Read

As customer expectations accelerate in South Africa’s increasingly digital economy, organisations face unprecedented pressure to deliver efficient, seamless and personalised service across every channel. However, many contact centres continue to operate on legacy systems that are fragmented, reactive and resource-intensive – hindering their ability to meet modern demands.

The result is rising operational costs, declining customer satisfaction and overburdened agents struggling to provide consistent support. These issues are not just service challenges – they are strategic risks.

Traditionally, contact centres have been viewed as cost centres — measured by call volumes, average handle time and issue resolution rates. But today’s competitive landscape requires a shift in mindset: contact centres must evolve into growth enablers and customer experience (CX) accelerators.

This evolution hinges on reimagining the contact centre not merely as a point of resolution but as a strategic platform for customer engagement, retention and insight.

The operational realities are familiar:

Disconnected customer interactions across phone, e-mail, chat and social media platforms;
Extended wait times due to inefficient routing and manual processes;
Limited visibility for supervisors into live performance and agent workflows;
High agent turnover driven by stress and a lack of contextually rich tools; and
Rigid infrastructure unable to scale or integrate new technologies.

These pain points compromise service delivery and dilute brand trust – especially in sectors such as telecommunications, financial services and public sector organisations, where customer needs are complex and urgent.

The role of AI and intelligent automation

Emerging technologies such as Microsoft Dynamics 365 Contact Centre offer a clear pathway to overcoming these limitations. By combining omnichannel support, AI-driven automation and real-time analytics, modern platforms help organisations resolve a greater percentage of queries without human intervention, improve routing accuracy and deliver personalised support at scale.

AI-powered capabilities, including intelligent chatbots, auto-summarisation and predictive insights, reduce repetitive tasks, allowing agents to focus on more valuable interactions. This shift enhances productivity, improves response times and ultimately drives higher customer satisfaction.

Unified workspaces for consistent customer journeys

Dynamics 365 Contact Centre provides agents with a single, integrated workspace that consolidates all customer interactions. Whether a conversation begins on WhatsApp, transitions to e-mail or concludes via voice, the agent retains complete visibility throughout the customer’s journey.

In addition, Microsoft Copilot acts as a virtual assistant, helping agents respond more effectively, summarise engagements and surface actionable insights – all within a secure and compliant Microsoft environment.

Customer experience as a strategic differentiator

In an environment where product and pricing advantages are increasingly commoditised, CX stands out as a powerful differentiator. Organisations that embrace technology to reduce friction, personalise service and deliver consistent experiences are not only improving loyalty but unlocking competitive advantage.

This is particularly vital in South Africa’s telecoms and internet service provider sectors, where high churn and customer attrition are common. A modern contact centre strategy ensures that every interaction contributes to trust, retention and long-term value.

About The CRM Team

The CRM Team is a trusted digital transformation partner and certified monday.com partner, helping businesses across Africa streamline operations, improve collaboration and unlock new levels of productivity. Through deep expertise in CRM, project management and automation tools, The CRM Team empowers organisations to build smarter workflows tailored to their goals.

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Written by Taryn Engelbrecht

Elevate teamwork with AI that thinks ahead – not instead

monday.com Article

Reclaim your time: How monday.com's AI lets teams focus on what matters most

monday.com’s AI empowers teams to automate routine work, improve collaboration, and focus on innovation. Learn how The CRM Team helps businesses harness human-centred AI for smarter productivity.

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Transforming Work with Human-Centred AI

Unlock Smarter Teamwork Today

Join The CRM Team in reimagining productivity with monday.com’s AI tools that simplify work, enhance collaboration, and give your team the freedom to innovate.

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Kessia Kroon

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Aug 5, 2025

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9 Mins Read

AI is everywhere – and in many cases, it’s trying to do everything. It can write e-mails, answer support tickets and even brainstorm your next big idea. But when we rely on AI too much, we risk losing the human judgment, creativity and critical thinking that make great work truly great. That’s what differentiates monday AI: it doesn’t replace your work – it clears the path so you can do your best.

Less busywork, more brainwork

As AI becomes more ingrained in our daily lives, concerns about the loss of the human touch are growing. From customer service to creative work, AI offers unmatched speed, efficiency and scalability – but often lacks the emotional intelligence, empathy and understanding that define human interaction.

Whether a chatbot replaces a support agent or generates art, there’s a growing sense that something essential is being forgotten. The human touch – marked by genuine emotion, intuition and connection – is hard to replace, and its absence can make experiences feel cold and impersonal.

Monday.com integrates powerful AI capabilities to help teams work smarter and faster by minimising manual tasks and saving time for more important work. Its AI assistant can generate task summaries, build project plans and craft clear updates.

Using machine learning, the platform offers intelligent suggestions for automation, task prioritisation and resource allocation. By identifying patterns in vast amounts of data, monday AI helps teams stay ahead of deadlines by highlighting potential bottlenecks and risks – boosting productivity across departments.

At The CRM Team, our approach is clear. We believe AI should clear your desk, not cloud your judgment. That’s why we champion monday.com’s AI tools – designed not to replace the human element but to amplify it.

Where smart tech meets human-centred productivity

Whether you’re managing large-scale construction projects, high-pressure service delivery or cross-functional marketing campaigns, monday.com’s AI is built to integrate into your existing workflows and elevate them.

It cuts the noise, reduces repetitive admin and helps your team get back to what they do best – strategising, innovating and collaborating.

AI that adds value – across every workflow

1. AI blocks: automate the admin, not the thinking

Extract with AI: Pull key data (like invoice numbers or client names) from e-mails, PDFs or files into your boards – no manual entry needed.
Summarize with AI: Condense long text into quick-read summaries – ideal for managers and decision makers.
Translate with AI: Translate content across multiple supported languages, instantly.
Improve text: Refine grammar, tone and clarity to create stronger updates, proposals or reports.
Detect sentiment: Analyse the emotional tone of client feedback, customer e-mails or internal messages.
Custom AI prompts: Build tailored AI tools for your team’s specific needs using any board or file content.

2. AI-powered project management that works ahead of you

Resource allocation: Monday’s AI intelligently assigns the most suitable team member to each task by evaluating both the task requirements and the candidates’ expertise.
Project risk reports: Get daily insights into potential project bottlenecks or delays, across multiple boards.
AI-generated reporting: Generate presentation-ready executive summaries and dashboards with charts, insights and risk assessments in just a few clicks.

Built for humans. Backed by AI

Beyond boosting productivity, monday.com’s AI enhances collaboration by streamlining communication and cutting manual work. It generates updates, suggests next steps, and turns data into insights and visual reports. AI also helps build custom automations tailored to each team’s workflow, freeing time for strategic tasks. Rather than replacing people, it removes routine admin so teams can focus on creative, human-centred work – bringing connection and innovation to the forefront.

About The CRM Team

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Written by Kessia Kroon

AI omnichannel and the right partner: futureproofing customer experience

Microsoft Article

AI omnichannel and the right partner: futureproofing customer experience

In an era where customer expectations are rapidly evolving, businesses must transform their contact centers into AI-driven growth engines. This page explores how leveraging the right technology and partnerships can enhance customer loyalty and operational efficiency.

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Transforming Customer Experience with AI

Unlock New Potential Today

Join us in revolutionizing customer interactions with cutting-edge AI solutions.

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Taryn Engelbrecht

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Sept 9, 2025

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8 Mins Read

Telecommunications operators are under pressure. Billing disputes, service interruptions and failed credit vetting drive thousands of frustrated customers into call queues every day. Legacy platforms are buckling under the strain, costs keep rising and customer loyalty is at risk. Every missed interaction is more than an inconvenience – it’s a potential loss of revenue and trust.

For too long, the contact centre has been treated as a cost centre. In 2025, that model no longer holds. To stay competitive, the contact centre must become a growth driver, a digital hub and the foundation of customer experience.

From cost centre to growth engine

The shift is already under way. Around the world, telecoms operators are rethinking contact centres and embracing digital transformation. Artificial intelligence is being deployed to handle repetitive queries, guide agents in real time and reduce the friction that drives up call volumes. Omnichannel engagement has become non-negotiable, with customers expecting to switch between channels – voice, WhatsApp, SMS, chat and e-mail – without repeating themselves.

The results are clear: smarter service reduces churn, lowers costs and builds loyalty. Customers get faster answers. Agents focus on higher value interactions. Executives see healthier margins and improved customer satisfaction. This is not about cutting costs alone, it is about turning the contact centre into a genuine growth engine.

The CRM Team is ready to help you win the CX battle

For African operators, the challenge – and opportunity – is even greater. Customers expect to engage on WhatsApp as readily as they do on voice. They want proactive notifications and self-service journeys that mirror their digital lifestyles. Falling short risks losing ground to more agile competitors. In a market where loyalty is fragile and switching is easy, the ability to deliver differentiated service is now a competitive advantage.

The technology is ready

Microsoft has delivered the platform to make this transformation possible. Microsoft Dynamics 365 Contact Center is a cloud-native solution designed from the ground up for the modern era. It unifies voice, chat, SMS, e-mail, social and Microsoft Teams into a single agent desktop, breaking down silos and eliminating the inefficiencies of legacy stacks.

At its core, the platform is powered by Azure Communication Services (ACS), Microsoft’s enterprise-grade communications backbone. This ensures enterprise reliability, scale and security for voice and digital interactions. Where operators need to extend into additional channels, such as WhatsApp or regional SMS, services like Twilio can be integrated – expanding reach while keeping the core intact.

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Built as a Copilot-first platform, Microsoft Dynamics 365 Contact Center brings AI into the heart of the agent experience. Copilot assists with live transcription, suggested responses, case summarisation and real-time sentiment insights. For customers, this means a faster, more accurate service. For agents, it means less time searching for answers and more time resolving complex issues. For leaders, it means measurable improvements in efficiency and satisfaction.

Microsoft has also continued to invest in innovation. Recent enhancements include diagnostics and telemetry tools that track every step of the customer journey. Supervisors can see how calls are routed, where delays occur and how agents perform. Armed with these insights, they can optimise operations, coach staff more effectively and deliver a consistently better customer experience.

This isn’t about experimenting with AI or digital channels. The tools are proven, enterprise-ready and already deployed globally. The question is no longer whether they work – it is how quickly telecoms operators can put them to work in their own organisations?

Why the right partner makes the difference

The difference between telecoms operators that lead and those that lag isn’t technology, it’s execution. Microsoft Dynamics 365 Contact Center provides the foundation. But the real question is: who will configure AI to align with your billing processes? Who will integrate omnichannel into your ecosystem without disruption? Who will guide delivery in the African market, where complexity is the norm?

That’s the value The CRM Team brings. We don’t just implement software; we futureproof customer experience. By aligning Microsoft’s AI and omnichannel capabilities with telco realities, we help operators cut call volumes, accelerate digital adoption and unlock new revenue streams. With The CRM Team, transformation doesn’t just start – succeeds.

Our experience spans industries where customer experience makes or breaks business outcomes – from telecoms to retail to healthcare to financial services. We understand the pressure of high-volume environments, the challenge of integrating legacy systems and the need to deliver visible return on investment quickly. This is why organisations trust us to lead their transformation journeys.

The time to act is now

Contact centres stand at a crossroads. They can remain overwhelmed, reactive and costly. Or they can become engines of customer trust and growth. The gap between these two futures is not defined by technology – it is defined by leadership.

2025 is the tipping point. The technology is ready. The opportunity is real. The only question is whether you act or let your competitors act first.

The CRM Team is ready to help you win the CX battle.

Take the Next Step

Don’t wait to transform your customer engagement strategy. Contact The CRM Team today to discover how our AI-powered solutions can revolutionize your business. Our experts are ready to provide personalized advice and support tailored to your specific needs. Whether you’re looking to enhance customer experience, boost productivity, or gain actionable insights, we have the expertise to help you succeed. Reach out now and let’s start building a brighter future together.

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