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CRM Migration to Cloud—The Ultimate Guide

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CRM Migration to Cloud – The Ultimate Guide

Remote work has led to an increase in demand for cloud-based tools. Their widespread use has increased mobility and accessibility for all users. However, businesses can take it one step further and invest in CRM migration to cloud. Apart from delivering the obvious benefits, it can also provide more reliable data security, eliminate infrastructure maintenance costs, and introduce more customization options. This is not even a fraction of the benefits that a cloud-based CRM such as Microsoft Dynamics 365 offers.

Companies can migrate their data to an existing cloud CRM or implement a brand new solution; the choice is theirs. In both situations, migration will provide them the opportunity to organize the database and redefine outdated processes. Listed below are a few things to consider when planning CRM migration to cloud.

What is Cloud-Based CRM?

The cloud-based CRM solution consolidates all the marketing, sales, and customer service data on one platform. It has multiple applications, but businesses can only choose the services they require and also enjoy the flexibility offered by the cloud. CRM migration to cloud is the best way to keep all systems up-to-date, which means they can take advantage of the latest technology.

They will no longer need to pay high upgrade costs and can continue to enhance their operations with new features. The customization increases business agility and provides users with the ability to scale up and roll out new products with ease.
Companies can migrate their data to an existing cloud CRM or implement a brand new solution; the choice is theirs. In both situations, migration will provide them the opportunity to organize the database and redefine outdated processes. Listed below are a few things to consider when planning CRM migration to cloud.

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Tips for a Successful CRM Migration to Cloud

The migration process is simple as long as teams have evaluated their existing processes. This is the best chance for them to benefit from the latest technologies that they are not currently using. The process is critical to successful migration because developers can implement a completely customized legacy CRM system through native and managed technology.

They can also re-engineer the custom code to ensure it is compatible with the cloud. This process makes sure that the CRM migration to cloud is using the best-supported technologies and can reduce the ownership costs for businesses. Listed below are some steps to follow to get the most out of the situation.

Sort Through the Data

The duration of CRM migration to cloud depends on the quantity of data being migrated. Another factor that affects the volume of data is the method that is used for the process. There are several options for those who need additional space, but businesses can choose not to migrate all their data. They can only export the contacts, activities, and leads collected after a specific date to make sure the data size is more manageable.

Clean out the Junk

CRM solutions accumulate data over time and some of them might be duplicate entries. If the users are having trouble finding data in the existing system, then migrating the same data to an upgraded solution will not solve the problem. It is best to merge entries or delete duplicates to reduce the clutter. These systems can implement deduplication rules to automatically take care of the issue.

Redefine Processes

Before CRM migration to cloud, businesses should rethink their processes and workflows. There are certain business rules and automation that may no longer serve their purpose or users can temporarily deactivate them to see if they are necessary. The new version comes with additional functionalities which can render some existing processes or third-party integrations obsolete.

Analyze the Forms

The cloud-based CRM may already include the customized code and forms that were once necessary. This is the best time to analyze the system and find elements that are now included in the system. The removal of redundant elements and replacing old forms with new ones can facilitate the CRM migration to cloud.

CRM Migration to Cloud Strategies

There are several cloud-based data migration strategies that businesses can implement based on their infrastructure. We have listed the most popular and efficient ones here.

Rehosting

We know this method as the “lift and shift” because it includes completely transferring the existing infrastructure onto the cloud as it is. Newer businesses with smaller workloads and no concrete long-term strategies related to scaling up or services can try this approach. It is also a viable approach that companies that largely have virtual infrastructure can adopt. This is the quickest CRM migration to cloud method, but it is also the most expensive.

Replatforming

Replatforming, or the “move and improve” approach, requires making minor adjustments during shifting. Any business can include plans for scaling with greater ease. The basic application architecture remains the same, which is why businesses that have a scale-up plan and need a cloud-powered upgrade to implement it mostly use this strategy. One downside of this method of CRM migration to cloud is that does not completely benefit from the cloud's capabilities.

Repurchasing

There are specific aspects of the legacy architecture that might be challenging or costly to maintain and completely impossible to expand. One such example is the internal CRM software and, in this case, it is important to migrate to a cloud-based solution. However, one drawback for employees and existing users is that they need to be trained on the new system, and this requires additional time and money.

Refactoring

The refactoring method requires rebuilding the entire infrastructure from the ground up. It is the most suitable CRM migration to cloud strategy for those who want to enjoy the complete benefits of cloud computing. They can leverage auto-scaling and serverless computing options, which would have been difficult to maintain with an on-premise system. Writing the code from scratch requires additional time and effort, which means this is the most expensive method, but it offers the highest return on investment in the long run.

Retirement

This strategy involves getting rid of applications that are no longer useful or have become outdated. If businesses consider an application not worth migrating to the cloud, they can either eliminate or downsize it. This helps businesses to concentrate on services that are most used and have immediate value. Retiring the right modules will also save costs and improve security.

Retention

Where one or multiple modules of the existing system are not compatible with the cloud-based platforms, retention is the best option. These modules usually contain information that they cannot migrate to because of compliance. In other cases, they have recently built the infrastructure with enormous capital investment, and maintaining them on-premises makes more sense in terms of finance and operations.

All these CRM migration to cloud strategies can overcome the challenges associated with shifting. If the companies are adopting the best practices during the planning stage, they will experience no problems.

What Happens After CRM Migration to Cloud?

Once the migration process is complete, the organization is ready to begin its operations in a secure and well-managed cloud solution. They will have access to Azure security services and can manage, monitor, and govern their cloud applications in one place. Users can use these services before the process is complete and they will continue to deliver a consistent experience throughout. It is also easier to manage the cloud expenditure with the associated tools. Users can track their resource usage, control costs, and view all their clouds from a single platform. These financial insights and rich operational processes facilitate informed decision-making.

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