DELA has been an established name within the Belgian funeral industry for more than 85 years. The organisation unburdens people at one of the most difficult moments in their lives: saying goodbye to a loved one. Not only as a leading funeral insurer, but also through an extensive network of funeral centres, crematoria, and a repatriation centre. In addition, bereavement counsellors are on hand daily to support family members in the administrative and practical handling of a funeral.
To further increase internal efficiency and customer focus, DELA decided to renew its CRM. Competence centre Cloubis was responsible for increasing data quality and making the data compliant with data migration requirements.
The challenge
The Belgian insurance department was faced with the task of migrating several outdated, bespoke CRM systems to one modern and streamlined system: Microsoft Dynamics 365.
This migration required more than just technical expertise. Besides implementing the new system, the quality of the data also had to be significantly improved. Think of customer contacts, policy data and broker information, which not only had to be collected, but also checked, deduplicated and structured correctly. Ensuring cooperation between various teams and stakeholders, both internal and external was an additional complexity.
Our approach
In this extensive project, Cloubis acted as the connecting link between DELA’s technical experts and business stakeholders. With this central role, we ensured that data issues were accurately identified, analysed and translated into concrete solutions.
The initial focus was on increasing data quality. Through intensive data cleansing, we identified existing errors and applied advanced Python algorithms to automatically correct misspelled addresses and recognise the language of addresses, for example. Removing duplicate records was a second priority. We designed and implemented clear rules for deduplication, so that each contact or policy occurred only once in the new system.
Data transformation also played a crucial role. The data, as stored in the old systems, had to be completely rearranged to fit seamlessly into the Microsoft Dynamics 365 data model. By carefully mapping the right formats, columns and structures, we created a solid foundation for the new CRM environment.
Documentation and collaboration were also key in this process. To keep all parties involved informed and on the same page, we paid great attention to clear reporting. Issues were presented concisely and with concrete data examples to stakeholders, leading to quick and well-considered decisions.
The results
The implementation of Microsoft Dynamics 365 marked a major step forward for DELA. The company now has a centralised CRM system in which all critical data is easily accessible and editable. This results in better service and increased efficiency in internal processes.
The user-friendliness of the system ensures that employees have faster access to relevant information, such as customer data and policy statuses. With a complete customer view, DELA can also communicate more effectively and tailor its services even better to individual needs.
The increased data quality has brought further benefits. Correspondence reaches the right recipient, telephone numbers are always correct and usable and the new environment offers powerful analysis capabilities. This allows the organisation to make more informed strategic choices and develop more targeted campaigns to approach customers.
With this data migration, DELA has laid its foundation for further growth and optimisation of its services. With a modern CRM system and high-quality data, the organisation is ready for the future, without losing sight of its core mission – supporting people during difficult times.
Xploration
DELA faced the challenge of migrating outdated CRM systems and fragmented data to a centralised and user-friendly platform, while improving data quality.
Our solution
Cloubis ensured a seamless migration to a centralised system by increasing data quality, eliminating duplicates, structuring data and acting as a bridge between technical and business stakeholders.
Result
DELA now has a centralised CRM system with high-quality, accurate data that allows them to work more efficiently, respond better to customer needs and exploit strategic insights.
