Need clarification Azure Communication Service with Dynamics 365 Contact Center and Customer Service

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Need clarification Azure Communication Service with Dynamics 365 Contact Center and Customer Service

Viet Tran 0

Hi everyone,

I'm currently diving deep into Dynamics 365 Contact Center and Customer Service, Sales, Customer Insight Journey. However, Azure Communication Services (ACS) has recently entered the picture, and its documentation has left me perplexed.

I'm particularly curious about the following:

Text Chat Scenarios with ACS:
- Because i thought text chat just simply add widget on the web and when someone chat, the agent picks the chat => Why we need ACS as mentioned in the document, if I don't have ACS what happen?
Inbound and Outbound Calls with Intelligent Conversations and Microsoft Teams:
- Does the integration of Intelligent Conversations and Microsoft Teams necessitate the use of ACS for inbound and outbound calls?
- If i have 3rd phone system integrated through CIF (Channel Integration Framework) then i don't need Azure Communication Service, right?
Email and ACS:
- Given that CRM already handles email, what specific role does ACS play in email-related scenarios? why in the document we need ACS for email as well ?
Best Practices for Integrating ACS and Dynamics 365:
- I'm struggling to clearly define the optimal integration points between ACS and Dynamics 365 for various touchpoints. (Sales, Customer Service, Field Service, Customer Insight Journey) because as you can see Sales have intelligent conversation, customer insight journey have sms marketing and then now everything need ACS because ACS is for communication which strange because we thought it only need CRM now we need to involve ACS in it => Could you share more for ACS to link with all of this CRM touchpoint

I'm eager to learn from the community's experiences and insights. Any guidance or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

SnehaAgrawal-MSFT 22,436 Reputation points

2024-11-19T13:24:36.0566667+00:00
@Viet Tran Thanks for asking question!

Text chat scenarios with ACS, you are correct that you can add a widget on the web and have agents pick up the chat without using ACS. However, ACS provides additional features such as the ability to integrate chat with other communication channels like voice and video, as well as the ability to use chatbots and AI-powered chat features.

Inbound and outbound calls with Intelligent Conversations and Microsoft Teams, ACS is not necessarily required for integration with Microsoft Teams. However, ACS can provide additional features such as the ability to use your own phone numbers for calling, as well as the ability to integrate with other communication channels like chat and SMS.

If you have a third-party phone system integrated through CIF, you may not need ACS for communication. However, ACS can still provide additional features and integrations that may be useful for your specific use case.

Regarding email and ACS, while CRM can handle email, ACS can provide additional features such as the ability to send high-volume transactional, bulk, and marketing emails, as well as the ability to use custom domains for email sending.

Best practices for integrating ACS and Dynamics 365, it's important to consider your specific use case and touchpoints. ACS can provide additional features and integrations for communication channels like chat, voice, video, SMS, and email, which can be useful for various touchpoints in Sales, Customer Service, Field Service, and Customer Insight Journey. It's important to evaluate your specific needs and use cases to determine the optimal integration points between ACS and Dynamics 365.

Hope this helps-
Viet Tran 0 Reputation points

2024-11-20T05:50:43.89+00:00
Thank you SnehaAgrawal, i have some followup question,

Regarding Point 3: Vietnamese Operations and ACS

Since phone number portability and Teams phone number support aren't currently available for ACS in Vietnam, i don't think Vietnam can use ACS. However, could you elaborate on the additional features or benefits that ACS offers when used alongside CIF as you mentioned?

Regarding Point 4: Custom Domain for Email Sending

I understand that Customer Insights Journey (CIJ) handles our marketing emails, so ACS wouldn't be needed for that. However, the concept of a "custom domain for email sending" is unclear.

Here's my current understanding:

Without ACS, sending emails from Dynamics 365 Contact Center uses a generic email address like "@gmail.com/@hotmail.com".

With ACS, I can send emails with a custom domain address like "[@customdomain.com]".

Is my understanding correct? Could you elaborate more about this "Custom Domain"?

Appreciate your helps!!!!

Your answer

SnehaAgrawal-MSFT 22,436 Reputation points

2024-11-19T13:24:36.0566667+00:00

@Viet Tran Thanks for asking question!

Text chat scenarios with ACS, you are correct that you can add a widget on the web and have agents pick up the chat without using ACS. However, ACS provides additional features such as the ability to integrate chat with other communication channels like voice and video, as well as the ability to use chatbots and AI-powered chat features.

Inbound and outbound calls with Intelligent Conversations and Microsoft Teams, ACS is not necessarily required for integration with Microsoft Teams. However, ACS can provide additional features such as the ability to use your own phone numbers for calling, as well as the ability to integrate with other communication channels like chat and SMS.

If you have a third-party phone system integrated through CIF, you may not need ACS for communication. However, ACS can still provide additional features and integrations that may be useful for your specific use case.

Regarding email and ACS, while CRM can handle email, ACS can provide additional features such as the ability to send high-volume transactional, bulk, and marketing emails, as well as the ability to use custom domains for email sending.

Best practices for integrating ACS and Dynamics 365, it's important to consider your specific use case and touchpoints. ACS can provide additional features and integrations for communication channels like chat, voice, video, SMS, and email, which can be useful for various touchpoints in Sales, Customer Service, Field Service, and Customer Insight Journey. It's important to evaluate your specific needs and use cases to determine the optimal integration points between ACS and Dynamics 365.

Hope this helps-
Viet Tran 0 Reputation points

2024-11-20T05:50:43.89+00:00

Thank you SnehaAgrawal, i have some followup question,

Regarding Point 3: Vietnamese Operations and ACS

Since phone number portability and Teams phone number support aren't currently available for ACS in Vietnam, i don't think Vietnam can use ACS. However, could you elaborate on the additional features or benefits that ACS offers when used alongside CIF as you mentioned?

Regarding Point 4: Custom Domain for Email Sending

I understand that Customer Insights Journey (CIJ) handles our marketing emails, so ACS wouldn't be needed for that. However, the concept of a "custom domain for email sending" is unclear.

Here's my current understanding:

Without ACS, sending emails from Dynamics 365 Contact Center uses a generic email address like "@gmail.com/@hotmail.com".

With ACS, I can send emails with a custom domain address like "[@customdomain.com]".

Is my understanding correct? Could you elaborate more about this "Custom Domain"?

Appreciate your helps!!!!

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Need clarification Azure Communication Service with Dynamics 365 Contact Center and Customer Service

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