September 12
CRM Configuration
Salesforce
Salesforce has long been a household name in modern business operations – with a market share of over 20% in the global CRM market, it is trusted by thousands of companies to make their teams as efficient at selling as ever. At the same time, getting the most out of your Salesforce is not an easy task.
That’s why, in this article, we’ll look into the best practices for Salesforce efficiency optimization as well as its tangible benefits and critical challenges to overcome.
Salesforce optimization is the process of refining your Salesforce instance in order to guarantee that it functions as efficiently as possible. More precisely, the main goals are usually quick data retrieval, minimal downtime, and effective automations, just to name a few.
Beyond that, optimization also focuses on continuously improving how Salesforce operates. This can mean adjusting your data models or implementing custom indexes – whatever it takes to drive better and better performance month after month.
So we have just established that Salesforce optimization essentially means attempting to take your business efficiency to the next level. But what exactly does that entail? Here are some of the main benefits that come from a well-optimized Salesforce system:
Optimizing Salesforce isn’t purely about cleaning up data – it can go much deeper and involve automated audits that continuously monitor for data inconsistencies and anomalies. You can establish cross-object workflows that validate data accuracy in real-time. thus preventing serious issues, such as incorrect financial reporting or flawed customer segmentation.
Optimization also means highly customized, role-specific dashboards. This way, a sales rep, for example, might have a dashboard that not only shows their pipeline but also highlights the leads most likely to convert, based on predictive analytics.
Outdated Salesforce workflows can become a drag – and optimization is there to identify and remove such processes. You can easily automate routine tasks like follow-ups, which are often done manually to save valuable time and reduce the human error factor.
Another major benefit of Salesforce optimization is making the platform intuitive and efficient for all users. Customizing page layouts, creating shortcuts, and removing clutter can significantly reduce the learning curve and increase user adoption rates, which, in turn, lead to better data and higher productivity.
Optimization involves fine-tuning system settings to handle increased data loads and user activity without slowing down. This could mean optimizing database queries, archiving outdated records, or adjusting API configurations to manage higher transaction volumes efficiently. Proper tuning ensures that your Salesforce system remains responsive and reliable, even under heavy
When users aren’t fully invested, the system becomes underutilized, which eventually leads to poor return on investment. As practice shows, low engagement often arises from a perception that Salesforce is irrelevant to daily tasks.
You need to work closely with each department to customize Salesforce in a way that goes well with their specific workflows – this could involve adjusting page layouts or minimizing unnecessary fields to reduce clutter. You could also Implement gamification techniques like leaderboards and achievement badges to motivate users to engage more with the software.
Even if the team wants to engage with Salesforce, without adequate training, they may easily misuse the system, leading to inefficient workflows.
So make sure to develop training programs for each specific role within your team. Sales reps, customer service agents, and managers should each have training that focuses on the Salesforce features most relevant to their daily tasks.
Many teams still rely on manual processes that massively slow them down. These processes can make Salesforce less efficient and diminish the value of automation, which is one of Salesforce’s key strengths.
You should identify repetitive manual tasks, such as data entry, report generation, and follow-up communications, and replace them with automated workflows. On top of that, conduct regular reviews of your processes to look for areas where automation could be implemented or improved.
Over time, Salesforce instances can become cluttered with complex workflows that are difficult to navigate.
To combat that, gather feedback from users to understand which workflows they find overly complicated or unnecessary. You also may need to schedule regular cleanup sessions to declutter your Salesforce, with archiving old data, retiring outdated workflows, and consolidating redundant fields.
Without standardization, different teams might use Salesforce in inconsistent ways, which can be particularly problematic in larger teams with multiple departments.
Create and enforce standardized practices for data entry, including naming conventions, required fields, and data formatting. And, yet again, audits are key – regular checks will help identify areas where users may be deviating from established procedures, allowing for corrective action.
When it comes to squeezing every drop of efficiency out of Salesforce, certified administrators like us at OMI have a few tricks up their sleeves. So let’s dig into some advanced, yet often overlooked, techniques that can make a noticeable difference in your system:
Many overlook the power of properly configured profiles and permission sets. While it’s tempting to assign broad permissions for convenience, this often leads to cluttered interfaces and security risks.
Instead, take the time to tailor profiles and permission sets to match the specific needs of each role. Regularly review and audit your profiles – remove unnecessary permissions and consolidate where possible to keep things clean and efficient.
By default, Salesforce automatically indexes certain fields, but you can manually create custom indexes on fields that are frequently used in search queries or reports. This can drastically reduce query times and improve your system performance.
Formula fields can, among other things, dynamically display information based on complex criteria without the need for custom code. This way, you can use them to create real-time metrics such as days since last activity, total contract value, or customer health scores.
While Salesforce Optimizer is well-known, many admins don’t fully explore its potential. The tool provides insights into your org’s setup and gives specific recommendations for improvements.
So make sure to run it regularly and adhere to its recommendations – take care of the simple stuff first (like removing unused fields) and then move on to more complex issues like refactoring custom code.
It’s common for data to become messy over time – and validation rules help maintain this data clean by preventing incorrect or incomplete data from being saved in the first place.
You should first identify the most common data entry mistakes in your org, then create validation rules to catch these errors. Over time, expand these rules to cover more nuanced scenarios, such as enforcing specific data formats or ensuring that certain fields are always populated.
As certified administrators, OMI can offer invaluable insights and advanced techniques to take your Salesforce efficiency to the next level. But we’re not only consultants – we’re also implementers. We can optimize your profiles and permission sets, automate data cleanup, continuously monitor your system performance – and much more.
So if you feel that your team may benefit from collaborating with a certified Salesforce partner, don’t hesitate to reach out – we will make your Salesforce work better than ever.