Steps For Salesforce Application Development

Published on: 27 January 2020 Last Updated on: 19 March 2024

As an entrepreneur, your customers are the biggest pillar of your business. No matter your industry of domain, area of specialization, or even your business focus, they are the single most valuable asset to your organization and you should treat them as so.

Through their valuable feedback, your business can gain a new sense of direction, develop new concepts, as well as bring in more revenue. With that said, as a business owner, simply appreciating your customers isn’t enough. You need to truly understand them to tailor your products and services to meet them at their point of need. And that’s where Salesforce application development comes in.

It entails creating integrated customer relationship management solutions that interface businesses with their customers. These CRM platforms also give all the departments in a particular organization a unified view of all the customers and how they interact with various aspects of the business.

In this article, we are going to look at what Salesforce is and its uses. While at it, we are also going to delve deeper to see the entire Salesforce application development lifecycle.

What Is Salesforce?

Simply put, it’s a cloud computing SaaS company that provides customer relationship management (CRM) solutions. Thanks to the company’s cloud technology, businesses are able to better connect with their existing clientele, partners, and potential customers.

Over the years, Salesforce software has grown to become the leading marketing and customer behavior tracking solution for both small startups and Fortune 500 companies. As it turns out, customer relationship management is one of the key driving factors for the increasing demand for application development in Salesforce.

Recent research from Vonage offered a compelling view of the effects and consequences of poor customer service. In the US alone, the research revealed that an estimated $62 billion is lost annually as a result of bad customer experience.

To underwrite this figure, a different report from Huffpost has indicated that 91% of customers won’t hesitate to switch brands once they experience bad customer service. These are mind-blowing figures, especially if a business has no solution to counter the consequences of poor customer experience.

However, with Salesforce in place, businesses are able to overcome the problems caused by poor customer service and other business process variables. According to statistics published on Salesforce’s website, companies that are currently using their software have continued to see average increases in multiple areas. For instance, 34% of users have seen an increase in customer satisfaction, with 27% and 32% users seeing an increase in sales revenues and lead conversion respectively.

In 2018, Salesforce emerged as the biggest CRM software commanding a total of 19.8% market share of the CRM software market. During the same period, the company was voted as the #1 CRM provider by the International Data Corporation. It shouldn’t come as a surprise that companies are willing to pay the highest Salesforce consultant salary just to get wind of this technology.

The Benefits of Using Salesforce

Given the commendable portfolio of Salesforce, here are areas it can help your business find success. Below I am going to discuss the benefits of using Salesforce.

Helps Collect Customer Intel

In the prevailing competitive business environment, overlooking data collection can be a fatal and unforgiving mistake. As a business, collecting and collating customer intelligence should be an obsession or the very least treated as a full-time affair, because it can lead to loss of revenue. As such, if you are to improve customer satisfaction and continue remaining competitive, hiring qualified Salesforce developers to build a high-quality CRM tool is inevitable.

And with Salesforce, you get an upper hand over your competitors by enjoying tools that help you identify, understand, and solve customer problems.

Flexible And Scalable

As companies and business needs continue to evolve, the tools of trade must also adapt. For instance, if the structures of your business start to grow, the management software should be able to seamlessly accommodate the changes. Cognizant of this fact, Salesforce CRM comes with multiple functions that allow for scalability right from the initial stages to any future interactions.

Helps in Account Planning

Having a unified view of customer information allows your teams to independently make plans for various accounts. It also facilitates a more hands-on customer connection approach as well as allows various reps and departments in your organization to modify their plans for optimized results. Salesforce also comes with a to-do items feature, which helps your entire workforce stay organized throughout the day.

Along with that, Salesforce also works as an organizational tool. Your team can create calendar reminders specifying the future customer follow-ups or important duties reminders to the upper management, which helps prevent anything from falling through the cracks.

If you are in the service-based businesses, Salesforce also gives you insights into the amount of time a particular customer/s has stayed in a particular subscription package. Once this info is established, your team is able to customize marketing materials to match a particular customer niche.

Cloud Connectivity

Many companies are now gravitating towards software as a service (SaaS), which means software that is available online. Luckily, Salesforce doesn’t need to be installed on a computer as it is cloud-based. This means that you can easily access it everywhere, interface it with other digitized services, and enjoy unlimited storage capacity. And since no maintenance is required, you get to save on a Salesforce developer salary that would have otherwise been paid for this purpose.

Facilitates Team Collaboration

Poor team communication and collaboration can lead to reduced productivity. On top of a unified view of customer data, Salesforce’s “Chatter” feature allows your team members to easily and regularly communicate work-related information. Additionally, the feature also lets you highlight and prioritize urgent issues that require special attention by inviting different team members to look at them.

Salesforce Application Development Lifecycle

Software developers spend a lot of time designing, developing, securing, and delivering products that perform better than initially envisioned. As a result, different software development approaches like agile development, waterfall model, and many others have merged.

When it comes to cloud-based solutions, the incorporation and implementation of various software development methodologies make it even more complex. Moreover, the Salesforce Development Lifecycle also means that the software is developed, tested, and deployed in a cloud environment.

Below, we have laid down 6 steps that clearly illustrate the entire Salesforce Development Lifecycle:

Business Requirements Analysis

The first step towards a successful custom Salesforce application is to conduct an internal business needs analysis. It entails the development team eliciting the potential customer needs, elaborating them, validating all the assumptions, and devising efficient methodologies to meet these requirements.

Business requirements analysis is important as it helps avert potential mistakes as well as make the final product both efficient and compatible with the existing system and security standards.

UI/UX Design

Another important aspect of Salesforce application development is optimizing the app for user experience. A report by iMPACT indicates that 52% of customers are less likely to conduct business with a brand offering a poor mobile experience. On the other hand, Forbes conservative estimates indicate that intentional and strategic user experience can yield a conversion rate as high as 400%.

If these numbers are anything to go by, designing a user-friendly and highly responsive Salesforce application development is absolutely paramount. In order to optimize an app for effective and enjoyable use, developers need to map out the user journey and creatively choreograph user/platform interactions to benefit the end-user.

Development Phase

The next step in Salesforce application development entails creating developers creating isolated sandboxes. Generally, these distinct sandboxes hold the main production app copy and other supplementary Salesforce configuration information. They are also independent, implying that changes in a single sandbox don’t affect the main Salesforce production enterprise. Individual developers have to clone their branches.

To retrieve the metadata from the sandboxes to the IDE, the developers need to use Force.com IDE. Once they have the metadata, they continue coding their assigned app features, performing initial unit testing, and then submit the finished code to the Git repository.

If a subsequent developer wants to build on top of this freshly updated branch, they need to clone it to their sandbox and continue developing new features. Once done, they also have to submit their latest development to the repository.

With that said, the possibility of multiple developers working on the same branch cant be overlooked. To avoid conflicts, it is important for everyone in the development team to check for possible branch updates before committing.

Testing

The next step after building a Salesforce application is to ensure that it has an excellent and stable performance. This mainly entails developers carrying out QA activities including unit tests and code reviews. It is also at this stage that functional, performance, and integration testing is conducted within the development process.

Lastly, automation tests and debugging are conducted to augment the app’s speedy delivery.

Integration

During the integration phase, the custom CRM application is interfaced with third-party software like CMS. To facilitate a smooth transition, the development team also conduct hands-on training sessions as well as provides training materials to the client.

Launch

Once the app is launched for internal use, it is transferred to the client and subjected to their User Acceptance Testing environment (UAT). Once satisfied, the finished product is moved to the production environment and deployed to the end-users.

Salesforce Application Development Team Actors

During the app development process, different players are involved and handle different aspects of the app. In the Salesforce app development life cycle, the most common actors include:

Product Manager: Help finalize business requirements.
Release Manager: Help coordinate the app’s release schedule.
Software Developer: Handles the main coding and produces the requisite deliverables.
Quality Analyst: Tests and confirms the functionality of various app features.

Potential money from the Salesforce AppExchange development:

After researching the fact this has been seen that Potential money from the salesforce AppExchange development can depend on several other factors.

How To Build an App for Salesforce AppExchange?

To build your AppExchange app, you must go through the multi-step procedure, which includes compliance, release, ongoing support, and demand app development. Below, I will discuss how to create an App for Salesforce AppExchange.

1st Step: Become the Part of Salesforce Business Partner Community

The first and foremost step in becoming a Salesforce AppExchange trade Partner is to join the Salesforce Partner Community. In this case, you must submit the form using AppExchange. After all, the Salesforce Partner Community is the hub of existing AppExchange Partners.

2nd Step: Examine AppExchange Market

The next step in building the app is to examine the AppExchange market. AppExchange offers many products and solutions for several products and cloud services in Salesforce. In this case, for optimal outcomes, you must use the curated collections of AppExchange.

3rd Step: Make the First Sketches of Your Product

Once you are done researching the existing solutions on AppExchange, you must start defining the unique value proposition of your product. For the outline, you must follow the below-mentioned procedure such as:

Firstly, you must understand your target audience.
Secondly, ensure you have an idea of business targets.
Thirdly, you must follow the types of Salesforce editions you will support.
After that, ensure you have an idea of the package type.
Next, ensure you have the Salesforce Licenses that you want to use.
Lastly, it would help if you ensured the requirements for your AppExchange App security.

4th Step: Define the Type of ISV Partnership and the Type Of Your AppExchange Solution

Once you have joined the Salesforce Partner Community, then, you must analyze the existing products, and you can create a rough roadmap. In this case, ensure you have defined the type of ISV partnership, and consequently, you also have built the AppExchange solution.

There are seven types of ISV partners in AppExchange. It includes OEM, CDP Cloud Partner, Commerce Cloud Partner, All Other Clouds (paid), All Other Clouds (free), and Technology Partner/Tableau.

5th Step: Choose the Programming Type and Tools to Build Your Salesforce App

Recently, Salesforce provided two types of programming languages and two types of tools that you can use. Let’s know what programming tools are used in Salesforce App development. This includes Apex Cloud-based programming language. Next are Lightning components and Visualforce.

6th Step: Build Your Salesforce App

Once you can identify the exact type of solution, it must have the programming language, licensing, and packaging, and of course, you must continue with the building procedure.

Two ways to do this are using internal sources or outsourcing the dedicated team. If you want to build the SalesForce App using an in-house team, it could be one the most viable and remarkable options. If you don’t have enough resources, ensure you can control the entire product cycle of AppExchange.

7th Step: Test Your Salesforce App

If you want to ensure optimal performance, then it must conduct comprehensive end-to-end testing in technological domains. In this case, you must adhere to the development of best business practices, especially for testing.

8th Step: Prepare Your App for the Launch on AppExchange

Once you are done testing and finalizing the app, the next step is to prepare by submitting it to the SalesForce AppExchange. In this procedure, it includes creating the managed packages and providing screenshots.

9th Step: Submit Your App for Security Review and Market This

Ensure you have submitted your final app by undergoing the security review and then have met the necessary security requirements.

Final Thoughts

Salesforce CRM is a critical business tool. It helps streamline data analysis and reporting, provides invaluable customer feedback, and aid in formulating better customer service strategies. As a result, businesses are able to align their resources towards creating timely, customer-oriented solutions.

With that said, Salesforce application development isn’t a linear process. It entails working with different tools and multiple software development methodologies. And with cloud solutions continuing to capture the imaginations of business owners, the world is yet to see the full potential of CRM Salesforce and the cloud ecosystem as a whole.

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What Are The Characteristics Of Entrepreneurs? Things You Should Know In 2022!!

How to become an entrepreneur? What are the characteristics of entrepreneurs? What do the characteristics of successful entrepreneurs include? All these questions hover on the internet here and there. Read this blog till the end to put an end to all of your doubts…… What Is An Entrepreneur? I am gonna kick start this blog with a quick answer to “what is an entrepreneur?” before jumping on to the characteristics of entrepreneurs. So, according to Investopedia, the entrepreneurship definition is… “A person who undertakes the risk of starting a new business venture is called an entrepreneur.” An entrepreneur is a person who creates an entity to understand and imply their idea of aggregating capital and labor to produce services or goods for profit. What Does An Entrepreneur Do? “All our dreams can come true, if we have the courage to pursue them.” You may think the answer to this question to be very simple, but it varies from one entrepreneurial mindset to the other. This makes the entrepreneurship definition as well as the characteristics of entrepreneurs much more complicated. Well, it won’t be anymore because here is a perfect answer to “ what does an entrepreneur do? ” In simple words, an entrepreneur creates a new business, bearing the majority of the risks and cherishing most of the rewards. He/she is the source of goods, services, ideas, and business or procedures. Read More: 7 Startup Ideas for Young Entrepreneurs Q1. Which Entrepreneur Made Tractors Before Entering The Sports Car Business? Ans: It was Ferrucio Lamborghini who made tractors before entering the sports car business. Types Of Entrepreneurs “Inhale Confidence, Exhale Doubt” Entrepreneurs turn all the bold ideas into reality, and when it comes to the types of entrepreneurs, the divisions are 5. These categories go hand in hand with the characteristics of entrepreneurs. Take a look👇 1. Innovators They come up with completely innovative and out-of-the-box ideas and turn them into viable businesses. While innovators create the rules in business, they often face resistance from the shareholders. Hustlers Hustlers basically start with small goals and make them bigger achievements in the future. On the one hand, they outwork the most and tend to burn out on the other. 2. Imitators Imitators are those entrepreneurs who copy existing business ideas and build them by putting in their own efforts and strategies. They make a business idea less stressful although keep comparing to the original idea. 3. Researchers Researchers take time to gather all the relevant information that might help in the business and to boost its brand awareness. They are the ones who are responsible for figuring out the right strategies that would work for the company. 4. Buyers Needless to say; these 5 types can also be regarded as 5 different types of mindsets entrepreneurs have. What type of mindset do you have? Let us know in the comment box. What Should Be The Most Dominating Characteristics Of Entrepreneurs? “If you don’t have big dreams and goals, you’ll end up working for someone that does.” Have you ever thought about why the characteristics of successful entrepreneurs are somewhat similar? It’s because their final objectives are more or less the same - magnifying their ideas. And that’s why there are 7 common characteristics of entrepreneurs which are seen as 7 Thumb Rules to be an entrepreneur. 1. Versatile Versatility comes first to describe the characteristics of successful entrepreneurs. You have to think a lot and do a lot to make your career successful as an entrepreneur. 2. Flexible How to become an entrepreneur? Be as flexible as possible when required. Stay in touch with the industry trends, current business requirements, ongoing consumer behaviors, and devise flexible plans to cover these areas. Click Here To Read: What Is Scalable Startup Entrepreneurship: Definition & Examples 3. Money Savvy As an entrepreneur you have to raise your business, and manage everything; from top to toe. You have to monitor every corner of your business at least in the initial days. 4. Resilient This is one of the most crucial characteristics of entrepreneurs. A successful entrepreneur has to show resilience to all the obstacles on the road. 5. Focused Entrepreneurship is all about staying determined and focused on your end goal. Eliminate the doubts and always hold on to why you have started. 6. Business Smart To shine in the field of entrepreneurship, your business idea and management procedure have to be smart enough. Coordinating the revenues/costs and knowing your strengths and weaknesses will keep your business alive. 7. Communications Communication is the most crucial key to succeed as an entrepreneur. Be it conveying the ideas or sharing B-plans with employees, communication moves your business forward. Some Remarkable Characteristics Of Successful Entrepreneurs Around The World “You Have To Believe It Before You See It.” Well, enough of the speeches on characteristics of entrepreneurs. It’s time to talk about the real entrepreneurial characteristics of some successful personalities across the world. We have considered the CEOs of Tesla, Facebook, Amazon, and Microsoft to highlight the characteristics of successful entrepreneurs. Take a quick look and see if you can adapt some of them. Successful Entrepreneurs Characteristics of successful entrepreneurs includeElon Musk Strong risk tolerance Believes in an “Always Keep Learning” attitude Has a tendency for vertical integration. Puts most of the faith on the team.Mark ZuckerbergHe is an aggressive and encouraging leader. Moves fast and breaks things Follows the feedback approach Has a drive to turn ideas into reality.Jeff BezosHighly competitive Extreme frugal Highly experimental Calculated risk-taker Highly generous.Bill GatesHe considers “Time” as the most valuable in the world Loves to take calculated risks Never gives up Learns from the past mistakes Thinks ahead of the time. Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs): 1. Who Is An Example Of An Entrepreneur? Examples of some best entrepreneurs are: Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, Mark Zuckerberg, Elon Musk. Pierre Omidyar, And Caterina Fake. 2. How To Become An Entrepreneur? The steps of how to become an entrepreneur are as follows:1. Network.2. Sell your idea.3. Plan the business.4. Market.5. Find the target audience.6. Determine whether you should earn a special degree.7. Find out the perfect business for yourself. 3. What Are The 4 Types Of Entrepreneurs? The 4 types of entrepreneurs are as follows: small business, large company, social entrepreneurship, and scalable startup. 4. Do You Need Money To Be An Entrepreneur? While starting as an entrepreneur, you need to make at least a small monetary investment. Be it from your friends or family, a minor investment is required. “Remember Why You Started” Now that you know the foremost characteristics of entrepreneurs, it’s just the beginning. Discover yourself more and keep finding that zeal within you. You do not have to be another Elon Musk Or Jeff Bezos, but you can also rule the world by being yourself. What’s your thought on the characteristics of entrepreneurs? Do not hesitate to tell us in the comment section below. Read Also: 7 Startup Essentials Entrepreneurs Should Know AboutLarge Company Entrepreneurship: Definition, Pros, Cons, And MoreWhat Is Scalable Startup Entrepreneurship: Definition, Examples, And More

The Business Networking Benefits of Co-working Spaces

The benefits of co-working are numerous. On top of getting to work in some of the most pristine business districts, such as Pudong in Shanghai, the price tag for co-working spaces is much cheaper than conventional leasing. For the price of leasing a co-working space, you get the advantage of world-class internet services, professional-grade office equipment, and administrative staffing. However, co-working spaces not only promote networking among professionals but in many cases, it is the foundation from which many business connections are made. Because of the organizational format of these offices, professionals find themselves seated among some of the most talented people in a diverse array of industries. Check out Servcorp New Zealand’s co-working spaces at coworking to see one example of the way co-working spaces are laid out. Keep reading to learn more about co-working’s networking advantages and how you can utilize these spaces to develop business relationships. The Business Networking Benefits of Co-working Spaces: Referrals: Depending on the size of the co-working space, you can find so many different industries under one roof. For professionals looking for resources, their co-workers become a vast source of referrals. In the end, these resources can save you time and sometimes money. More importantly, referrals can also be a way for you to get your name out there, build up your business’s reputation, and make money for your venture. Mentors: Networking provides you with another opportunity, one to meet mentors. Again, because the co-working space is one that is comprised of professionals from a diverse array of industries you can instantly meet with experienced professionals who can show you the ropes in your own industries. These professionals can also build the foundation of other business connections within your community. Collaboration Opportunities: Of the many networking benefits of co-working, you have the chance to participate in collaborations. In fact, collaborations spring from daily conversations between professionals, whether they are chatting up their ideas at the hot desk or at any of the numerous events held to promote business. These collaborations can help you grow your business and teach you new ways to manage it. Funding: Every business needs a certain amount of funding. When working alone, finding sources of funding is a little more difficult, especially if you are a new business owner. Another extremely important benefit of networking as a part of a co-working environment is that it can help you meet people who can show you how to fund your project. In fact, your co-workers can probably introduce you to alternative methods of finding funding, negating the need for borrowing to fund the business. Source Of Information: More than just referrals, networking in the co-working space provides you with access to a vast amount of information. Not only are your co-workers a great place to find referrals, but they are also a good source of information regarding an amalgam of topics. In fact, in a typical co-working space, you might find a room full of people with a plethora of educational degrees and work experiences. Networking provides you with the opportunity to meet these talented individuals who can also serve as sources of information. Moral Support: From these co-working opportunities, you get the chance to make friends who can also lend an ear when you need to decompress. Whether it is regarding building a business or you having problems with clients, there is nothing like being able to gripe to someone who truly understands the entire problem. In exchange, your networking buddies can offer you good counselor reassurance that everything is going to be fine, even when the situation looks bleak. Networking In The Co-Working Reality: Networking has always been a part of the business landscape. However, co-working is one of those opportunities that encourages those working in close proximity to get to know their neighbors in both an informal and formal setting. More importantly, this office style that promotes social interaction can be the source of more business for you. Read Also : Wise Words From A Good Businessman To Help You Be One Make Your Business Popular Online “Which Backend Keys Makes Social Networking Sites & Apps Works Smoothly?

How to Get Product Ideas for Your Ecommerce Business

So, you’ve finally chosen e-commerce as your business model. Congratulations! The next step is now choosing the right product niche. This is actually one of the biggest hurdles faced by many start-ups. People spend a lot of time trying to come up with the most lucrative idea. You need to be very strategic when choosing a product for your business. Otherwise, you will either venture into an unprofitable business that will eventually collapse or take a long time to get into a more profitable business. Read also: 9 Ways To Use Pinterest To Promote Your E-Commerce Store Here are a few tips to help you find the best eCommerce product ideas: Craft a Resonating Brand Creating a resonating brand is very important especially when you want to venture into a competitive niche. Creating a memorable and recognizable brand means that you will need to research to come up with great product ideas and understand your target market. Read also: 8 Expert Ways To Build Your Personal Brand On Twitter! Your product should speak to your customers in a way that compels them to come back. You want to build loyalty based on the identity of your audience. You need to know how you’ll position your product and how you will design your site to speak your brand. Weigh Customer Interest To build a profitable business, you need to get into a product niche that bears into account the intent of the buyer. You may open a shop and wait for buyers to come in large numbers but that may only be a dream if your online store is stocked with products that nobody wants to buy. The first thing you need to do is to use the Google keyword planner or any keyword tool you prefer. This will help you to find keywords that have been highly searched. If the keywords have not been searched by many people then it means that you may not be able to make money if you choose that product. You may also venture in niches with problems if your product can solve those problems. Analyze Your Competitors Now that you have found a niche with many customers, the next step will be doing competitive analysis. You may want to visit Amazon to check competing products. The odds will be against you if the products you are planning to sell are already carried by Amazon. The next step is search engine optimization. If you want to successfully run an online business, you will need to rank high on Google search engine results and that may be challenging if many websites are listed in the niche. You may want to use online tools to evaluate your competition. This doesn’t mean that competition is a bad thing as it helps to validate the market you want to enter. The main factor is whether you can beat your competitors. Conclusion It is also important that your feedback about your product idea. You can actually make educated guesses at what ideas are going to work if you are an expert. However, getting insights from people who have been in the industry for some time allows you to leverage their expertise and experience.