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Life in Salesforce is full of treats, and if not then there is always a trick out there to help you master its features and functionality. So, while there may be a number of features or components that could be considered hair-raising, there’s nothing to be scared off. Admins, you can come out from under your duvets now. No need to be unnerved by the unknown, let me show you there is nothing to be scared of.
Bad Salesforce Data is enough to suck the life from any Salesforce Admin and there is nothing worse than having duplicate data infesting your Salesforce Org and making customer relationships difficult to manage. But before you hastily reach for the delete button, remember there are more efficient and effective ways of riding your org of duplicate Data.
Apart from the merging of Account and Contact records and the blocking capabilities of DupeCatcher, Salesforce shines the light on the prevention of bad data with the all new Duplicate Management, which controls whether and when you allow users to create duplicate records inside Salesforce. With tools like this, you’ll never have to run away from duplicate data again. So be the Van Helsing of your org and get rid of bad data if you dare!
Nothing says boo better than a Matrix report creeping out of the depths of your clients data representational requirements. The criteria of such needs could be anything from wanting to view subtotals based on the value of a particular field to information for monthly trends in revenue by type of business. The solution of such needs? A Matrix report.
As Matrix reports allows the user to group records both by row and by column and provide the most detailed view of data within Salesforce, they can be the most time consuming of all report formats. So it is easy to be daunted by them.
However, instead of rocking back and forth at your desk at the thought of creating a Matrix report here are some online articles for you to read and watch that aim to help you get the most of Matrix reports. But be warned. The results will add extra dimensions to your data analysis making your finished Matrix report a piece of work that can be looked at over and over again! Not so menacing anymore, huh?
Repeatedly saying code, does not invoke an onslaught of programming horror. Nor will it ‘Trigger’ an urgency for you to go running back to the comforts of you clickable mouse. What it will do admins, is draw you in and get you hooked to the wonderful delights of Apex – an easy to use, on-demand programming language that runs on the Salesforce.com servers.
So I say don’t be afraid by SOQL, don’t scream at Test Methods, instead make Apps on demand, build sophisticated sharing settings and much more. And remember “there is nothing to fear”. No really, there isn’t; Especially with these amazing online lesson!
If there is one thing that will keep you up at night then it is the frightening thought of not being able to build Formulas – Simple || Advanced. From Logical Operators to Logical Functions, they are enough to give anyone new to formulas the heebeegeebees. However, there is no need to lose sleep over them.
Formulas are very much like the formulas in Excel, however in Salesforce they are used to define calculations for custom fields, validation rules and workflow logic. For example, you can use Formulas to create a custom field that applies a discount to an opportunity amount or assign a Hot, Warm or Cold Rating to an Account.
Yes, there may be many areas in Salesforce that use Formulas. Yes, building them and understanding the Operators and Functions may take some time to master. But remember, formulas are not made from the stuff of nightmares && are certainly > you think.
What do you think Admins should not be scared of in Salesforce? Leave a comment or tweet @jenny_bamber to let me know!
I’ll see you next week.
Our independent tech team has been servicing enterprise clients for over 15 years from our HQ in Bristol, UK. Let’s see how we can work together and get the most out of your Salesforce implementation.
