Organizations irrespective of industry accumulate data across categories such as purchase history, customer contacts, lead journey statistics, buyer behavior, and so on. The most preferred mechanism to track and leverage this data today is through Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software such as Salesforce CRM. What makes Salesforce a highly viable CRM solution is the suite of low code application development tools it provides.
Salesforce application development teams ensure that an organization that has integrated the Salesforce CRM into its workflow can personalize the way its data is consumed, tracked, and processed. The utilization of Salesforce CRM tools can be maximized with the right application development customization. This article delves into how Salesforce application development works and what it can really do for your enterprise technology-related data workflows.
Salesforce CRM offers businesses a suite of management tools to handle their customer and organizational data with precision. But based on the intricacies of the way your business works, Salesforce offers options for custom application development. While it can be carried out using the Salesforce Platform, formerly known as Force.com, there are plenty of third-party platforms offering increased plugin flexibility for the same.
The Salesforce Platform offers retrofit models for application development, but Salesforce developers also have the option of developing on other platforms. Custom Salesforce application development services and managed services from a technology partner can help a business build a robust data framework.
The Salesforce application development process goes through a series of stages, similar to the development of any enterprise software or framework. It involves the development of the application itself on the Salesforce Platform, its deployment in various environments, and continuous testing. The process is carried out by experts such as project managers, product owners, developers, testers, release managers, and DevOps enablers.
The lifecycle of Salesforce application development consists of the following processes:
1)Setting Up Version Control:
All new classes, triggers, metadata, etc. around the Salesforce application can be defined with separate Git repositories. The main application itself can be divided into various modules so that each module can be set up in a different repository. Each module can either be deployed in parts or the entire project can be deployed at the end of the development workflow.
This enables everyone involved in the development process to push changes in the overall project through separate Git commits, enabling better collaboration and a team effort. The release manager decides who works on which branch of the project.
2)Development Stages:
Salesforce Platform, which used to be known as Force.com, involves low-code application development using dependencies and support tools that come with a Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) feature. Salesforce developers work in sandboxes, which are modules that do not affect what happens in production. Each developer works in a sandbox based on their field of responsibility.
As there are a number of people working on the same Salesforce application, it is important that the latest changes go into the repository after proper checks. The Salesforce Platform IDE helps with plugins as and when required and delivers the metadata, establishing connections with the separate sandboxes.
3)Testing:
Using the same environment that was used for the development phase, you must test every change implemented in the project, phasing it out. This is done before the step wherein you integrate the changes you have made with the changes of your teammates to make sure everything works together and is compatible.
Quality analysts involved in the testing process also have their own sandboxes where the code is moved from the code repository. A useful feature for analysts is the Partial Copy sandbox for testing only particular sections of the application.
4)Build And Test Releases:
Before the test release stage, you can aggregate all the modules and assets into a single release artifact which also includes all the ancillary customizations. This is the build release stage which would then be followed by the last stage of testing.
The last stage of testing is acceptance testing for most software and it is no different for Salesforce custom apps either. At the end of the testing phase, if there are changes to be implemented, then the team goes back to the development phase.
5)Release To Production:
Now that the partial changes to the application have been aggregated, it is time to release the single-release artifact to production. Simultaneously, the end-users of the product must be sensitized about the changes through knowledge-transfer training sessions.
A separate environment with realistic representations of the changes to the application can be set up for training purposes. Meanwhile, performance testing using additional sandboxes can also be carried out, followed by regular patch releases if there are additional fixes required to be implemented.
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Salesforce's PaaS-based tools collectively form the Salesforce Platform and help developers figure out how an application can be developed to address their specific CRM-related requirements. Collaboration, CRM process automation, and scalability are some advantages of using this development service. Some stand-out features of this PaaS service are as follows:
1)Workflow Representations
This platform offers tools for frictionless data representation so that sorting and arranging data does not prove challenging to knowledge workers. Salesforce dashboards allow you to represent data by managing with low code and converting sales figures, conversion statistics, and leads and arranging them in pie charts, horizontal and vertical graphs, funnel charts, etc.
2)Business Process Automation
Developers can leverage highly efficient tools provided by Salesforce, namely Approvals, Workflow, Process Builder, and Flow Builder to automate processes and flows as per the business need. Standard internal procedures to automate, for instance, automating an email-based subscription, can be achieved through the use of some of these tools.
3)Leveraging AppExchange
Publishing your developed Salesforce application on AppExchange is a hassle-free function that requires little to no prerequisites or know-how. Moreover, the comprehensive security review process ensures that the developed application meets the required security standards and best development practices. The next time there is an app update you can publish the new version by registering the package on the seamless license management app.
4)Development For All Platforms
Developing the application using the Salesforce Lightning Platform allows developers to expedite app development while making the experience more intuitive and the learning curve flatter. Additionally, the apps developed using this platform are automatically calibrated for all platforms ranging across mobile, tablet, and desktop. While the codebase stays the same, there is full flexibility for adding any required dependencies and plugins. Also, configuring the app for different platforms and pushing the changes only takes a single click.
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The most ideal Salesforce Application Development strategy evaluates the client's current business situation, prioritizes their business needs, and develops a long-term CRM plan for them. Every step of the application development process includes repeated interception and consultations so that the resultant product is scalable and in line with the security standards of AppExchange. Based on your specific CRM requirements, Daffodil's Salesforce Development Services provide for migration, upgrades, integration, support, and maintenance of your sensitive CRM data.