Salesforce is one of the top CRM (Customer Relationship Management) platforms which helps businesses to make data-informed choices. They are the world’s leading customer relationship management software, with over 150,000 customers. It has an incredible 19.8% share of the CRM market, which is more than the four leading competitors combined. But not every business has the expertise to leverage the true potential of Salesforce. This is where a Salesforce development company comes in.
In this post you’ll learn more about how Salesforce can help you make data driven choices for your business and how hiring the right Salesforce development company can be a gamechanger for your business
Why does a business need Salesforce?
Quite often management wants overall data related to a business which would help them to take corrective measures. Salesforce offers reports and dashboards which can help in just that. But, for custom Salesforce solutions which help you visualize data in an interactive manner you need to hire Salesforce developers. They can help you in leveraging Salesforce technology through advanced computing and integration solutions facilitated through Salesforce application development.
Salesforce can generate detailed reports on various aspects of a business from sales performance, marketing campaigns, to customer behaviour. These metrics can be customized to suit the business objective of the campaign. Moreover, the intuitive dashboard of Salesforce is a fantastic way to visualize data through charts, and graphs. This easy visualization of the data allows management to take data driven decisions and identify areas of improvement.
What are Salesforce dashboards and reports?
The Salesforce dashboard is a data visualization tool offered by the platform. You can view important information like deal closure rates, revenue growth and conversion rates in an easy-to-use interface. By visualizing the data related to the business, the Salesforce dashboard empowers decision-makers to identify and predict challenges and take data-backed informed decisions. The dashboard uses maps, graphs and other formats to visualize the data.
Salesforce reports display data in a raw manner. But you do have the option to select a reporting type. This will determine what all things should be included in your report. You get various sorting options to choose from and also groupings.
Salesforce dashboards and reports are a powerful visual representation of the data. This data provides an overview of the Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) and metrics. When used correctly, they can empower a business with the right information that helps them make data-driven decisions.
What are the Components of a Salesforce dashboard?
The various components in the salesforce dashboard work in tandem to provide a dynamic experience. The three major parts of the dashboard are;
1. Charts and graphs
Charts and graphs make the data interactive and interesting and help visualize it. Salesforce offers a wide range of chart types to choose from, including pie charts, line graphs, scatter plots, and bar graphs. But that’s not all; you have many more options to choose from. You have the option to choose the perfect chart or graph that suits your requirement or the one which can help convey the information most interactively.
2. Metrics and key performance indicators (KPIs)
Metrics are just numbers that you get on the dashboard, while Key performance indicators or KPIs are the important metrics that help define the success of a business objective. KPIs are a subset of the metrics. The dashboard displays metrics and KPIs that help understand the business objective’s performance.
3. Filters and drill-down capabilities
The Salesforce dashboard has filters which allow users to choose specific criteria. This helps narrow down the study of the data and will enable you to focus on only the subset that you want. You can select any specific time period, geographic location or another dimension you want to focus on by choosing the right filter. Drill-down capabilities are the feature that allows you to click on any specific piece of information to know more about it. You can click on any graph or chart element, and it will expand to provide much more information. This is a simple yet great feature because you don’t have to make the information concise and compromise on the meaning.
How to create effective Salesforce dashboards?
While the Salesforce dashboard is a powerful tool, to leverage it for your business, you need to use it effectively. For this, you’ll first need to do the following things;
Identifying the goals and target audience
Before you create anything on the Salesforce dashboard, you first need to identify the goals and define the target audience for it. Knowing the specific purpose of the dashboard is important to make it effective. For example, your dashboard will look very different when you are trying to measure the effectiveness of the marketing campaign as compared to when you want to track sales performance. This information will also depend on the target audience. Different shareholders will be interested in different data. Your marketing team would be interested in knowing about the marketing campaign.
Choosing the appropriate data sources
Now that you have your objectives and target audience, you must pick the right data sources for your dashboard. Salesforce allows us to extract information from various external sources. You need to pick the source that is relevant to your objective. You will also need to check how relevant and complete these data sources are because there’s no point in showing incomplete data that makes no sense. You must also ensure that these data sources are properly connected to the dashboard for real-time updates.
Visualizing the data by choosing the right format
Just as it is important to know the right audience for your dashboard, it is essential to pick the right form of data that will help you visualize it. Will a bar graph be better for your data representation or a pie chart? What color schemes should you choose to highlight the data? What font will be appropriate for this representation? These are the important questions that you must answer to select the right format and layout to represent the data. Remember, always opt for simplicity because it is the best way not to overwhelm your target audience. If you are not sure which is the right font or chart for your dashboard, take initial feedback and act on it.
Selecting relevant metrics and KPIs
To make the dashboard effective, you need to select the relevant metrics and KPIs. This data should help the target audience to monitor the success of the campaign and provide the information that they are looking for. The KPIs should be actionable and meaningful. For example, if you’re making a sales-focused dashboard, metrics like revenue, sales cycle length and win rate may be relevant.
As you can see, several things need to be considered to make great use of Salesforce reports and dashboards. This is why many businesses take the help of a Salesforce development company.
Advantages of Salesforce Reports and Dashboards
Salesforce reports and dashboards provide various benefits to businesses, including the following;
Data-driven
The major advantage of the Salesforce report and dashboard is you get the information to make data-backed decisions. When you analyze this data, you increase your chances of making better decisions that are not shooting in the dark.
Customization
Due to its huge customization options, you can choose the perfect chart or graph to represent all the data. The visual representation makes it easier to make sense of complex numbers and identify patterns.
Collaboration and sharing
Salesforce reports and dashboards are easy to share. You can share it with stakeholders, colleagues or whoever you want. You also get great filter options which ensure that you can share a specific set of data with a particular department.
Accessibility
Salesforce takes accessibility to the next level by being mobile-accessible. You can read the report or dashboard on the go on your mobile devices while being stuck in traffic.
Conclusion
Salesforce dashboards and reports can help you visualize your data and equip you with the necessary information to make data-backed decisions. Features like drill-down capabilities make it a powerful tool when used correctly. If you want to maximize the benefits that you can get from it, you can also hire a Salesforce development company. They have dedicated Salesforce developers who will ensure you make the most out of Salesforce dashboards and reports.
Salesforce Development FAQs
Q. What is the importance of Salesforce dashboards in making data-driven choices?
- The Salesforce dashboard provides visualization of real-time data based on your specific requirements. This helps businesses make informed choices, track progress and measure the success of various campaigns. This makes it essential to making data-driven choices.
Q. How can a Salesforce development company help to create a custom Salesforce solution for business?
- A Salesforce development company has the expertise to create dashboards that cater to your specific requirements. They will help you unleash the full potential of Salesforce by visualizing the data and building interactive dashboard solutions.
Q. Why should you hire Salesforce developers to create reports and dashboards?
- By hiring Salesforce developers, you can use their expertise to create dashboards and reports catering to your specific requirements. This, in turn, will help you make informed decisions by utilizing maximum platform capabilities.
Q. How can I choose the best Salesforce development company for my business?
- To choose the best Salesforce development company for your business, you must check their expertise, budget, timeline, experience and testimonials. Many Salesforce development companies also provide free discovery calls to prospective clients. You can use that as well to explore and identify possibilities.
