Using workflow automation is a great way to streamline work processes, save time from doing repetitive tasks, and increase productivity. For sales teams, Salesforce workflow is a preferred workflow automation tool.
This article will walk you through detailed instructions on Salesforce workflow automation, from what it is to how to optimize it to improve your sales reps’ performance.
What is Salesforce Workflow Automation?
Workflow in Salesforce lets you automate standard internal procedures and processes to save time and speed up activities across your business.
What Is Workflow Rule in Salesforce?
A workflow rule is a container that includes two main components.
- Criteria: The condition that “if” found true, then the associated actions should be executed.
- Actions: The action that should be performed when the criteria for the rule are met.
Salesforce Workflow Rule Examples
Here are some common examples of Salesforce workflow rules:
- If the contract is activated, then send an email a reminder to a recurring buyer 20 days before their current subscription expires.
- If a shipment hasn’t been delivered to a customer, then update the shipment status to “delayed.”
- If a new user is created, then automatically activate the new user and send onboarding documents.
- If a deal is at risk or won, then notify sales leaders and managers.
- If a contact has a birthday property, then send a birthday greeting to the contact’s email address two days before their birthday.
Problems Solved With Salesforce Workflow Automation
Salesforce workflow automation can help solve several problems, for example:
- Onboarding new clients to create good first impressions
- Improving customer service through canned responses and automatic nurturing emails
- Increase customer satisfaction by setting workflow rules to send answers to commonly asked questions automatically
- Boost your sales team’s productivity by automating repetitive tasks like assigning leads to the right agents, updating a lead’s status, adding tags, and more
Salesforce Workflow vs. Business Workflow
Salesforce workflow isn’t the same as business workflow.
A business workflow refers to a process of implementing an activity. For example, when you create an automated email sequence, you need to write the copy, get it approved by your manager, send it to a designer to create an email template, set up the email, and then again send it to your manager for final approval. Such a process is a business workflow.
Meanwhile, a Salesforce workflow is set up based on rules. As said above, each rule has a condition and a consequence.
Salesforce Workflow vs. Process Builder
Workflow and process builder are two Salesforce automation tools. But they’re different.
Unlike workflow, process builder allows you to automate your business processes and gives you a graphical representation as you build it. With Process Builder, you create a record of any object type, update any related record, launch a flow, send an email, send a custom notification, and more.
Components of Salesforce Workflow
Salesforce workflow consists of six components:
- Workflow rules: A workflow rule sets workflow actions into motion when its designated conditions are met.
- Workflow action: Action (like email alert, field update, outbound message, or task) should be implemented when the conditions of a workflow rule are met.
- Workflow email alerts: The action of sending an email using a specific template to specific recipients.
- Flow trigger: A flow trigger is a workflow action that launches a flow. With flow triggers, you can automate complex business processes—create flows to perform logic and have events trigger the flows via workflow rules—without writing code.
- Workflow field updates: The action of updating a field with a new value automatically.
- Workflow outbound messages: The action of sending information to a designated point like an external application.
How to Start Salesforce Workflow Automation
To start Salesforce workflow automation, first, you need to create a new workflow rule, including criteria and corresponding actions. Once everything is set, activate your workflow rule, and it’ll start working.
What Are Salesforce Workflow Use Cases?
Workflow rules in Salesforce are powerful in many situations. Depending on your goal, you can take advantage of rules to create a single-step or multistep workflow.
Single-Step Salesforce Workflows in Practice
Single-step workflow means the workflow only has one step. For example, if a deal is closed and marked as “won,” send a contract to the client. Or, if a customer requests a refund, send them an email confirming you’ve received their email and let them know their request will be processed immediately.
Multistep Salesforce Workflows in Practice
Unlike single-step workflow, multistep workflows include more than one action. For example, you’re running a subscription business, and you want to use Salesforce workflow to automate subscription renew reminders. Below is a workflow rule setup:
- Rule criteria: (Subscription: Status equals Activated)
- Immediate Actions: None
- Time-Dependent Actions:
- 20 days before the subscription expires: An email alert to the client reminding them that they have 20 days left to renew their subscription.
- 10 days before the subscription expires: An email alert notifying the client that there are only 10 days left.
- 5 days before the subscription expires: An email alert notifying the expiration date, plus offering an incentive to encourage the client to renew their subscription right away.
- 1 day before the subscription expires: An email alert telling clients that their offer will go away in 24 hours.
- On the day the subscription expires: Call the client.
How to Customize Salesforce Workflow With Revenue Intelligence Software
If you’re looking for a revenue intelligence platform that not only empowers your sales team to sell better but also provides robust workflow automation, try Revenue Grid.
Revenue Grid has tight integration with Salesforce, enabling you to sync data between two platforms easily and take advantage of insights from Revenue Grid to optimize your workflow rules in Salesforce.
Here are some use cases:
- Connect your Gmail/Outlook calendars with Salesforce, and all your appointments will be shown in Salesforce. Then, use rules to set up reminders or send notifications to prospects ahead of meeting times.
- Track top-performing and low-performing sales reps, then use rules to notify sales managers. Hence, managers can understand who can handle more opportunities and who needs support immediately.
- Use revenue signals to keep track of changes in opportunities and use rules to send alerts to relevant stakeholders.
With Revenue Grid and Salesforce, you have a “secret weapon” to help your sales team get things done faster, increase process efficiency, accelerate sales performance, and focus more on strategic actions.
