Introduction
Within the forefront of cutting-edge CRM solutions, Salesforce reigns supreme, promising unprecedented efficiency, scalability, and customer-centric features. However, pitfalls can hinder realising its full potential, as with any powerful tool. In this short article, we'll delve into the five common mistakes that users often encounter when using Salesforce and equip you with strategies to avoid them. Make sure you get Salesforce help from your Salesforce consultant or Partner to understand how they propose to avoid mistakes like these right from the initial project strategy and planning phase.

I. Customisation Overload
While Salesforce offers extensive customisation capabilities, it's easy to fall into the trap of over-customisation. Too many customisations can lead to a complex and unwieldy system that is challenging to maintain and may hinder future upgrades. A survey by IBM Bluewolf found that 63% of companies believe over-customisation is a significant challenge.

Fact: 27% of Salesforce users report needing the total value from their Salesforce implementations. (IBM/Bluewolf)

Strike a balance between customisation and out-of-the-box features, regularly review and optimise customisations to align them with evolving business requirements, and consider the long-term implications of each customisation to maintain a streamlined and efficient Salesforce instance to avoid this mistake. Assess each new Salesforce function or capability that requires custom fields, custom objects, code development or custom integration. Use tools such as our Technical Debt Model™ to evaluate the cost-benefits to make informed decisions and avoid customisations that lead to unintended complications.

II. Neglecting Information Security Best Practices
The security of sensitive business data is paramount as using Salesforce typically involves customer data. Neglecting security best practices can expose your organisation to data breaches and compromise the trust of your customers and business partners. According to the 2021 Verizon Data Breach Investigations Report, 61% of breaches involved credential data. If your Salesforce solution will process data received from or behalf of third parties, make sure the contractual obligations are considered in the business requirements. These kinds of business requirements can be very expensive to add late in the project or to comply with retrospectively. Security requirements can impact Salesforce licenses, too.

Implement robust security controls, including two-factor authentication and role-based access, to avoid this mistake. Engage your organisation's Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) and Data Protection Officer (DPO) at the requirements phase of the implementation project. If sensitive data is needed for testing or data migration rehearsal, these activities will lead to information security requirements during the implementation project. Regularly conduct security audits and stay informed about the latest security updates from Salesforce to fortify your defences against evolving cyber threats. Use tools such as User Access and Permissions Assistant and Config Work Book to apply Principle of Least Privilege (PoLP) for users (see resources below).

​III. Overlooking Data Quality
One of the most common pitfalls is underestimating the importance of data quality for the individual who uses Salesforce. More accurate and consistent data can lead to better insights, affecting decision-making and hindering the overall effectiveness of your Salesforce implementation. According to a report by Gartner, poor data quality costs organisations an average of $15 million per year.

Requirements for business intelligence, reports, and KPIs, often surface late in projects, potentially limiting an organisation's ability to leverage the value of its data. The importance of good data quality will increase significantly as organisations start to harness the power of generative AI.

Fact: 88% of companies believe their data needs to be more accurate. (Experian)

To steer clear of this mistake, start with the end in mind: define data driven outcomes early in the project so that the target data model is clearly defined. Establish rigorous data governance practices. Implement data cleansing processes before migrating to Salesforce, and regularly audit and clean your data to maintain its accuracy and relevance. Help end-users capturing data correctly and make it easy to update data by providing suitable layouts for the task in hand.

IV. Scalability Considerations
The design of Salesforce is to grow your business. However, overlooking scalability considerations can lead to performance issues and hinder your ability to leverage Salesforce to its full potential. As your business expands, so does the need for a scalable Salesforce architecture. This is especially important for group companies or business units expecting to share a common data model, common Salesforce applications, or Salesforce platform. A one-size approach rarely works in organisations comprised of semi-autonomous businesses or have widely different operational practices and IT systems.

Work closely with Salesforce architects during the initial setup to avoid this mistake and ensure your architecture is scalable and flexible enough to adapt to each business unit/subsidiary. If you intend to bring together customer data, product catalogues and other common reference data, this must be thoroughly analysed and understood before a solution can be designed. Also, consider critical external systems and data. The 3rd parties responsible for those external systems may not be willing or able to change their systems or integrations to fit your plans with Salesforce.

Make sure non-functional requirements for system response time and performance are considered. As the solution scales in size and capabilities, regularly reassess your system's performance and adjust to accommodate growth and evolving business needs.

V. Neglecting Comprehensive User Training
Salesforce's robust features and customisable nature can be a double-edged sword. Without proper user training, the potential for misuse and underutilisation is significant. According to a survey by Salesforce, companies that invest in comprehensive user training experience a 42% higher user adoption rate than those that do not. Training for and recruitment of Salesforce Administrators, Product Owners, Platform Managers, and Technical Support, cannot be left to the last minute before go-live.

To avoid these mistakes, allocate ample resources to training and Salesforce certification programs. Utilise Salesforce Trailhead, an interactive learning platform, and conduct regular training sessions to empower your team with the skills needed for efficient  adoption operations and support of Salesforce. You need a core team of Salesforce Trailblazers, not laggards.

Start training the Product Owner before gathering business requirements; otherwise, the Product Owner may not know what Salesforce is capable of, and you could end up with a costly replacement for an out-of-date legacy system. Ensure you have allocated an environment for training purposes (which may include integration with other systems.)

Conclusion
​Salesforce is a powerful tool that can revolutionise how businesses manage customer relationships and drive growth. However, navigating its complexities requires strategic planning and a keen awareness of potential pitfalls. By avoiding common mistakes such as neglecting user training, overlooking data quality, ignoring scalability considerations, neglecting security best practices, and succumbing to customisation overload, you can unlock the full potential of Salesforce for your organisation. A great place to start your Salesforce journey is by assessing the organisation’s readiness to implement Salesforce against our 8-Factor Success Model™ for Salesforce implementations. This model is also relevant for Salesforce Product Owners and Administrators to ascertain the organisation’s maturity and Business Growth Plan™.​​

Salesforce, the world's leading customer relationship management (CRM) solution, has not only helped to transform businesses worldwide but has also presented new challenges for executive decision-makers and budget owners, particularly regarding the cost of Salesforce implementations. The introduction of cloud computing and Software-as-a Service (SaaS), subscription-based licensing promised a simpler way of procuring new technology on a ‘pay-as-you-grow’ basis.
While the concept of SaaS has provided easy access to amazingly powerful capabilities, many users are surprised that the total cost of licences plus implementation far exceeds their expectations. This article aims to delve into the reasons behind the escalation of costs, present relevant figures and facts, and provide a guide to strategic steps to alleviate financial burdens for Salesforce budget holders.

Understanding the Costs
Salesforce charges comprise many components: platform costs, user licences, usage allowances, feature licences, storage and support. Salesforce publishes some unit costs on their website, but others are only available on request. The total cost can only be estimated after the solution design has been decided. This typically happens well into the implementation project (assuming the business requirements, data migration strategy and roll-out plan are known). In other words, getting an accurate estimate of the total Salesforce charges can be very difficult before you commit to the implementation project.
Salesforce implementation costs exhibit wide variations, ranging from £75,000 to £150,000 for small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). At this scale, projects typically take 4-6 months to deliver. Larger enterprises may incur multi-million-pound expenditures depending on their customisation, integration, and data migration requirements. Large enterprise and multi-national implementation programmes may take several years until tangible benefits are realised. The complexities surrounding customisation and integration contribute to the overall expenses as they significantly increase testing and quality assurance demand. These complexities also push up operational expenses for ongoing maintenance and support, creating formidable financial hurdles for some organisations.

Delving into the Cost Drivers
Licensing: Understanding Salesforce’s pricing structure and the organisation's specific needs, are essential to derive an optimum license plan. This requires an up-front discussion of the business blueprint and overall solution architecture. More realistic estimates can be used for the business case and budgeting by taking a strategic approach to licensing.
Customisation: Extensive customisation, while enhancing Salesforce's functionality to fit specific business needs, can drive up costs considerably. Each customisation requires careful planning, development, and testing, demanding significant time and resources. Additional environments may also become necessary to deliver and maintain a complex, bespoke Salesforce platform.
Integration: Integrating Salesforce with existing enterprise systems, such as ERP or ecommerce, can be complex and costly. The level of integration, the number of systems involved, and the expertise required all contribute to the overall expense.
Ongoing Maintenance: Maintaining a reliable and performant Salesforce platform requires additional software and ongoing support, including regular updates, bug fixes, and security patches. These services, often provided by in-house teams or third-party vendors, will add to the overall cost of ownership.

Mitigating High Costs: A Strategic Approach

• Strategic Planning for Salesforce Implementation:

A critical starting point involves the development of a comprehensive plan outlining the implementation scope, encompassing customisation, integration, and data migration. A well-defined roadmap helps prevent scope creep, minimise unexpected expenses, and ensure a focused implementation approach. Organisations new to Salesforce often omit to evaluate their in-house competencies and project delivery capability. The Salesforce implementation approach based on our 8-Factor Success Model™ is useful for assessing the current state and developing a strategic roadmap before engaging prospective implementation partners.

• Feature Prioritization for Cost Control:

Identifying and prioritising essential features aligned with business objectives is crucial. By focusing on necessary functionalities, unnecessary spending is curtailed, ensuring a targeted and cost-effective implementation approach that meets specific business needs. This is especially true for user requirements that involve customisations that disproportionately drive costs. Tools such as our Technical Debt Model™ can help to decide on customisations.

• Investing in Comprehensive Salesforce Training:

Augment user proficiency through comprehensive training programs. Well-trained staff reduces the need for constant support and customisation, contributing to cost savings and ensuring effective utilisation of Salesforce features. Additionally, effective change management strategies facilitate smooth user adoption.

• Phased Salesforce Implementation Strategy:

Salesforce offers a wide range of standard features that can be used ‘out of the box’. With a strategic roadmap to hand, many organisations can benefit quickly by starting with a basic implementation and then enhancing their solution with new capabilities. This is especially valuable for start-ups and new businesses. Opt for a phased implementation approach instead of simultaneously deploying Salesforce across all departments. This allows for a gradual rollout, addressing issues and making adjustments without incurring massive upfront costs. It also enables organisations to prioritise critical areas and test the system before expanding to other departments.

• Regular Audits and Optimization for Salesforce:

The implementation of routine audits becomes imperative to identify optimisation opportunities. Streamlining workflows, eliminating redundancies, and optimising data storage contribute to cost-effective Salesforce operations. Regular maintenance prevents the accumulation of technical debt and ensures the system remains efficient and up-to-date. Extend the initial roadmap to encompass a growth plan to continue driving up your return on investment (ROI).

Conclusion
Effectively managing the costs associated with Salesforce implementation is paramount for existing users seeking to maximise their return on investment. By adopting a strategic approach, businesses can harness the full potential of Salesforce without straining their budgets. Regularly reassessing needs, optimising processes, and investing in user training are vital steps toward ensuring Salesforce remains a valuable asset rather than a financial burden. As the business landscape evolves, this guide serves as a roadmap for existing Salesforce users to navigate the complexities of cost control and strategic optimisation in their Salesforce journey. Organisations can achieve business goals by following these guidelines while controlling their Salesforce expenses and continuously increasing benefits by adopting an ongoing Business Growth Programme™.

Resources - Contact Me for details:

• Technical Debt Model™ for Salesforce Sales/Service Cloud
• 8-Factor Success Model™ for Salesforce implementations
• Business Growth Programme™ for Salesforce Product Owners/Admins

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