Get In Touch
Salesforce Admin

6 Signs of a Shoddy Salesforce Implementation

Salesforce is an amazing platform, and a solid implementation can transform your business. A shoddy Salesforce implementation, on the other hand, leads to frustration, dissatisfaction, and disruption to your daily work.

While no two Salesforce implementations are the same, there are some red flags to watch out for.

6. It Didn’t Start with Data Cleanup

Messy data is disastrous in Salesforce. Whether it comes in the form of duplicate records, junk sample data, or old and obsolete records from another system, there is no greater predictor of trouble than messy or bad data.

There are many great data cleanup tools for Salesforce. While you can use these tools to clean up your data late in the game, it’s definitely preferable to start with clean data and use these apps as preventative tools going forward. 

5. It Didn’t Include Training

You might feel confident that your users are tech-savvy and will ultimately figure things out on their own. This is a mistake. All users, regardless of their role, should be trained to full efficiency prior to your Go-Live date. 

You want your users to be able to comfortably leverage the full capabilities and feature of the system, not simply the ones they learn how to use on their own time. While Trailhead is an amazing learning tool, your Salesforce instance has likely been customized to your business’ unique needs. Your users deserve a customized, business-specific training program to match. 

4. Everyone’s an Admin

It’s wonderful to trust your employees, but not everybody needs administrator privileges. A designated Salesforce administrator—or even a set of them—keep processes and expectations neat and predictable.

A strategic Salesforce implementation includes the definition of roles and permissions. Without these, the integrity of your system is at stake.

3. User Adoption Has Been Lackluster

User adoption is critical to success with Salesforce. If your employees don’t feel like they have the right tools, resources and processes, business will suffer. The platform only works when your employees both use and trust the data housed there. Watch for employees resorting to Excel spreadsheets and their company email to manage clients—this is a major red flag.

2. You Implemented Salesforce Yourself

Agencies and consultants implement Salesforce for customers on a daily basis. Their unique vantage point gives them insight into the many creative ways their customers approach needs and challenges. While you might be incredibly competent, you’re not likely to approach it the way a consultant would. 

A consultant brings a lot more to the table than their technical ability. They will assist you with project management, organization, training, and live-launch monitoring. A good Salesforce consultant will continue to offer on-demand support services post-implementation. 

1. Your Implementation is “Cookie-Cutter”

All businesses are different. If your lead cycles, marketing practices, supporting applications, and sales processes aren’t the same as everyone else’s, your Salesforce instance shouldn’t be, either. A poorly executed Salesforce implementation, at its worst, is one that never addressed your specific business needs. 

There’s no greater red flag than an “out of the box” Salesforce instance. 

When your Salesforce implementation is finished, you want to see a return on your investment. Adopting new technology is disruptive and expensive, but the benefits should be clear. 

If your Salesforce implementation delivered less value than you expected, consider upgrading your in-house team or hiring a consultant to make that ROI a reality. Use our calculator to see which option best suits your needs.


Jessica Hope

I consider myself a Marketing Cloud Account Engagement (Pardot) evangelist. I’ve focused almost exclusively on Pardot for the last seven years, and I've had the great honor of working in hundreds of accounts on every imaginable type of project. I spend most of my time working directly with clients to meet their every last Pardot goal, but I also enjoy writing about and/or training on all things Pardot.

Let’s connect to see where I can help. Email me at: jess@parquet.dev

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Newsletter Signup

Privacy Settings
We use cookies to enhance your experience while using our website. If you are using our Services via a browser you can restrict, block or remove cookies through your web browser settings. We also use content and scripts from third parties that may use tracking technologies. You can selectively provide your consent below to allow such third party embeds. For complete information about the cookies we use, data we collect and how we process them, please check our Privacy Policy
Youtube
Consent to display content from - Youtube
Vimeo
Consent to display content from - Vimeo
Google Maps
Consent to display content from - Google
Spotify
Consent to display content from - Spotify
Sound Cloud
Consent to display content from - Sound
Parquet Dev Salesforce consultants favicon