Salesforce Step-by-Step Guide for Small Business Owners

by Daniel Raymond · August 12, 2024

Are you looking for a customer relationship management tool? Salesforce CRM is one of the industry leaders that can help. It’s usually associated with complex processes and larger businesses. That’s not a coincidence.

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This CRM software has versatile capabilities. For instance, Salesforce’s diverse ‘Clouds’—such as the Sales Cloud, Service Cloud, and Marketing Cloud—allow companies to tailor the platform to specific aspects of their operations, enhancing efficiency and effectiveness.

The best part is that data management isn’t the only domain where Salesforce shines bright. The tool harnesses the power of artificial intelligence to analyze customer interactions, identify trends, forecast future sales, and so on. AI enables businesses to craft personalized marketing messages and improve the sales process.

But that’s not true if it seems too much for your small business. The Salesforce platform is an equally good small business CRM. In this article, we’ll persuade you that this CRM solution deserves your attention as a small business owner. Let’s get started!

Salesforce for Customer Relationship Management: Definition and Benefits

If you’re looking for a CRM platform for your small company, you probably know what this tool can offer to a growing business. No wonder 91% of companies with over 11 employees now use CRM solutions. But why should you choose exactly Salesforce CRM? Aren’t there cheaper, beginner-friendly, and less feature-rich options?

Sure, there are. However, Salesforce stands out because of its unmatched customization, scalability, and integration capabilities. And if you’re looking to maximize its potential, partnering with a Salesforce development company like Onilab can make all the difference.

Let’s dive deeper into this platform and the benefits it provides.

Evolution and Milestones of Salesforce CRM

The Salesforce company appeared in 1999. A former Oracle executive, Marc Benioff, and his colleagues set up an organization to end traditional software models. Now, it’s a leading entity in the CRM space, crucial for large, mid, and small businesses worldwide. Here are some noteworthy periods of company development:

Foundation and early challenges: San Francisco, tiny apartment. The concept of delivering enterprise applications via a simple website was born. The startup laid down a marker with its ‘No Software’ campaign, signifying a shift towards cloud computing.
IPO and expansion: In June 2004, Salesforce went public on the New York Stock Exchange, raising $110 million. In 2014, it developed an all-encompassing Customer Success Platform, integrating all its services.
Innovative milestones: In 2017, an AI-powered tool, Einstein, emerged, paving the way for more personalized interactions and an in-depth understanding of customer needs.
Strategic acquisitions and growth: The company acquired Slack in 2020 as part of its commitment to seamlessly integrating communication tools into its ecosystem.
Recent developments: Salesforce continues to innovate. For example, it launched Einstein Copilot in 2024, zeroing in on AI for more efficient customer service and business operations.

Salesforce’s Key Features

Customer relationship management (CRM) refers to different tools for managing communication with existing and potential clients. While your contact list may seem insignificant, you’ll want to automate your manual tasks sooner or later to serve customers better, faster, and more precisely.

The CRM system organizes customer data, streamlines sales, and keeps you competitive in the overcrowded market. Regardless of the business size, CRM is essential for becoming a startup and a customer-centric business.

Salesforce CRM is a step up from the former solutions that organizations used to leverage for handling business and customer data, such as:

jotting down information on paper;
keeping paper sheets in files;
creating digital documents in Excel;
storing CRM systems on a company’s server.

It offers a unified CRM suite with cloud-based software solutions for marketing, sales, and customer service. ‘Cloud-based’ means the CRM features are readily accessible online. Employees no longer need to be physically dependent on corporate resources. They can log into the system and use the data from anywhere and on any device for sales tracking, marketing automation, and generating custom reports.

Companies don’t need to buy more servers once the business expands. You can scale up and down quickly, switching to more expensive or cheaper pricing tiers. That makes cloud-based systems like Salesforce a well-liked solution in today’s agile world.

For example, your sales team can easily access customer info, monitor sales activities, and manage leads—all from a single dashboard. And so can a marketing or service professional do it in several clicks.

Imagine a prospect calling you to order your services. The sales representative can quickly open its profile and see its interaction history, previous orders, and general details. The knowledge base is just a few clicks away, so the sales professional can easily access it to eliminate customers’ doubts.

The result? Enhanced customer relationships, better sales forecasting, and, ultimately, more sales.

Why Choose Salesforce for Your Small Business?

Now, let’s focus on the benefits Salesforce offers, namely:

Data management and customer insights: It captures valuable insights from every customer interaction and makes sense of that data;
AI-powered efficiency: AI solutions like Einstein Activity Capture for automated workflows take the CRM to the next level. Powered by natural language processing, the platform can generate texts, help with customer inquiries, and even act as a conversational AI assistant;
Custom sales processes and automation: Salesforce adjusts to specific business needs and streamlines contact management, sales service, and lead capture;
Mobile accessibility: It’s available through web and mobile apps so that you can utilize it both in the office and on the go;
Integration and scalability: The CRM supports API-based integrations with your tech stack and allows you to install apps from Salesforce AppExchange. The SF tools are extendable and will grow with your small business, whether a point-and-click solution to develop and configure your app or a pre-integrated business app on the AppExchange.

Of course, advanced CRM solutions incur additional fees. Tens of thousands of qualified experts are available to provide technical support with Salesforce integrations and implementations.

But what does it all look like in real life? Consider an example of a Sandy Alexander company. Despite its long history, this small business struggled with lead management. So, it purchased Salesforce Starter, the CRM suite designed for small businesses.

Everything was a breeze: setup, data syncing, and rollout. Moreover, Sandy Alexander also uncovered new opportunities, such as retail accounts that had previously gone unnoticed and those in sales outreach.

Getting Started with Salesforce CRM Software

Before you set up Salesforce, you need to choose the right CRM plan, such as:

Starter Suite ($25/user/month): Out-of-the-box sales processes, dynamic email marketing, and seamless customer service;
Pro Suite ($100/user/month, billed annually): Greater customization, automation, and real-time chat capabilities, enhanced sales quoting and forecasting;
Advanced options (Sales Cloud and Service Cloud Enterprise Edition from $165/user/month): Specialized solutions addressing intricate business challenges.

Note that no free version exists in any of these plans except for free trial periods.

Suppose you’ve chosen the Start Suite (Salesforce Essentials). Sign up for a free demo and explore its key features.

The next step is importing existing data from spreadsheets, emails, and calendars. At this stage, Einstein Activity Capture may help. It helps keep the info in Salesforce and your email and calendar applications fresh.

Then, tailor the system to your CRM objectives, including the dashboard, custom fields, and workflows. Read more in the next section.

Customizing Salesforce for Your Small Business

Salesforce customization is configuring the platform to work within your organizational environment. However, there are two ways to customize it. The first one is known as configuration and doesn’t imply coding or the need for programming knowledge. You can go to ‘Settings’, design applications, manage data elements, and implement automated workflows.

Another way is more challenging as it involves custom coding. Thus, it would be best if you were a proficient Salesforce developer. While demanding, this option allows you to tweak the CRM solution at the code level, aligning it with your business needs.

To enhance SF’s capabilities, consider linking it to other essential business applications. These can be communication tools, accounting software like QuickBooks, or eCommerce systems.

Future-Proofing Your Small Business

Due to the rapid growth of new technologies that simplify our everyday lives, many companies integrate AI into their products. Salesforce is not an exception. Salesforce is making significant AI investments and launching tools like Einstein GPT.

AI is useful for both big and small businesses. For example, it helps automate repetitive tasks, gain deep insights into customer behavior, and make smarter decisions faster. The cherry on top is that there’s no complicated setup process. AI is already part of the SF products.

The GPT (generative pre-trained transformer) model empowers you to enhance your marketing efforts. For instance, the tool can generate personalized recommendations and marketing content, allowing you to respond to customers more quickly and efficiently.

Take Wonolo, for example. This small business used AI-generated chat replies to improve its customer service. AI has helped it reduce average handle times by 20%, improving employee efficiency, confidence, and service quality.

Don’t forget that Salesforce has got you covered as your business grows. The CRM features are grouped into dedicated packages, so you can choose what department to equip with what capabilities.

How do you maximize ROI with Salesforce? Focus on long-term strategies. Review the CRM regularly, upgrade to more advanced plans in the future, and connect it with other software.

Pro tip: Clean the data from time to time. The quality of AI output is determined by the quality of data fed into the system. So, updated and clear data will result in precise responses and insights from Salesforce’s AI tools.

Future-proofing your small business also entails building a foundation for sustainable growth, namely:

updating the system as the vendor launches new features;
learning and training to get the most out of the platform;
collaborating with other users and experts in a community;
auditing the tool and making adjustments as needed.

Salesforce: Small Business Training and Support Resources

People choose Salesforce for a reason. Besides its sales forecasting, lead management, and marketing automation capabilities, Salesforce offers many resources to help your business succeed. The goal is to ensure you get the most out of the CRM solution.

A case in point is Salesforce Trailhead. It’s a system where you can learn how to utilize Salesforce by following the instructions. The courses guide developing sales cycles, merging contacts, and inviting colleagues. Along with in-app lessons, SF has an installation assistant.

On Trailhead, you can also obtain SF certificates. They’re needed if you or your employees want to master the CRM and show the team—and customers—that you or they are Salesforce pros. Yet, the need for Salesforce certifications primarily lies with those specializing in the platform rather than small business owners. So, consider them when choosing a Salesforce development agency or freelancing SF professionals.

Even with the best training, questions will arise. Being a well-established business, Salesforce has nurtured a vibrant community and a robust support team. Its website features a variety of self-service resources for small businesses:

knowledge articles;
step-by-step documentation;
video tutorials.

For businesses that need personalized support, the Premier Success Plan offers 24/7 assistance, expert product education, and regular health checks and recommendations. The fastest 24/7 support service is available to Signature Success Plan customers.

Not enough? Dive into the Trailblazer community. It’s a global network of Salesforce users and experts.

Salesforce Across Different Industries

Salesforce is a multifaceted platform that adapts to various industries. Let’s explore where you can introduce this CRM, focusing on healthcare, finance, retail, and manufacturing and illustrating this with specific use cases and Salesforce technologies.

Healthcare

Screenshot taken on the official Salesforce YouTube channel

Use case: Patient relationship management

Salesforce comes with two products: one for healthcare and another for life sciences. The former provides a comprehensive view of the patient, improving acquisition, support, and care continuity. In life sciences, collaboration between medical devices and pharmaceutical companies is improved.

According to the company research, 61% of today’s patients think post-discharge care would improve with better communication. And Salesforce goes to great lengths to facilitate better dialogue with patients. Among the CRM adopters in this sector are Stanley Healthcare, Philips, Merck KGaA, etc.

Finance

Screenshot taken on the official Salesforce website

Use case: Customer lifecycle management

Client relations in financial services are all about trust, precision, and speed. Salesforce enhances this part of business operations through its Customer 360 platform. It merges all service areas into one flexible system and lets the sales team close deals more efficiently.

Plus, you can create seamless multi-channel experiences. CRM helps small businesses in sectors ranging from banking and insurance to wealth and asset management keep track of all customer touchpoints. Salesforce is the CRM platform of choice for top firms such as The Co-operative Bank, Santander UK, and Ulster Bank in this sector.

Retail

Screenshot taken on the official Salesforce website

Use case: Omnichannel customer experience

Merchants use Salesforce Commerce Cloud (formerly Demandware) to launch online stores. SFCC comes with robust capabilities for both B2B and B2C small businesses, namely:

B2C commerce: AI-powered personalization, an omnichannel shopping experience across online and offline touchpoints, and scalable performance even during peak traffic.
B2B commerce: self-service capabilities, advanced order management, and the support of bulk orders and customized pricing structures.

Leading online retailers have chosen SFCC as their foundational technology. These are Bath & Body Works, Sally Beauty, and Calvin Klein. As this tool belongs to Salesforce, it smoothly integrates with the CRM, allowing sales representatives to reduce time spent on administrative work.

Manufacturing

Screenshot taken on the official Salesforce YouTube channel

Use case: Supply chain and relationship management

Salesforce Manufacturing Cloud streamlines the entire manufacturing process from order to delivery. The software enhances productivity and visibility across the value chain. Here is what manufacturers can gain from this CRM:

make data-driven decisions;
boost partner engagement;
deliver personalized customer experiences.

Salesforce counts Numatic, Swissbit, and Semilab among its users within this sector.

Final Thoughts

Small businesses that adopt Salesforce see an average sales increase of 29%. That’s a big deal. What’s great is that SF serves various departments within a single organization:

sales teams;
marketing professionals;
service representatives.

This guide explored how this CRM system can transform your small business into a well-oiled, customer-centric machine. So, why wait? Connect marketing, sales, and service teams in Salesforce, boost customer satisfaction, and augment your income.

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About the Author – Alex Husar

Alex Husar is a web developer and CTO at Onilab, a full-service eCommerce agency. He graduated from the Czech Technical University and has worked at Onilab for nearly ten years. This experience helped him become a pro in building PWAs, Magento migration, and Salesforce development. Alex is dedicated to improving his skills, finding answers to tough questions, and sharing insights with the team and readers.