We recently launched Salesforce for one of our clients who is brand new to CRMs. Even though we've done this many times before, we always Love Learning (one of our company values!), so we reached out to our existing clients for advice.

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We sent this note to our community of existing clients: "We have a client who is launching Salesforce (they have never used a CRM before) and they asked us to share advice, tips & tricks, and/or lessons learned for organizations just starting out."

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‍The responses we received were too good not to share Out Loud!

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Dream Big, Start Small

When you're first looking at Salesforce, it's easy to get overwhelmed by all the possibilities. But here's some advice we loved from a Data Manager at a nonprofit...

"Don't shy away from the 'dreamy dream.' Think BIG and reach far with ideas and inspiration about what the system can do for you!"
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At the same time, a COO who implemented Salesforce at her organization recommends, "start small and expand gradually."

This balanced approach makes so much sense to us. Dream about the possibilities while building a foundation you can actually manage. It's not an either/or - it's a both/and.

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Embrace The Sandbox

One of the best things about Salesforce is that you can experiment without breaking anything important. As one client put it: "Get messy in the sandbox! This is the best way to experiment hands-on with the backend, without breaking anything serious."

And when you're trying to figure out how to do something specific? "Google is your best friend. If you're having trouble with something, most likely someone else has had the same problem as you and they have complained about it on the internet."

Don't forget about Salesforce's own training resources either: "Trailheads! The ones where you use a sandbox are a great way to learn by experience. Not all of them are winners, but they have definitely come in handy."

We love this advice because it encourages experimentation without fear - a value we hold dear at OpenTent.

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Build Your Dream

Implementing a CRM isn't a solo sport. One organization leader emphasizes the importance of having "a clear champion (or team of champions) to own decision making and implementation." They also suggest you "include the executive team in system access for top-down culture promotion."
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This leadership buy-in is crucial for adoption across your organization. When people see their managers using the system, they're more likely to embrace it themselves.

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Keep It Clean

Nothing will derail your Salesforce experience faster than messy data. Another piece of advice that came in was to "establish data entry criteria and use validations to keep data clean." This team even has "an admin cleanup dashboard and development cleanup dashboard with data to cleanup regularly." Starting with good data hygiene practices will save you countless headaches down the road. 

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Feedback Is Your Friend

Sometimes the perfect solution on paper doesn't quite work in practice. A COO who's been through this process offers this crucial advice… "Make sure the solution truly fits your organization's structure and needs. Sometimes you don't know what you don't know until you're part way through the build, or even until you get the UAT, but even if the feedback is that things need to change, or even go in a different direction, it's critical to share that. Otherwise you'll inevitably end up having to circle back to it later."

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Train, Document, Repeat

Perhaps the most emphasized piece of advice? "Train! Train! And more training! Plus document." One organization uses Guru for their Salesforce guide "to have snapshots of digestible information."
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We've found that training isn't a one-and-done event - it's an ongoing process. People learn by doing, and they need support along the way.

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Measure Your Success

Finally, how will you know if all this work is paying off? One reply recommended: "Create metrics to measure success and track on a regular basis." Their team reports out "monthly or quarterly depending on content."
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We're grateful to all the clients who shared their wisdom with us. These insights aren't just theoretical - they come from people who have been exactly where our new client is now. This kind of knowledge sharing is what our community is all about. 
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The power of coming together unlocked.