Flows are a pivotal feature in Salesforce, and every good enough consultant needs to know how to use them effectively.
Let’s start with naming conventions. Each element in the flow needs a label. They should be clear, consistent, and concise. If more details are needed, place them in the description field.
Here are the most commonly used elements and a naming convention that fit this theme.
Assignment
Use “Set x”.
Example: “Set Contact” or “Set Count”
Decision
Phrase it as a question, and the outcomes as answers. Keep the default outcome as “Default Outcome”.
Example: “Does Contact Exist?” or “Is Contact Found?” with outcomes of “Contact Exists” or “Contact Found”
Get/Create/Update/Delete Records
Use “Get/Create/Update/Delete x” when you’re working with 1 record, and add an “s” when you’re working with a collection.
Example: “Get Contact” vs “Get Contacts”
Loop
Since you always loop a collection, use “Loop x” with an “s”.
Example: “Loop Contacts”
Repetitions
If you need to repeat similar elements, you can keep the label the same, but use unique API names. The exception is the Get element, as it’s usually important to know how you got the records when you refer to the operation later.
Example: “Get Contact by Email” and “Get Contact by External Id”
Example: “Update Contact” (API Name: Update_Contact_Email) and “Update Contact” (API Name: Update_Contact_External)
The takeaway
There’s no need to overly complicate labels in a flow. Be sure to use consistent capitalization as well.