Let’s imagine you’re talking to a potential client. They passed the dinner date test and you’re in the middle of asking them all types of questions to understand their current situation and desired outcome.
Do you ever ask them how much their budget is?… Read the rest
Psst, did anyone ever tell you? There are more than one Salesforce freelancers. And there are more than one Salesforce agency. Shocking, isn’t it?!
So when a client is considering hiring you or your team, what sets you apart from all the others?… Read the rest
I’m currently working with a client that has some technical knowledge, but without any Salesforce experience.
In today’s working session, my colleague updated a field mapping document with the client. The document describes the mapping from the legacy table and field to the upcoming Salesforce object and field.… Read the rest
I had a call with a new coaching student today. He brought up multiple topics, but the one that really caught my attention was about career direction.
For context, he’s currently a partner at a boutique Salesforce agency. He manages a few subcontractors, works very long hours, and is relatively unhappy about his effective hourly rate.… Read the rest
When you started your Salesforce career, you were probably overwhelmed at first. There’s a megaton of information to absorb, and sometimes it can feel like too much.
But bit by bit, you eventually found your way. And adopting a curious mindset can really accelerate your learning.… Read the rest
A few readers were interested in knowing the “why” of the previous email. Why were these apps chosen, and why did they merit paying for them?
CRM
Q: Why not Salesforce?
A: I’ve always felt Salesforce was designed for larger organizations.… Read the rest
There was a recent conversation in a Salesforce Slack community about which tools and applications independent consultants use.
When you’re not billing by the hour, being efficient is important. Various tools and apps can make a significant difference.
If you’re billing by the hour, why even buy a faster computer?… Read the rest
I’ve seen this situation far too many times. Regardless of how well you plan, regardless of how much time you allocate for UAT, it still happens.
That’s right. The client promises to test your Salesforce project when called upon. They positively respond to all your communications about it, what is expected of them, and how you’ll tirage their feedback.… Read the rest
Before conducting any technical meeting with the client, how are you sure you’re prepared? And, is the rest of your team aware of the context?
Let’s imagine a Salesforce partner that just started working with a new client. The project is in the design phase, and there are tons of questions that need to be answered.… Read the rest
Yesterday I was in a meeting with a client, and one of my team members was hosting the working session.
There were a handful of people on our team and another handful on the client side. Some were technical people, others not so much.… Read the rest
Not surprisingly, there are tons of articles and videos about how to invoke a screen flow from a custom button on a list view. What is surprising is how nearly all of them are incomplete.
To bring you up to speed, to invoke a screen flow from a list view, you need to create a list button instead of an action.… Read the rest
And we are back! Welcome to 2025, my dear reader.
I’ve already started the year poorly by sending this email at the 11th hour. But that’s what happens when you get distracted by trying to catch up on tons of emails.… Read the rest
I was planning to continue writing these emails until Friday before taking a much needed break. It turns out, I need the break more than I thought.
So today will be the last email until Jan 6th, 2025.
During the break, I plan to spend most of the time with family and close friends.… Read the rest
Mastery isn’t a straight and consistent path. It won’t even be the same path taken by anyone else.
This is because time keeps moving forward. With time progressing, random circumstances are constantly introduced. They say you never step into the same river twice, and that’s because of the flow of time.… Read the rest
No one really seems to enjoy multi-value picklists (MVPs). Like many things in the ecosystem, while it seems great in theory, it adds complications in practice. Even Salesforce recently added a warning message before you create one.
So what are the alternatives to MVPs?… Read the rest
Today was the Agentforce World Tour in Toronto, and I wish I had a recap for you.
Let’s start at the beginning. I was prepared for a long day. The flight from Montreal departed at 6.45am and arrived in Toronto around 8.30am.… Read the rest
My colleague is getting more and more frustrated with his immovable client. They simply don’t want to, or are incapable of, articulating their requirements.
He and I discussed the issue, and came up with a novel approach.
The client loves their existing system, so why not start there?… Read the rest
The bison is an animal of the bovine family. It’s related to the buffalo, and found in North America and Europe.
A cool fact about bison is how they handle snow storms.
Most people, when faced with an oncoming storm, would probably turn and run away from it.… Read the rest
The expression “the elephant in the room” refers to a significant issue or problem that is obvious but is being ignored by those involved.
The metaphorical elephant occupies a lot of space in the room, but people simply ignore it. This is because they perceive that talking about the elephant is worse than pretending it doesn’t exist.… Read the rest
A quick heads-up!
As the title suggests, I’ll be at the Agentforce World Tour in Toronto next week. It’s a one-day affair on Thursday, Dec 12, 2024.
Details are at https://www.salesforce.com/events/world-tour/toronto/
It’s cute how Salesforce is now appending the word “Agentforce” in front of everything they do these days.… Read the rest
Let’s say you have a client that loves to avoid commitment. This happens when the decision maker isn’t in the room or no one wants to take responsibility for approving the design.
The first symptom of this problem is that no one provides valuable feedback.… Read the rest
Imagine you have a client that’s not really invested in the Salesforce project. They might have been told they need to use Salesforce, or they are reluctant to change. Either way, they don’t really want it.
My colleague is going through this exact experience right now.… Read the rest
A colleague of mine was discussing an issue he has with a new Salesforce client.
During meetings, the client doesn’t respond to most questions. They don’t seem to want to understand business requirements, agile, sprints, sign offs, etc. In fact, they show very little interest in the project at all.… Read the rest
It looks like this year’s reward was not very motivating for you. Since the giveaway was announced, only 3 people referred others 🙁
Don’t worry, I won’t take this personally. I bet you were just super busy and forgot about it.… Read the rest
So you’re past the point of no return (PPNR) in your Salesforce project. This is despite the fact that you’re working with a good client and your contract doesn’t mention this predicament.
Here are a few options to consider:
Just finish the project
We know it’s common for a client to try and add scope to a project.… Read the rest
Several years ago, I fundamentally changed the way I do business. As such, my perception of business and client relationships have changed as well.
To this end, my contracts are very basic. I don’t like to spell out everything that will be done, and the penalties if things go wrong, as it feels petty for my tastes.… Read the rest
There’s a lot to discuss about what to do after the point of no return, and here’s one part.
As I alluded to in the first email (and a couple of readers called out the same), the first step is to avoid clients like this altogether.… Read the rest
A colleague of mine was recently sharing a challenge he currently has with a client.
The client was picky from the start. They probably would have failed the dinner date test. But that’s ancient history now.
The discovery phase was successfully completed, and the client signed off.… Read the rest
Yours truly was featured in Salesforce Ben’s article, 20 Most Popular Salesforce Admin & Developer Blogs 2024.
This is particularly interesting because I had no idea this was going to happen. Someone on LinkedIn connected with me last week saying they saw my name on the website.… Read the rest
Being able to achieve a deep focus and to have a strong concentration are valuable skills for Salesforce consultants.
These skills, like any other, can be cultivated. You may not be very good at them today, but you can teach yourself to become better
One fantastic way to start this process of growth is to meditate.… Read the rest