Did you or your Salesforce admin get a service notification this year that the Salesforce Lightning Experience will be turned on in October? Maybe the email sparked panic or maybe October still feels like ages away, but as we prepare for spring one thing is for sure, it’s time to start giving thought to preparing for the Salesforce Lightning Experience.
Here, Measured Results Marketing’s team of Salesforce Experts weigh in on what you need to know about, why it’s important, and things you can do now to start prepping for the upcoming change.
So… I Heard About Lightning
Salesforce currently maintains two versions of their platform, Classic and Lightning. Classic is the OG Salesforce we know and love, it’s been running for years and getting the job done well. But as with all technology, there comes a time for evolution and advancement. Introduce Lightning, the new, mobile friendly, well designed younger cousin of Salesforce Classic.
Salesforce has made it clear that Lightning is the future of Salesforce’s user experience and platform. And starting in October of 2019, they will begin rolling out the Lightning Experience to all customers.
What’s the Big Deal?
TL,DR: Things are going to look different… very different.
While it may be surprising for users who are used to the look and feel of Salesforce Classic, the interface will have the modern design of an application. Luckily these design upgrades are intended to make the Salesforce experience more seamless to the customer. But like any change, it may take a bit of getting used to.
Why Lightning Makes Sense
There is a reason Salesforce is all in with Lightning. The new tool is modern and designed with the end user in mind. It has the feel of a mobile app and will make it easier for end users to input and get data. It’s also more visual, making it easier to track opportunities, and see pipeline. Enhanced customization features make building valuable dashboards a lot easier.
Most importantly, the improved design and UX can help drive adoption within your sales organization. Lightning looks more like you would expect it to look and works in a more intuitive way, reducing the need for as much training, and lowering the barrier to entry for organizations just getting started with Salesforce.
Don’t Be Caught Off Guard: 5 Things You Can Do to Prep Your Organization for Change
There are things that you and your Salesforce admin can do to prepare for the upcoming transition to Salesforce Lightning. Here are five steps we recommend starting with this month:
1. To be clear, Salesforce Classic is not completely going away in October
To clarify, if your organization is not ready to fully adopt Salesforce Lightning by October, users will still have the option to switch back to Salesforce Classic after the October rollout. With that in mind, we don’t recommend just “not worrying about Lightning until later” since this is clearly the direction Salesforce is going in the future and no one is aware of when Classic will be decommissioned.
2. Run a Lightning Readiness Check
Salesforce offers a Lightning Readiness Report to assess your organization’s level of readiness for the Lightning Experience. The tool is available to anyone using Professional, Enterprise, Performance, Unlimited, and Developer Editions of Salesforce. Running the Lightning Readiness Check will provide you with a report and recommendations on next steps. For more details, check out Salesforce’s post on how to run the report. If you want help interpreting your results or putting together your game plan on how to address next steps, don’t forget that the Yeti’s of MRM are here to help!
3. Spread the News
Chances are, many people within your organization don’t know this change is coming. Get out in front of the rumor mill by getting the word out. Socialize the upcoming changes with your organization now and be sure to talk about the benefits of Lightning. Not only will this help get your teams excited for the new Salesforce experience, it will give them confidence that the organization is on top of things and no one will be caught off guard.
4. Have a Plan
One of the best things you can do to ease transition within your organization is to come prepped with a plan. Explore Salesforce’s Journey to Lightning map for details, templates, and messaging around the transition and what your organization needs to do to prepare. And while it doesn’t need to be over-engineered, drafting a high-level migration plan will help chart a path forward.
5. Run a test
Once you have a have a plan, test your migration with a small number of 5-10 power users. Not only will running a test with real people help identify gaps and opportunities, but your users can become your champions. Walk through the Salesforce readiness checklist. If you’re looking for more tools, stay tuned in the coming weeks.
Reach Out If You Need Help!
Still feeling overwhelmed - don’t fret yet! The October release is only the first of many communications and roll out activities taking place before the full launch of Lightning in Winter of 2020. And if your organization needs more support, the team of Yetis at MRM are here to help! Drop us a line or give us a call at 571-606-3106 to discuss more today!
