When tackling challenges in Salesforce, the most effective approach is often the simplest. Whether you're streamlining a process, building a new feature, or integrating data, best practices in the Salesforce ecosystem favor a declarative-first mindset by solving problems using out-of-the-box tools before turning to custom code.
In this blog post, we’ll walk through how to evaluate and solve Salesforce problems with a scalable approach: starting with configuration, escalating to automation, and turning to code only when absolutely necessary.
Salesforce provides powerful tools that let you solve most business problems without writing a single line of code. These include:
Custom objects are the backbone of many Salesforce solutions. When a business need requires tracking new data types (such as equipment inventory, onboarding checklists, or partner agreements), it’s often best handled by creating a custom object with the relevant fields.
🔍 Example: A company wants to track vendor certifications. Instead of using spreadsheets or repurposing existing objects, you can create a custom object called "Vendor Certification" with lookup fields to Accounts and customizable expiration tracking.
Formulas allow you to derive values based on existing data, while validation rules ensure that only high-quality data gets saved. They are essential for enforcing business logic directly in the data model.
🔍 Example: A formula field can calculate "Days Until Contract Expiration" by subtracting the current date from the expiration date. A validation rule can prevent reps from marking a deal as Closed Won unless all required fields are filled in.
Before reaching for custom analytics tools or integrations, use native reporting and dashboards. These are incredibly robust and can solve many visibility or performance tracking challenges without third-party software.
🔍 Example: Instead of building a custom data visualization app, you can create a dashboard that shows renewal rates by product line using report filters and components.
If your challenge requires business logic beyond what formulas and validation rules can handle, especially when records need to be created, updated, or routed, Salesforce Flow is your next tool.
Use these for automating actions based on record changes. They’re ideal for common workflows like sending alerts, creating related records, or updating fields.
🔍 Example: When a new Opportunity is marked as Closed Won, a flow automatically creates a Project record and assigns a project manager.
Use these to perform periodic checks or updates without user interaction.
🔍 Example: A scheduled flow runs weekly to identify contracts expiring in 30 days and sends reminder emails.
These guide users through a process with an interactive UI, great for onboarding, call scripting, or complex data entry.
🔍 Example: A screen flow walks support agents through a troubleshooting script, dynamically branching based on answers.
Sometimes declarative tools fall short. For complex logic, high-volume processing, or external integrations, Apex code is the right choice.
🔍 Example: A healthcare company needs to validate National Provider Identifiers (NPIs) against an external database during record creation. This requires a callout to a third-party API, handled via Apex.
🔍 Example: A batch Apex job is needed to calculate and update referral bonuses for thousands of records every night based on custom logic that spans multiple objects.
Even when Apex is the right tool, keep your solutions maintainable. Use custom metadata, consistent naming conventions, and document your logic thoroughly. Always prioritize reuse and scalability.
Not every Salesforce challenge needs a complex, custom-coded solution. By starting with simple declarative tools (custom objects, formulas, reports) and layering in flows or Apex only as needed, you’ll create solutions that are faster to build, easier to maintain, and more resilient over time.
At Zaghop, we help businesses design smart, scalable Salesforce solutions that grow with them. Whether you're optimizing a simple workflow or building a custom integration, we'll help you choose the right tools for the job.
Let’s build smarter, starting with what Salesforce already does best.