Practical Salesforce.com Development Without Code: Customizing Salesforce on the Force.com Platform

Practical Salesforce.com Development Without Code: Customizing Salesforce on the Force.com Platform

Released December 2014
Publisher(s): Apress
ISBN: 9781484200971

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Book description

Are you facing a challenging Salesforce.com problem—say, relating to customization, configuration, reporting, dashboards, or formulation—that you can’t quite crack? Or maybe you are hoping to infuse some creativity into your solution design strategy to solve problems faster or make solutions more efficient? Practical Salesforce.com Development Without Code shows you how to unlock the power of the Force.com platform to solve real business problems—and all without writing a line of code. Adhering to Salesforce.com’s "Clicks, not code" mantra, Salesforce.com expert Phil Weinmeister walks you through different business problems and identifies effective, creative—and proven—approaches to solutions using the software’s declarative framework.

If you are a Salesforce.com administrator, analyst, consultant, or developer, you can attest to the insatiable appetite of users for new functionality. Your clients expect solutions—and now. Practical Salesforce.com Development Without Code is your lifeline. You will learn how to deliver business solutions within Salesforce.com by combining analysis, creativity, and logic with some of its core elements, including validation rules, workflow rules, and formula fields. In addition, Weinmeister dissects and explains the most useful functions and features for developers, and shows you how to use them. Among other things, you will learn how to:

  • Automate business processes
  • Build reports
  • Customize interfaces and dashboards
  • Become expert in developing formulas
  • Learn how to use functions effectively
  • Develop intricate approval processes

    • Best of all, Weinmeister uses real-life business scenarios and visuals—while sparing you the boring technical jargon—to keep you energized, engaged, and learning something new with every page you read. Practical Salesforce.com Development Without Code will help you absorb the principles behind dozens of new and creative ways to solve your business problems. And that will save you time and make sure your internal customers or clients are well satisfied and productive.

    Table of contents

    1. Cover
    2. Title
    3. Copyright
    4. Dedication
    5. Contents at a glance
    6. Contents
    7. About the Author
    8. About the Technical Reviewer
    9. Acknowledgments
    10. Introduction
    11. Chapter 1: The Salesforce.com Data Model: Objects, Fields, and Relationships
      1. Salesforce.com Fields
        1. Standard vs. Custom Fields
        2. Attributes
        3. Custom Field Types
        4. Creating a Custom Field Step by Step
      2. Salesforce.com Objects
      3. Salesforce.com Relationships
        1. Relationship Field Types
        2. Junction Objects
      4. Some Perspective on the Data Model
      5. Recap
    12. Chapter 2: Formula Functions: Your Building Block in Salesforce.com Formulas
      1. Anatomy of a Salesforce.com Function
        1. Name
        2. Arguments
        3. Optional Arguments
      2. Salesforce.com Development Using Functions
        1. The Function Selector
        2. Inserting a Field
        3. Inserting Text
        4. Checking Your Syntax
        5. Using the Simple and Advanced Formula Editors
      3. Salesforce.com Formula Functions: A Deep Dive
        1. ABS
        2. AND
        3. BEGINS
        4. BLANKVALUE
        5. CASE
        6. CONTAINS
        7. DATE
        8. DATEVALUE
        9. DAY, MONTH, and YEAR
        10. FIND
        11. HYPERLINK
        12. IF
        13. IMAGE
        14. INCLUDES
        15. ISBLANK
        16. ISCHANGED
        17. ISNEW
        18. ISNULL
        19. ISPICKVAL
        20. LEFT, MID, RIGHT
        21. LEN
        22. MID
        23. MOD
        24. NOW, TODAY
        25. OR
        26. PRIORVALUE
        27. REGEX
        28. RIGHT
        29. SUBSTITUTE
        30. TEXT
        31. TODAY
        32. TRIM
        33. VALUE
      4. Recap
    13. Chapter 3: All About Formula Fields
      1. Preparing to Build Your Formula Fields
      2. The Structure of Formula Fields
        1. Static Values
        2. Derived Values
        3. Using Lookup or Related Fields
        4. Functions
        5. Statements and Operators
      3. Creating a Formula Field
        1. Checkbox
        2. Currency, Number, and Percent
        3. Date and Date/Time
        4. Text
      4. Recap
    14. Chapter 4: Automating Your Business with Salesforce.com Workflow Rules
      1. The Elements of a Salesforce.com Workflow Rule
        1. “Base” Object
        2. Evaluation Criteria
        3. Rule Criteria
        4. Workflow Actions
      2. Building a Workflow Rule and Actions: Step by Step
        1. Preparation Step: Create Relevant Custom Fields
      3. Workflow Rules: Real-World Examples
        1. Scenario 1: Lead Assessment (Marketing Cloud)
        2. Scenario 2: Opportunity Probability (Sales Cloud)
        3. Scenario 3: Case Escalation (Service Cloud)
      4. Recap
    15. Chapter 5: Enforcing Your Business Rules with Salesforce.com Validation Rules
      1. A Clear Definition of Validation Rules
      2. Building an Effective Validation Rule
        1. Step 1: Define the Scenario and Corresponding Business Rules
        2. Step 2: Enter Basic Rule Information
        3. Step 3: Establish the Error Condition Formula
        4. Step 4: Formulate the Error Message
        5. Step 5: Determine the Error Message Location
      3. Considerations When Building Validation Rules
        1. Security Model Impact
        2. Updates to Related Criteria Records
        3. Coexistence of Workflow Rules and Validation Rules
        4. Error Condition Grouping
        5. Existing Error Conditions
        6. Unavailable Functions
      4. Recap
    16. Chapter 6: Building Effective Approval Processes for Your Business
      1. The Flow of a Salesforce.com Approval Process
      2. Building a Complex Approval Process
        1. Brokerage Support Scenario Overview
      3. Further Considerations
        1. Submit for Approval Button
        2. Invalid Submission Details
        3. Initiation of Process
        4. Validation Rules
        5. Workflow Rules
      4. Recap
    17. Chapter 7: Use Entitlements and Milestones to Drive Case Automation
      1. Action Timing Within Salesforce.com
        1. Minimum Interval Between Triggering Event and Action
        2. Variance Between Expected and Actual Minimum Intervals
      2. A Creative Approach to Using Time-Based Workflows
      3. Setting up Entitlements and Milestones to Meet Your Action-Timing Needs
      4. Creating an Entitlement Record
      5. Case Page Layout Considerations
      6. Your Entitlement and Milestone: Live and In Effect
      7. Recap
    18. Chapter 8: Producing Advanced Automation with Visual Workflow
      1. Why Visual Workflow?
        1. Event-Triggered and User-Triggered Flows
        2. User Input and Decision Points
        3. Screen Output and User Interface Impact
        4. Multiple Steps / Cohesive View of Process
      2. Effective Application of Visual Workflow
      3. The Cloud Flow Designer
        1. Button Bar
        2. Palette Tab
        3. Resources Tab
        4. Explorer Tab
        5. Status Indicator
        6. Flow Administration Options
      4. Flow Scenario: Customer Service Product Troubleshooting and Resolution
        1. Developing Your Visual Workflow
        2. 5. Case Record Update
        3. 6. Troubleshooting Script
        4. Final View of Flow
        5. Creating a Custom Button to Start the Flow
      5. Your Flow: Live and In Effect
        1. Update to Case
      6. Recap
    19. Chapter 9: Develop Friendlier Solutions with Custom Settings
      1. Custom Setting Type
      2. Creating a Custom Setting and Corresponding Fields
      3. Managing Your Custom Setting
      4. Referencing a Custom Setting
      5. Recap
    20. Chapter 10: Streamline Your Process with Publisher Actions
      1. Action Categories
        1. Standard Actions
        2. Nonstandard Actions
        3. Default Actions
        4. Mobile Smart Actions
        5. Custom Actions
        6. Record Actions
      2. Action Placement
      3. Publisher Layouts
      4. Action Attributes
      5. Action Layouts
      6. Predefined Field Values
      7. Creating a Publisher Action
        1. Business Scenario
        2. Establishing the Publisher Layout
        3. View New Actions
      8. Considerations
      9. Recap
    21. Chapter 11: Using Web-to-Lead Effectively and Creatively
      1. Web-to-Lead 101
      2. Using the Web-to-Lead Tool
        1. Web-to-Lead Settings
        2. Selection of Fields / Configuration of Return URL
        3. Generation of HTML
        4. Modifying the HTML for Your Site
        5. Lookup Fields/Campaigns
      3. Combining Web-to-Lead with Other Functionality
      4. Other Web-to-Lead Considerations
        1. Debugging
        2. Daily Limit
      5. Recap
    22. Chapter 12: Customizing the Look and Feel of Salesforce.com for Your Users
      1. The Record Detail Page Layout
        1. Fields
        2. Buttons
        3. Highlights Panel and Mini Console View
        4. Publisher Actions
        5. Mobile Cards (Expanded Lookups)
        6. Related Lists
        7. Mini Page Layout
        8. Properties
      2. Using IMAGE Within a Formula Field
        1. IMAGE Syntax
        2. Combining IMAGE with Other Functions
      3. The Home Page
      4. Other Considerations
      5. Recap
    23. Chapter 13: Useful Features and Options for Building Reports in Salesforce.com
      1. Report Types
        1. Custom Report Types
        2. Object Relationships
        3. Fields and Layout
      2. Advanced Reporting Features
        1. Report Filters
        2. Summary Formulas
        3. Bucket Fields
      3. Recap
    24. Chapter 14: Applying the Proper Security Model to Support Your Solutions
      1. Establishing a Sensible Strategy
      2. Understanding the Salesforce.com Security Model
        1. Object and Field Permissions
        2. Record Access via Sharing
      3. Practical Application of Security Elements
        1. Field-Level Security
        2. Object-Level Security
        3. Using Permission Sets and Validation Rules
        4. Record Access Through Sharing
        5. Object Permission and Record-Sharing Overlap
      4. Recap
    25. Chapter 15: Managing Your Salesforce.com Data with Data Loader
      1. Data Loader Overview
      2. Setup
      3. Exporting Data
      4. Inserting Data
      5. Updating Data
      6. Upserting Data
      7. Deleting Data
      8. Other Considerations
      9. Recap
    26. Chapter 16: Managing Your Environments and Deploying Your Solutions
      1. The Salesforce.com Sandbox
        1. Types of Sandboxes
        2. Refreshing a Sandbox
        3. Designing Your Sandbox Model
      2. Deployment
        1. Change Sets
        2. Other Considerations
      3. Recap
    27. Chapter 17: Next Steps in Your Path to Development Excellence
      1. Success and Developer Communities
      2. Social Media
      3. Dreamforce
      4. Certification
      5. Help, Webinars, and User Groups
      6. A Final Word
    28. Index

    Product information

    • Title: Practical Salesforce.com Development Without Code: Customizing Salesforce on the Force.com Platform
    • Author(s):
    • Release date: December 2014
    • Publisher(s): Apress
    • ISBN: 9781484200971