Salesforce

Salesforce is a customer relationship management (CRM) platform. It helps centralize data, organize sales processes and coordinate sales, marketing and customer service.

Its scope can cause some confusion. The same name refers both to the company that develops it and to its extensive ecosystem of cloud applications.

In this guide, we’ll look at what Salesforce is, what it’s used for and how it works. We’ll also look at when it’s a good fit for a company and how to tie it into an email marketing strategy.

Short answer: Salesforce is a cloud-based CRM that brings together information about customers, opportunities, sales and support. Its various products let you automate tasks and share data between teams. For email campaigns, it can be complemented with a specialized platform such as Mailrelay.

What is Salesforce and what does CRM mean?

Salesforce is a business software platform accessed over the internet. Its historical core is CRM, which stands for Customer Relationship Management.

A CRM organizes the information generated throughout the business relationship. It can store contacts, companies, conversations, tasks, opportunities, purchases and support cases.

That way, a salesperson knows which proposal a customer received. The support team can check their cases, and marketing can identify which communications may interest them.

The solution was born in the cloud. That’s why its users access it through a browser or an app, without relying on a traditional local installation.

If you want to learn more about the concept, check out this definition of CRM and its main uses.

What is Salesforce used for in a company?

The CRM turns scattered data into processes the team can follow. How useful it is depends on its configuration, the quality of the information and the business’s goals.

Common uses include:

• Managing contacts and accounts, with data on people and companies.
• Tracking sales opportunities, stages, expected amounts and next steps.
• Automating sales tasks, alerts, assignments and approvals.
• Handling inquiries and support cases, with shared history and priorities.
• Creating reports and forecasts based on recorded activity.
• Coordinating marketing and sales through segments, campaigns and lead tracking.
• Connecting applications to reduce duplication and manual data transfers.

Its value becomes clear when several people need a consistent view of the customer. Without shared rules, the CRM can become just another incomplete database.

A simple example of how Salesforce is used

Imagine a company that receives a request through its website. The system creates or updates the contact and assigns the opportunity to the right sales rep.

The salesperson logs calls, meetings and proposals. If the deal closes, the customer service team keeps the context to support the customer.

Marketing can also use certain data to segment communications. For example, it can distinguish between prospects, active customers and inactive buyers.

How does Salesforce CRM work?

The CRM works through related records. Contacts are linked to companies, opportunities, activities, cases and other business objects.

The platform includes standard objects. It also lets you create custom fields and objects when a company needs to represent its own processes.

Automation rules carry out actions when an event occurs. For example, they can assign a lead, request an approval or flag an opportunity with no activity.

Dashboards turn those records into metrics. This way, each profile sees the information relevant to their work.

The platform also has permissions and roles. A careful setup restricts access according to each user’s role.

Data, automation and artificial intelligence in Salesforce

The quality of the results depends on the quality of the data. A duplicate or outdated record can lead to inaccurate forecasts and irrelevant communications.

The ecosystem includes automation, analytics and artificial intelligence capabilities. These features can help summarize information, prioritize actions and assist with certain processes.

However, the technology needs oversight. It’s a good idea to define what data it can use, who validates its actions and how errors are corrected.

Salesforce’s main products

We’re not talking about a single, closed application. The catalog brings together solutions for different departments and levels of complexity.

Sales Cloud focuses on sales activity. It manages leads, accounts, opportunities, tasks, forecasts and sales processes.

Service Cloud helps organize customer service. It centralizes cases, interactions, knowledge and support workflows.

Marketing Cloud brings together solutions for marketing and customer journeys. Its capabilities, licenses and configuration depend on the product purchased.

Commerce Cloud is aimed at digital commerce experiences. Data Cloud seeks to unify data from different sources.

The ecosystem also includes tools and services related to analytics, integration, collaboration and artificial intelligence. Tableau, MuleSoft and Slack are part of this business environment.

Before signing up, identify the specific problem you want to solve. The catalog covers different offerings, with different requirements and costs.

Advantages of Salesforce CRM

One standout advantage is its adaptability. It can handle anything from a straightforward sales process to operations involving many rules and departments.

It also offers a broad ecosystem. There are apps, consulting firms, certified professionals and training resources to extend the platform.

Centralization improves work continuity. If someone changes roles, the history remains available to the authorized team.

Its reports also help you monitor the sales funnel. Management can review conversions, time spent in each stage and forecasts with up-to-date data.

Salesforce is especially useful when a business needs detailed permissions, integrations and processes that grow with the organization.

Disadvantages and limitations of Salesforce

That breadth also adds complexity. Setting up fields without a clear architecture can lead to cluttered screens and processes that are hard to maintain.

The real cost sometimes exceeds the price of the licenses. You need to factor in implementation, migration, customization, training, administration and integrations.

In addition, a flexible tool demands decisions. Someone has to define stages, owners, quality criteria and metrics before automating.

Adoption is another challenge. If the team sees the CRM as administrative busywork, they’ll record less information and reduce its usefulness.

Finally, such an extensive platform can be overkill for a small company. A simple process may work better with a lighter solution.

Is Salesforce suitable for small businesses?

The platform can work for a small business, but size alone isn’t the deciding factor. What matters is sales complexity, the number of users and management capacity.

A small business with consultative sales and several people in charge can benefit from a structured CRM. It may also need one if it integrates support, sales and other systems.

On the other hand, a business with few contacts and a very simple cycle may not use much of what it offers. In that case, it should compare alternatives and total costs.

Before choosing Salesforce, answer three questions. What process do you want to improve? Who will manage the platform? What measurable result do you expect to achieve?

If the answers aren’t clear, it’s best to start by designing the process. Buying software is no substitute for that conversation.

Salesforce and Mailrelay: differences and how they relate

Salesforce and Mailrelay occupy different positions within marketing technology. Understanding that difference keeps you from comparing tools with different goals.

The CRM can act as the master system for sales status. Mailrelay can handle the design, sending and analysis of email campaigns.

This combination lets you separate responsibilities. The CRM keeps the sales context, and the email platform sends communications to authorized groups.

Mailrelay offers an email marketing platform with a visual editor, segmentation, A/B testing and real-time statistics. We also offer expert support, even on the free account.

The free plan lets you send up to 80,000 emails per month to a maximum of 20,000 contacts. That way, a company can keep the cost of its campaigns under control.

How to connect Salesforce with Mailrelay

The specific integration should be designed around the data flow. Not every company needs two-way synchronization or instant updates.

A careful process can follow these steps:

1. Define the master data. Decide which system controls the email address, consent, sales status and unsubscribes.
2. Select authorized contacts. Only send Mailrelay the records that have a valid basis for receiving communications.
3. Map the fields. Link name, email, language, segment and any other data you really need.
4. Choose the exchange method. You can consider CSV imports or an integration built with the available APIs.
5. Handle unsubscribes and errors. Avoid reactivating contacts who unsubscribed or addresses that caused problems.
6. Test with a sample. Check for duplicates, characters, empty fields and rules before increasing the volume.
7. Monitor the flow. Log failures and regularly check consistency between both systems.

Mailrelay lets you import contacts via CSV and offers an API for building integrations. Your team should validate the technical design against the current documentation for both platforms.

Example of a flow between Salesforce and Mailrelay

Suppose the CRM contains a field called “main interest”. Marketing selects contacts who have given permission and groups them by that preference.

The necessary data is sent to Mailrelay. There, the team prepares a tailored campaign and reviews opens, clicks, bounces and unsubscribes.

They can then use aggregated results to improve the strategy. If they send data back to the CRM, they should avoid a buildup that complicates day-to-day use.

Omnichannel requires consistency across channels. That’s why it’s a good idea to agree on what information is shared, how often and for what decision.

Best practices for combining CRM and email marketing

Consent deserves specific attention. Storing an address in the CRM doesn’t automatically mean you can send it any campaign.

Record the source, date and scope of the permission. Also, process unsubscribes quickly and keep evidence when needed.

Segmentation should have a clear purpose. Age, job title or industry are of little use if they don’t change the content or the decision to send.

Keep a shared naming convention. If sales calls a contact an “active customer” and marketing uses another definition, campaigns will include the wrong people.

You should also keep an eye on database hygiene. Duplicates and outdated emails hurt analysis and can affect deliverability.

A well-maintained contact list reduces risks. Statistics also help you review the relevance of each communication.

How to know if you need Salesforce, Mailrelay or both

Choose Salesforce when you need to structure business relationships, coordinate teams and model business processes. Its scope is useful in operations with multiple stages.

Choose Mailrelay when your priority is creating email campaigns, managing subscribers and measuring results with an accessible tool.

You can use both if the CRM stores the context and Mailrelay runs the email channel. In that scenario, set up an integration proportionate to your needs.

You can also start with a controlled manual flow. If volume and frequency increase, you can then consider automating via API.

Frequently asked questions about Salesforce

These answers sum up the questions that usually come up before choosing, implementing or connecting this platform.

What is Salesforce in a nutshell?

It’s a cloud-based CRM platform. It centralizes customer information and helps manage sales, service, marketing and other business processes.

Is Salesforce a CRM or an ERP?

It’s mainly known for its CRM and its application platform. It can integrate with ERP systems, but the two address different business areas.

What is Salesforce used for in marketing?

The platform lets you use customer data, create segments, coordinate campaigns and connect activities with sales processes. The exact features depend on the products purchased.

Can Salesforce be used to send email marketing?

The ecosystem has marketing-related solutions. However, a company can complement its CRM with Mailrelay to create and send campaigns.

Is Salesforce easy to use?

Everyday tasks can be straightforward after a good implementation. Advanced administration and customization require training, shared criteria and maintenance.

How much does Salesforce cost?

The cost depends on the product, edition, number of users and add-ons. You should also factor in implementation, migration, training, support and integrations.

Does Salesforce have a free version?

Commercial terms can change and vary by product. Check the official website before deciding, and compare the total cost with your needs.

What are the alternatives to Salesforce?

There are CRMs such as HubSpot, Zoho CRM, Pipedrive, Microsoft Dynamics 365 and others. The best alternative depends on your processes, budget, integrations and internal resources.

Can Salesforce be connected to Mailrelay?

You can set up an exchange via files or build an integration with the available APIs. The design must respect permissions, unsubscribes, duplicates and data quality.

Does Mailrelay replace Salesforce?

Mailrelay isn’t meant to replace an enterprise CRM. We focus on email marketing, while Salesforce covers broad relationship and process management.

Conclusion: turn your Salesforce data into useful communications

The CRM can provide a shared view of the customer and organize complex processes. Its performance depends on a consistent implementation and reliable data.

For the email channel, Mailrelay offers a specialized, simple and cost-effective alternative. You can create campaigns, essential automations and A/B tests, as well as view real-time statistics.

If you combine Salesforce with Mailrelay, start with consent and purpose. Then define the fields, the frequency and who is responsible for each system.

That way, you’ll avoid syncing unnecessary information. You’ll also get more relevant campaigns and a better-informed sales team.

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Find out how Mailrelay can help you with your email marketing strategy.