Where to start? Well, isn’t that a loaded question? But it is the most important question in any technology implementation. There are so many offerings and combinations in a technical application deployment that can lead to world-class experiences or first-class disasters, and Salesforce Experience Cloud is no different. Experience Cloud follows a very similar model to Salesforce’s other product offerings. Salesforce focuses on this collection of products in its Digital Experience Platform (DXP) solutions. Within that platform, there are two different categories: profit and non-profit offerings.

For this book’s purposes, we will concentrate on the profit offering. In Chapter 14, Best Practices and Certification Test Preparation, you will find some test pre-questions for the non-profit offerings. The profit offerings can be broken into four main categories: Self-Service, Partner Relationship Management (PRM), Salesforce Content...

For illustrative purposes, assume that we all work at a company named Delivery International. We specialize in providing a top-notch food delivery service across a variety of franchises. Our product team has decided to launch a net new consumer and franchisee digital experience. We need to empower our franchisees with the ability to open new pizza delivery locations and allow consumers to directly engage with ordering from independently owned franchises and locations.

As the head of technology delivery for this new digital experience, how do we understand what they mean when they mention those two market segments? What technology can we purchase and what stories to support these business goals do our teams need to develop? Talking through what we are trying to drive, as well as actions we expect our Target Audience to complete and where, will set the tone for your Experience Cloud design. To answer these questions, we will start at the beginning...

Starting with the product team is probably the easiest method by which to identify internal stakeholders. They are the ones who created the need in the first place, but where do you go next? Let’s think through who else in the company is necessary to achieve this vision. Sure, we can look at anyone who directly interacts with our End Consumer; for example, our customer service department or sales associates. Or, we can look at the executive sponsor, the voice of the customer representative, or even your head of quality.

However, the people you really need at the table are your internal operations team, that is, the people who get things done behind the scenes. They are the unsung heroes of how your company can go from good to great in terms of fulfilling your customers’ products and support needs.

Be bold and invite the unconventional. Why? Well, remember that your consumers don’t all look and think like you. They also don...

There is no voice better than the end consumer when it comes to building a platform you expect them to engage with. They will provide continuous feedback on features and designs for your digital experience. Keeping consistent engagement with your top critics will help ensure that you continue to hit the top marks that are impacting your audience(s) as you evolve from initial launch to established product. Engaging external actors is typically more of a business activity versus a technology-driven activity. However, the outputs of this activity are invaluable to the curators of the digital experience.

In partnership with business/technology, we need to start by identifying how many committees we may need. Reference the target audience(s) that we identified in the previous section. Then, we need to look at those audiences and see whether they are unique or whether there is a possibility to combine them. A good rule to follow is that for each unique...

You have been collecting a lot of feedback, but what feedback is the most important? It is best practice to make sure that you are identifying what your Minimal Viable Product (MVP) is. What takes priority on the MVP build and what may future phase activity be? Having people prioritize as a group can be very challenging but it is necessary to get the highest-value items reviewed by technology first. Look at each feedback item and answer these questions based on the information you have:

• What are the key factors from the external advisory committee? What are their priorities to build into a site that would be meaningful for them to leverage?
• What are the key company factors? What does the company want to achieve in the portal as its entryway into a digital experience site?
• Where is the intersection between the external advisory committee and company factors? This intersection will help you identify what the key elements of the MVP are as...

The last step before we move into a business translation of which components of Experience Cloud you will need is ensuring that everyone is on the same page for the vision of success. This goes beyond just what the executive sponsor or product team may set. It isn’t as simple as saying, “Well, we want x logins.” Logins may be a part of the process, but it shouldn’t define the entire vision of success.

Understanding what the business says success looks like is a key factor for your project. You must account for enabling features in your data module, UI/UX, and general processes that are built. You will have to enable the ability to track the metrics. It is the final “checkpoint” of the experience build.

When looking at business objectives, you need to break the requested objective into the technology/process output. This will help you connect the dots to the data module. Let’s look at a few examples.

Yes, this chapter had a business-heavy focus, but as we move forward, each chapter will become more and more technical. No highly successful implementation ever just started with, “Well, let’s wing it!” That’s what makes aligning across stakeholders from the beginning so critical. Even if these aren’t elements you personally lead as a technical leader/developer/admin, they are questions that you should be asking before you start building anything.

To guide business conversations, remember that there are three key areas you need to focus on:

• Target audience: Who is the confirmed audience for the build?
• Product vision: What are you expecting to ultimately achieve with this experience?
• Product roadmap: What are the expectations of the releases?

Those areas of understanding will enhance your skill set and set you on the right track for the project! At this point, you should have honed the following skills:

• Learning...