Week 1 - Data Dictionary & Basic Overview

General Salesforce Overview-Navigating the CRM (13:19)
I posted a brief Camtasia video to the salesforce guide website to demonstrate how to navigate through the salesforce platform for novice users. The video is intended to provide an overview to the homepage and main objects campaigns, leads, accounts, reports, and cases.

More detailed videos entailing how to create, edit/search for specific objects, assign tasks, send emails, create a basic report/dashboard will be provided in future weeks for novice users. Other videos for the more adventurous users will be setting up Google calendar synch, Installing the Outlook plugin, and setting up Google analytics integration, creating a web to lead form, DemandTools Video package for managing data efficiently, and much more.

Data Dictionary
So for the first week I spent time reviewing my notes from my visit with the SC&I staff and realized that a good first step in proceeding with the project was to create a data dictionary of all fields currently being used by the program. This has proven to be quite a daunting task as the fields for each object leads, accounts, contacts etc must be manually typed into a spreadsheet to achieve such a goal. SC&I also uses various record types for leads and accounts which adds to the work load (4 record types for leads, 5 record types for accounts)...so needless to say I have only gotten that far. The data dictionary that is currently uploaded to the Salesforce Guide will continually be updated to list fields and supporting information for all objects including, campaigns, contacts, cases etc..

The data dictionary is not only useful in understanding the data managed within the CRM, but it also aids in data migration (importing/exporting data). One of the points mentioned during my first meeting with the SC&I staff is the inability to create a report as they were unsure which fields belonged to their record type. The data dictionary will be very helpful when creating a custom report and aid in preventing such confusion.

Salesforce Independent Study for SC&I Overview

For the Spring 2010 semester, my final semester here at Rutgers University's School of Communication & Information (SC&I), my last class will consist of an independent study during which my goal is to assist selected SC&I programs with data management and enhancing current data processes via the use of Salesforce. Each week I plan on documenting my work via this blog as well as a via a "Salesforce Guide" website. I also hope to add external links to other useful salesforce centric sites & feed subscriptions...stay tuned!!


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