Mastering Contracted Pricing in Salesforce CPQ
10 Min Read

Introducing Salesforce OmniStudio

OmniStudio powers the tailored, industry-specific solutions that operate within the newly created section of the Salesforce platform known as Salesforce Industries. Initially developed by Vlocity, an independent company acquired by Salesforce in 2020, OmniStudio was instrumental in bringing the concept of Industry Cloud to the Salesforce CRM ecosystem. Founded in 2014, Vlocity quickly gained traction and was recognized on the Forbes Cloud 100 list for three consecutive yearsโ€”2017, 2018, and 2019.


Mastering Contracted Pricing in Salesforce CPQ

Currently, Salesforce Industries serves 15 different sectors, a significant increase from the six it catered to just before Vlocity's acquisition. Since then, an additional nine industries have been integrated, utilizing the OmniStudio tools while both reusing existing and creating new industry-specific components. The list of all 15 sectors are -


  1. Communications: This sector focuses on enhancing customer experience and streamlining operations for telecommunications companies by managing billing, service orders, and customer interactions.
  2. Media: Salesforce for Media enables companies to engage audiences effectively and optimize advertising sales processes to increase revenue and customer loyalty.
  3. Energy & Utilities: This sector offers solutions for energy management, grid operations, and customer service, ensuring efficient and sustainable energy distribution.
  4. Health:In the Health industry, Salesforce provides tools for patient management, care coordination, and health data visualization to improve patient outcomes and operational efficiencies.
  5. Insurance:For the Insurance sector, Salesforce streamlines claim processing, policy management, and customer service to enhance efficiency and client satisfaction.
  6. Financial Services:This sector includes solutions for retail banking, wealth management, and capital markets, focusing on customer engagement and financial process efficiencies.
  7. Government:Salesforce helps government agencies manage public services, improve citizen engagement, and increase transparency and operational efficiency.
  8. Manufacturing:Manufacturing solutions cover supply chain management, product lifecycle, and customer engagement, aiming to improve production processes and customer experiences.
  9. Public Sector:Similar to government, this includes specific tools for managing public resources, engaging communities, and improving the delivery of public services.
  10. Education:For the Education sector, Salesforce offers tools for managing student relationships, admissions processes, and alumni engagement.
  11. Retail:Retail solutions focus on bettering customer experiences, inventory management, and personalized marketing strategies to drive sales growth.
  12. Consumer Goods:In Consumer Goods, Salesforce aids in managing distribution channels, customer relationship strategies, and supply chain efficiencies.
  13. Automotive:Automotive solutions cater to dealership management, vehicle sales processes, and service management to enhance customer satisfaction.
  14. Travel & Hospitality:Salesforce allows travel and hospitality businesses to improve guest services, booking processes, and customer engagement.
  15. Nonprofit:Solutions in the Nonprofit sector focus on donor management, fundraising campaigns, and volunteer engagement, enhancing organizational outreach and impact.

While each industry shares certain business processes, the OmniStudio platform, in conjunction with the Industries Data Model, provides versatile tools and components that are adaptable across various sectors. This capability significantly reduces the time and effort required for development, benefitting both new and existing Salesforce Industries customers. Independent research indicates that using OmniStudio tools can enhance productivity by more than double compared to custom development efforts.

The Difference Between Custom Development and Salesforce Industries

Salesforce Industries and custom Salesforce development each offer unique advantages to businesses seeking to enhance their CRM capabilities. Where Salesforce Industries focuses on delivering pre-packaged solutions tailored to specific sectors, custom development offers the flexibility to build highly customized applications from the ground up. The right choice depends on a company's specific needs, goals, and available resources.


Benefits of Salesforce Industries

  1. Industry-Specific Solutions: Salesforce Industries provides pre-built solutions that are designed to meet the requirements of specific industries, reducing the need for extensive customization. This approach allows organizations to quickly deploy working solutions and start benefiting from CRM functionality tailored to their industry.
  2. Faster Time to Market: With industry-specific solutions ready to go, businesses can achieve faster time to market compared to custom developments that require extensive planning and coding. This efficiency is critical for companies looking to rapidly adapt to market changes.
  3. Reduced Costs: Pre-built industry solutions help reduce development and implementation costs. Organizations benefit from Salesforce's existing infrastructure, which reduces the need for large-scale, costly custom projects.

Advantages of Custom Development

  1. Flexibility : Custom development offers the flexibility to create solutions specifically tailored to unique business processes and workflows. This approach is ideal for companies needing specialized functionality beyond what industry solutions offer.
  2. Brand-Specific User Experience: A personalized, brand-focused user experience can be crafted through custom development, providing a unique interface that aligns tightly with a business's strategic goals and visual identity.
  3. Integration Capabilities: For firms that rely heavily on integrating multiple systems and databases, custom development facilitates seamless integration, enabling a unified system that meets complex technological needs.

Case Study: Implementing a CRM for a Retail Company

Imagine a mid-sized retail company looking to implement a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system to enhance its sales, customer service, and marketing efforts.


Salesforce Industries Solution:
By opting for a Salesforce Industries solution, the retail company can leverage a pre-built retail-focused platform. This approach quickly equips them with essential features such as point-of-sale integration, inventory management, and personalized customer engagement tools. The implementation is swift, allowing the company to immediately benefit from streamlined processes and tailored retail functionalities without the need for extensive infrastructural changes. This option is cost-effective and aligns with industry best practices while ensuring a faster return on investment.

Custom Development Solution:
On the other hand, the retail company could invest in a custom-built CRM solution. This would give them the flexibility to tailor every aspect of the CRM to their specific business model and processes, such as bespoke loyalty programs or unique data analytics dashboards that track customer preferences in detail. Custom development would allow the company to create a differentiated user experience directly aligned with their brand identity. However, this route would require a longer development timeline, more intensive resource investment, and potentially higher costs due to the complexity and customization involved.


In summary, while Salesforce Industries provides a quick and efficient solution with industry-specific features ready out of the box, a custom solution offers unparalleled flexibility and brand specificity at the cost of additional time and financial investment. The choice between these two options largely depends on the unique needs, budget constraints, and long-term strategic goals of the retail company.


Choosing the Right Approach

Deciding between Salesforce Industry cloud (formally known as Vlocity) and custom Salesforce development involves assessing the nature of the business, industry requirements, and how much customization is needed. Small to medium enterprises might find value in industry-specific solutions, while larger enterprises with complex needs might lean toward bespoke custom development to achieve their goals.


Both Salesforce Industries and custom development have their strengths. The key to leveraging either approach lies in understanding the company's objectives, existing infrastructure, and the level of customization required. By making an informed decision, businesses can optimize their CRM strategy and foster a more efficient and productive environment.


back top