If it is one thing that Sales representatives know, it’s that emails contribute greatly to making a sale. Not only that, but they are also one of the most time consuming priorities that Sales reps have. It is not uncommon for reps to spend an average of 13 hours per week on reading, composing, or sending email messages. That’s almost two whole work days!
This is not just a big part of their time, but how they send and receive emails also helps to provide a sound picture to the rest of the company within the Salesforce CRM. It is important that every email be logged correctly, so those interactions can be used by others, such as Account Management, or Customer Support when they need to help customers, as well.
The last thing you need is an Account Manager reaching out to a customer to upsell when a Sales Rep is already working with the client. It can make your company look unprofessional and disjointed. Email, and how it’s being used, can make or break those lines of internal communication, and it is imperative that Sales reps have the tools they need to do their job well.
Amongst the email tools out there, Salesforce Inbox is one option that deserves a look to see if it is worth the purchase. This article will look at the pros and cons of Salesforce Inbox, prerequisites needed before installing, and other considerations of this (somewhat) recent tool. Let’s dive in to learn more about Salesforce Inbox!
What is Salesforce Inbox?
Salesforce Inbox is a feature that is sold as an addition to Sales Cloud, and helps make the email experience for Sales reps smooth and efficient. On one screen, your reps can see their inbox, a current open email, along with a panel that displays relevant Salesforce data.
They can see related objects, such as Accounts and Opportunities, tasks, or feeds of tracked emails. These emails can be tracked as metrics with dynamic dashboards for managers to see progress, and can be paired with Einstein Analytics to make the data more manageable. It is a handy tool, but let’s look into more of what makes it stand out.
A side panel here shows Related Lists, Tasks and Feeds that are all a click away, so you don’t have to leave your message to search for relevant data.
What are the pros of Salesforce Inbox?
The main pro of Salesforce Inbox is the efficiency it can provide sales reps, so they can whittle down the amount of time they spend on such an important task. They can use email templates, cutting down on the time they spend drafting and editing.
Sales reps can also use a “Send Later” feature that allows emails to be sent on a delay from within Salesforce. This allows your reps to take full advantage of the most opportune time to reach out to prospects and customers.
Meetings can be scheduled quickly from Salesforce Inbox due to the calendar sync, and can even enter available times within the email, so there’s no “back and forth” trying to figure out availability. The email also updates (even after it’s sent) if those time slots change on the calendar.
It is also important to note that Salesforce Inbox integrates with Outlook, and Gmail, as well, so it should fit right in quite easily.
Because Sales is always on the go, Salesforce has made sure to make all of this available in an app, so email sends and reminder tasks can be done without a bulky laptop. This product was created with Sales in mind and really can improve efficiency and accuracy, so they can focus on closing those deals!
Managers can see charts on dynamic dashboards with outstanding analytics and clarity.
What are the cons of Salesforce Inbox?
In looking around at user reviews, it seems that there are a few complaints around installation. It may be better to have the Salesforce Admin assist with this part of setup, as there may be a different setup for Gmail than for Outlook, and someone from IT may need to get involved.
Another common complaint seems to be the licensing cost. Although Salesforce Inbox is included in a lot of packages, including High Sales Velocity and Sales Cloud Einstein, there is still a per-user cost. Also, it looks like emails cannot be linked to custom objects via the mobile app.
What are prerequisites of Salesforce Inbox?
As with any feature of Salesforce, there are prerequisites that must be present or accounted for before turning on Salesforce Inbox. While the list of prerequisites can be found here, this is a broad list:
- Whether Gmail or Outlook, users with an Inbox license have access to inbox features in the Gmail or Outlook integration
- Salesforce Inbox Mobile App requires a minimum device operating system
- Users must have an email account in G-Suite, free Gmail, Exchange online with Office 365 or Exchange 2019,2016,2013 on premises
It’s imperative to take a look at your system and ensure your users can meet the minimum requirements before purchasing.
What are considerations to take into account before making a decision on Salesforce Inbox?
It is important to know that there are considerations one must make before deciding on a solution such as Salesforce Inbox. A few of the considerations may be:
- Outlook.com email accounts are not supported in the Inbox mobile app
- Einstein Activity Capture is required to log email activity automatically
- Event fields may be different between desktop and Inbox mobile
- There may be limitations on sending emails to addresses without Latin-based characters
While these may not necessarily be “deal breakers” when it comes to considering the Salesforce Inbox solution, it is crucial to be aware of these points and understand how they may affect your org, and subsequently, your users.
How to Turn on Salesforce Inbox
While there are additional steps that need to be taken with Gmail or Outlook, setting up Salesforce Inbox in the org is actually fairly quick and easy.
Trailhead is a great tool to learn more about installing Salesforce Inbox!
- In the Setup Quick Find, search for Inbox.
- Select Setup Assistant under Inbox, until you land on the screen depicted above.
- Enable Make Inbox Available to Users.
- Assign Permission Sets to relevant users.
Once you’ve enabled the proper settings for Gmail and Outlook, taken the steps to Make Inbox Available to Users, and assigned permission sets, your users will be well on their way to easier email sends!
Conclusion
In regards to whether Salesforce Inbox is worth it or not, it truly depends on what you’re looking to get out of such a tool. If you have had rapid sales expansion, and need more uniformed procedures, or find the same emails being sent over and over, it may be worth checking out as an option. Take your time in assessing your situation to make sure it’s a great fit for your needs!
References:
Salesforce Inbox Demo | Salesforce
Email Analytics: 37 Email Statistics that matter to sales professionals.
Salesforce Inbox System Requirements