Using the Salesforce Document Library to Your Advantage

Before we get into talking about the Salesforce document library, I need to tell you that there’s not really that much about this that’s going to be that specific to it. See, the Salesforce document library is an incarnation of a type of technology that’s recent to the past half a decade, and very popular. But, it’s also available from a multitude of sources as well. Force.com’s solution is just one of these. What It Is: This is the next evolution of online file sharing. In the past, files were shared by being attached to private messages, emails and client to client file transfers. Within offices, on LAN setups, locally accessible file storage was possible. Over the wide area internet, well, that wasn’t workable. So, thanks to more powerful servers and stronger internet connections, we can move in a new direction with this. Like a shared folder on LAN, everyone can upload various documents and files, and edit them. They also often allow collaborative editing and teamwork. How this Helps: Well, that’s all well and good, but do all these bells and whistles really help on any significant level? The short answer is yes. But, what is helpful about going with Salesforce integration with this is the fact that your CRM has become a core of your business these days. Everyone uses CRM, and data flows up and down stream through it like signals through a spinal cord. With the ability for documents and other modular forms of data also being able to carry over this same framework, and you get a form of unity to things that used to be impossible. And see, this kind of data everywhere, live concept is a step in the direction of something bigger. How this Builds the Future: The internet has opened up a set of changes to society and business that’re not quite visible even now, but are soon to skyrocket. With internet being so omnipresent, and internet compatibility being possible on affordable handheld devices, set top boxes and even appliances any more, the concept of location is no longer important. Gone is the need for people to commute to an office every day to use a computer in a cubicle, when they can use a computer at home, and still have real time communication with coworkers as if they were there. Now, you can handle documents live, in tandem with your CRM data, from anywhere on anything with a microchip. This means that work from home is going to be a very common thing for many jobs in the future. Conclusion: The ramifications of this are bigger than the software itself. But, Salesforce document library technology is quite useful, nonetheless. With the real time document sharing and editing, and its unification through Salesforce, you have a real convenience that, once you have it, you’ll wonder how you got on without it previously. So, despite this being more about the ramifications in the future, you’d be remiss in not taking advantage of this technology, especially if you already use Salesforce. And you do already use Salesforce, right? Surely you do, because everyone and their grandma uses it.