When Salesforce joined forces with Slack, it caused a buzz around the tech world that continues to be strong. Why? Flexibility in where and when we work is the new expectation – during the pandemic, people got a taste of flexibility and don’t want to return to how things were before. But, how can everyone stay productive (and coordinated)? Salesforce’s answer: the digital HQ, powered by Slack.
At Trailblazer DX ‘22, Salesforce announced that they have integrated Salesforce and Slack even closer – in other words, anything that you’ve built in Salesforce is now ready to trigger (or interact with) from Slack. Developers/admins can leverage existing authentications, UI definitions, automation, Apex, and more. This is the new Salesforce Platform for Slack.
The Release
The Salesforce Platform for Slack release comprises two sets of capabilities:
- Flow in Slack (clicks/low-code)
- Apex SDK for Slack (pro-code)
There are also three enhanced applications. Interestingly, the Slack engineering team used the Salesforce Platform for Slack development capabilities to build them:
- Sales Cloud for Slack (Beta)
- Service Cloud for Slack (Beta)
- Marketing Cloud for Slack (Beta)
Think of Slack as the “engagement layer” that brings the system events to the human to action. That’s why this is a huge deal.
Flow in Slack
Build Slack-first automations with full support for Salesforce data and actions – in other words, the “clicks/low-code” capabilities within the Salesforce Platform for Slack.
You can take the Salesforce Flow and connect it with actions in Slack. For example, when the status of an Opportunity changes, users want to collaborate in a Slack Deal Room. Automatically create this channel using Salesforce Flow.
While “Send to Slack” is currently available as a post action within Salesforce Flow (i.e. send messages from Salesforce to Slack at a specific time/when conditions are met), Salesforce Flow for Slack takes this idea much further.
- Slack Actions: Turn time-consuming and manual tasks into fully automated workflows using low-code tools, e.g. creating Slack channels to collaborate with stakeholders or sending account status updates to colleagues.
- Screen Flows: Build multi-step, guided workflows in Salesforce that can be reused within Slack, all with just clicks.
Apex SDK for Slack
The “pro-code” capabilities within the Salesforce Platform for Slack will bridge the gap between the Salesforce and Slack dev experiences.
Write Apex code, that you’re already familiar with, to automatically generate Block Kit (the UI framework for Slack apps).
Plus, bring context into any custom Slack UI by infusing Slack with Salesforce data and metadata, using Apex to fetch Salesforce records, create reusable views, and route events from Salesforce to Slack (and vice versa) – all without middleware.
New Slack Apps
Salesforce is also releasing three apps (in Beta) this summer, built on the Salesforce platform for Slack. Not only will they cater to popular sales/service/marketing use cases, the apps will enhance the way users can act on Salesforce data when it’s surfaced in Slack.
Interestingly, the Slack engineering team used the Salesforce Platform for Slack development capabilities to build them. Everyone in the ecosystem will be able to tap into these capabilities to build the apps of their imagination.
Sales Cloud for Slack (Beta)
- Automate deal status updates to sales teams.
- Seamlessly maintain up-to-date records in Salesforce to feed pipeline analytics.
- Make it easy to collaborate in real-time across teams to close deals faster.
Service Cloud for Slack (Beta)
Automatically assigns service cases to team members as they come in, and makes it easy to loop in experts to solve customer cases efficiently.
Marketing Cloud for Slack (Beta)
Enables teams to quickly collaborate and execute on marketing campaigns.
With Account Engagement for Slack (formerly Pardot), sales teams are automatically alerted in Slack when leads are generated, helping sales teams quickly engage prospects and close more deals.
Don’t Miss the Latest News
These Slack-First Customer 360 innovations will be showcased at Trailblazer DX ‘22 – “the Salesforce Developer conference”. Innovations that create and unify developer experiences across Salesforce, MuleSoft, Slack, and Tableau will be unveiled. Check out the schedule here and join the free event stream.
Did you know? Slack’s brand name is actually an acronym – S-L-A-C-K stands for “Searchable Log of All Communication and Knowledge”. Salesforce will continue to innovate Slack to fulfill this mission – now and in the future.
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