Inherent within every software implementation is the underlying dependency on user adoption. User adoption is multi-faceted and occurs in phases. The first phase is to get users logged into the system for the first time. First impressions are everything so it’s important that the first login goes well. The next step is to get them to continually log in and update the system.
One of the ways I like to encourage this behavior is by adding some flavor to the system in the form of images, GIFs, videos or emojis.
Especially during the holidays, users tend to log in less and spend less time in the system when they do. Now, I don’t claim for these to be the end-all-be-all solutions but they certainly contribute psychologically to building a healthy, fun, and engaging climate around Salesforce. So here are my top three tips for decreasing the Salesforce drop-off that occurs during the holidays.
Add animations for statuses and paths
Before Salesforce rolled out Paths with Lightning, it wasn’t uncommon for me to configure a formula (text) field that used the IMAGE function to conditionally render a photo when a certain criteria was met.
The most fun example was probably when I created a visual representation of a custom lead scoring field for a client. Based on what a given Lead’s score was, a different image would show up, indicating the urgency with which they should follow up. This is what they saw for Leads with low scores, Leads with moderate scores showed this animation, and high-scoring Leads looked like this.
While this alone adds some personality to the system, admins can expand that even more simply by creating a task for yourself to switch those out for new GIFs or images periodically. Eventually, users will look forward to seeing what GIF shows up for them this week/month/quarter. Even this small, seemingly insignificant feeling, contributes to positive user adoption in your org. As the admin or architect, use this in areas where adoption may be low (Note: If your criteria is driven by a picklist field alone, consider using a Path and pasting these animations in the “Guidance for Success” rich-text section).
Notice that the high-scoring Lead animation is from the movie Polar Express, a Christmas movie. Feel free to find fun assets that represent the holidays of your workforce (that means Hanukkah, Ramadan and Kwanzaa, too). Then, switch them to encouraging images of a new year and new beginnings. Basically, give the system a bit of a personality and use that personality to keep people engaging with the system.
Add festive assets to the homepage
Assuming that you have a home page and that it’s the default landing page for most users, spruce it up by adding some holiday cheer to the aesthetic. Since it’s likely the first page people see when they log in, it’s also the first opportunity to build an experience that contributes positively to user adoption.
If you have a festive variation of your company’s logo that you use around the holidays, add it to Apps in the App Manager during the holidays.
(In Lightning) Add a rich text component to the home page with messaging in festive-colored fonts.
Create a new “Holidays” tab and add your messaging and digital assets there if you don’t want to change the current home page too much.
Setup a public Holiday Cheer Chatter group and allow users to join. Encourage users to share things like their favorite holiday movie, their favorite ugly Christmas sweater photo, or pictures of homemade holiday treats.
Don’t Force the Festivities
Also, consider making these assets configurable. Don’t force the holidays on people, but rather make it available via Salesforce to be festive. You may want a checkbox on the User record that allows Users to opt out of the “festivities” if they want. And don’t take this personally if people opt out - if it means they get their jobs done distraction free - that’s also a win.
These are just a few recommendations on how to make Salesforce festive but the possibilities are endless. If you’re unsure of how to work these into your organization, consider running these ideas by your Salesforce, and possibly also HR, team to start brainstorming. If you’d like me to take a look and give some suggestions, just hit me up!