Historically media companies would only use a customer relationship management (CRM) platform such as Salesforce to manage their sales processes and associated data, however, the modern media company demands more. This is where the AppExchange® from Salesforce comes in to play. Here you will find a mix of both native and integrated apps that will provide CRM enhancements built specifically for media ad sales.
Before we identify the benefits that these app enhancements provide, let’s take a look at the distinct differences between a native app and an integrated app.
Native vs. Integrated Salesforce Applications
Salesforce apps can be a convenient way to create a customized environment specific to your media business. A Salesforce native app is one that lives on the Force.com® platform and exists entirely within Salesforce, ensuring complete synchronized functionality. An integrated application, on the other hand, is constructed elsewhere and has integrations that work with Salesforce.
See our 5-star rated Native App solution on AppExchange®. View Listing
While this distinction may seem superficial on the surface, it’s actually quite important — native apps are far more stable and secure, offering opportunities within Salesforce rather than features that could otherwise be considered Salesforce-adjacent. With increased reliability and superior functionality, native apps are generally the best choice for seamless operations, offering numerous advantages unavailable anywhere else.
Native apps are available for download through the Salesforce AppExchange®, which offers free and paid solutions to elevate core capabilities. Applications can be custom build or utilized as created, by an Independent Software Vendor — a highly trained Salesforce partner who can serve customers by creating enterprise apps to accommodate growing business needs.
Salesforce Native App Benefits
1. Access to Core Capabilities
As a platform, Salesforce offers robust and dynamic avenues for customer relationship management that go far beyond the basics. A priority for media companies that value relationships, for example, media giant NBCUniversal uses Salesforce to help keep track of over 2 million ads per year. Salesforce ultimately provides the ability to manage millions of connections at your fingertips.
Built-in options include:
- Account and contract management
- Opportunity management
- Lead management
- Sales data
- Visual workflows and approvals
- File syncing and sharing
- Dashboards
- Sales forecasting
Native apps can automatically tap into these core capabilities, taking the foundation put in place by Salesforce and building on it. For example, a media company that requires more specific insight into potential advertising leads can use a native app to provide a customized twist on the tools already available.
2. Comprehensive Salesforce Security
Security is essential for companies with critical customer relationship data in the cloud, but Salesforce mitigates ever-present threats with some of the most sophisticated security protocols in the arena of cloud computing. Salesforce also maintains numerous compliance certifications to demonstrate adherence to the highest industry standards and regulations.
Native applications are encompassed within this multi-layered approach to protection, keeping both incorporated data and key functionality protected from attack. When media data, like ad sales funnels, are stored in a native app, users can be sure sensitive data is kept under the same protection. Native apps are also required to undergo security reviews to ensure there isn’t a risk to users and their important data.
3. Automated Upgrades
Salesforce automatically updates its product to keep all services up to date, with three major updates per year: spring, summer, and winter. Native apps can take advantage of these roll-outs, too; the shared platform automatically guarantees all-encompassing compatibility. When Salesforce updates, native apps will be included in this, ensuring customers always have the latest software for ultimate efficiency. This protects media users from facing issues with version control or temporarily inaccessible data due to potential integration challenges that native apps eliminate.
4. Native Apps for Enhanced Data Insights
With Salesforce, data is always available in a matter of seconds, whether that is through the CRM interface or via custom-built dashboards. Native apps can support this process by expanding data sets or by providing company-specific dashboard development.
Native apps can also be integrated into dashboards or used to expand the information already present, putting all relevant relationship management data in easy reach without limitations on operating systems or devices. For example, media companies that want a snapshot of all working advertising deals that are still in negotiation stages can use a native app to create this functionality and access it from anywhere — on the web, desktop, or even on mobile devices.
5. Leverage an All-in-One Platform
Salesforce isn’t intended to meet some or even most media ad sales support services — instead, it can meet all of them. Native apps can help accomplish these goals; as an application that effectively lives within Salesforce rather than operating in conjunction, the use of native apps in harmony with core capabilities can offer 360-degree visibility into all customer data and interactions without requiring a secondary point of access.
Native applications allow users to harness the power of the environment offered by Salesforce to create a completely customized experience. For media companies, this can be extremely important — as all ad sales processes function slightly differently, a one-size-fits-all solution may not adequately meet all needs. The strengths of a customizable platform can circumvent the challenges in utilizing separate systems; with native apps that expand core capabilities, media companies can house all important information related to advertising and customer relations while also incorporating valuable details from ad servers and ad exchanges.
For growth media companies like Spotify, the right all-in-one support makes a difference. Salesforce and its capabilities allow for the management of over 10 million subscribers across 15 countries for instant feedback and communication — something virtually impossible without the breadth and depth of what Salesforce and its native apps can offer.
Advantages for Media Ad Sales
Working with a powerful and widely-recognized application with best-in-class capabilities offers countless opportunities for media organizations looking to improve customer communication and build sustainable relationships. Salesforce, in particular, helps make the sales process more efficient, effective, and agile, particularly when combined with the ever-expanding abilities of native applications. Furthermore, media-specific native application enhancements like ADvendio are available to help streamline a complex and multifaceted ad sales process thus making potentially convoluted ad sales relationships intuitive and transparent.
*See our 5-star rated Native App solution on AppExchange®
Originally published at www.advendio.com on July 1, 2019.
