Date
Client
Skills- Martin Brandwyk
SalesFix’s knowledge of Salesforce and the overall engagement from the team was exceptional. From the initial proposal to the delivery, each step of the way was well communicated and collaborative.
Deakin University
Prior to the integration, Deakin’s Marketing team were manually uploading records from the Student Management system, Callista, and then matching them to lead records in Salesforce. This was time consuming and meant that records were never fully up-to-date in Salesforce. There was also no conversion of leads to contacts once a person enrolled.
With the Marketing team targeting multiple groups, for example to a prospect encouraging them to apply, or to a person who has applied encouraging them to enroll, it was important the correct messages reached the desired audience.
Key Benefits
The Challenge
Deakin had attempted to build and deliver this integration nine months earlier with another organisation but did not manage to succeed. Given this was such a complex piece of work to achieve, Deakin needed to be confident that SalesFix was able to pick up the previously unsuccessful project and not start again from scratch.
The scope was to deliver an automated, real time data integration making use of the existing MuleSoft setup. The key challenge was managing the data once it arrived in Salesforce:
- linking it to the correct student record,
- identifying whether they were an existing lead or contact, and
- auto-converting leads that met specific criteria.
The logic was very complex. Learning from the previous attempt, we also knew that testing would be key to ensure the solution could deal with the pressures of large volumes of records.
At times, the wider Deakin business users had difficulty conceptualising what they needed and only understood once they saw it demonstrated. The project also had a very specific deadline to ensure the work didn’t impact on the time-critical work of the recruitment and marketing team which is very seasonal.
The SalesFix Solution
With engagement being so important, SalesFix ensured close collaboration between our team, the Deakin IT team and the Deakin business representatives through a series of workshops and meetings as part of the planning process.
The SalesFix team were also given access to the previous code that was implemented as well as any documentation to ensure we were able to pick up where the previous project had finished.
Given the issues with the previous attempt, the whole project team agreed upfront that quality was key and the only option was success. Testing, testing and more testing was key here, as were the measures that SalesFix built checked into the solution to ensure the implementation was successful.
The Outcome
From the initial process of presenting the proposal to the final completion of the deliverables, this project was a true partnership with both the Deakin team and the SalesFix team working collaboratively throughout the entire engagement to achieve a common goal.
No major challenges were experienced with the project although some complex alterations in scope were made. These extended the length of the project and increased cost, however the collaborative approach meant everyone understood why these changes were necessary.
The new integration has increased efficiencies and strategy within the Marketing team, allowing for more targeted campaigns and better messaging to prospective and enrolled students.
The Results
The integration now allows Marketing to see the status of a person in real time and ensure their campaigns are targeted properly. This has meant their communications are correctly reaching individuals in the various levels of marketing.
Even though the integration has been successful, it is only one piece of a bigger puzzle. The next step will be for applications to be submitted directly into Salesforce leveraging this integration later in 2020. Beyond that, this integration will be part of a bigger student lifecycle piece of work.
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