Salesforce Spring ’20 Release Promises Advanced Features & Products

A highly popular cloud-based CRM solution, with many success stories to its credit, offering best of customer relationship management – it is easy to guess who it could be!

Yes, it is Salesforce – the world’s #1 CRM, fondly called as a Customer Success Platform.

As the year 2019 ended and the new year began, Salesforce announced the Salesforce Spring ’20 release, undoubtedly with enhanced features and exciting know-hows for loyalists, as always. It was all about innovations across various industry segments, mobile, AI, content management and more.

Spring ’20 was released in its pre-release stage and as Salesforce says – ‘Spring has sprung’, it was made available on the 3^rd and 4^th of January 2020 (the preview instances). The non-preview instances will be upgraded to Spring ’20 around mid-February 2020.

Key Innovations in the Salesforce Spring ’20 Release

No Allocation Limit for API Calls

Till now, there was an allocation limit of about 1,000,000 API requests per day. This has been removed and now, developers are free to leverage the increase of API calls without any limit.

Where: This feature is available for two editions – the Enterprise one and Professional one

Why: This feature permits users to make increased API calls without surpassing your allotment

Protection of Custom Metadata Types and Custom Settings

In this release, as you create a custom metadata type/custom setting, whether it is public or private is determined by the values in the package type and Visibility field, which is now present only in the developer/scratch orgs.

It will allow the creation of protected custom metadata types/custom settings in a developer/scratch org. You need to set the Visibility field to package protected and later, implement in a managed package.

Where: This feature is available in Lightning Experience and Salesforce Classic in Contact Manager, Essentials, Professional, Enterprise, Performance, Unlimited, and Developer editions.

How: As the users store sensitive data, create protected custom metadata type/custom settings in a developer/scratch org, they need to set the Visibility field to protect and then deploy in a managed package.

These custom settings are available from the Apex code in the managed package but are unavailable from contributing organizations.

Availability of Local Development for Lightning Web Components (Beta)

With this release, there will be the availability of local development services for Lightning Web Components to ensure the development of desired elements, testing their performance and checking them live without the need to publish them to an org.

Owing to this, there is sure to be a great increase in productivity levels. This impacts the Lightning Experience along with different versions of the application running in different editions.

You will need the installation of the Salesforce CLI, the latest version of the browser and a developer hub-enabled org for experiencing the local development infrastructure.

Where: This feature is available in Lightning Experience and other forms of the app in Enterprise, Performance, Unlimited, and Developer versions.

How: You need to install the local development server by clicking here.

Record Creation with Pre-populated Values

You can now create navigation links in your modules with which the record’s create page can be filled with default field values. This can be done by the novel lightning/pageReferenceUtils module or lightning:pageReferenceUtils Aura component.

The best part of this feature is that it speeds up the entire process of entering information, simplifies creating records and enhances the consistency of data. This feature can be seen in the Lightning Experience.

Where: This feature is available in Lightning Experience in all versions. It doesn’t relate to Lightning Out, Lightning communities, or the Salesforce mobile app.

How: This new feature offers services to encode and decode default field values. Pass the string into the new pageReference.state.defaultFieldValues attribute on standard__objectPage page reference types. With this component beside the current lightning:navigation element, you can release a record’s create page with prepopulated field values.

Controlled Read Access to Custom Settings

It is now possible, for users who have the customize application permission, to go at a detailed level and manage the read access to custom settings. This can be done with permission sets and profiles.

Where: This feature is available in Lightning Experience and Salesforce Classic in Professional, Enterprise, Performance, and Unlimited versions.

When: This feature may come in a little later with the winter edition.

Who: Users having the Customize Application permission can give read access to certain custom settings via profiles and permission sets.

How: To grant read access to specific custom settings, enable the Restrict access to custom settings org permission and then enable access to specific custom settings.

Here is the process of giving a permission set or profile read access, in which you need to enable the Restrict access to custom settings org permission.

Schema settings in Setup – Enable restrict access permission

Go to Customs Settings Definition

Append Custom Setting to Enabled Custom Setting Definitions list

Because of restricted access to custom settings, there are certain permissions that are enforced – giving read/write/view access to custom settings that include users outside of system context and in the setup.

Avail Stable My Domain URLs for Newer Sandboxes

For the latest sandboxes, this release has come up with naming the sandbox URL barring the instance names. Hence, My Domain URL is surely changing. As soon as there is a new sandbox, its name with the hostname will turn to lowercase.

This applies to all users who have implemented My Domain in their sandbox’s source org.

Use Time Based Filtration for Enhanced Searches (Beta)

While searching for records, with this new release, you can utilize time-based conditions or set a good time period and get desired results. Yes, these conversational search results will need the Einstein Search permission license.

Where: This feature is available in Lightning Experience in Unlimited, Enterprise, and Performance versions.

Who: Conversational search results need the Einstein Search permission set license.

Lightning Web Components Has All Fields Reactive

In earlier releases, if a field was to be made reactive, @track was used. Now, with this release, the entire chunk of fields is by default, reactive. Hence, usage of @track decorator is no needed at all.

In case of any change in the value of the field that is utilized in any template/getter of a property, there will be re-rendering of component and the current value will be shown.

Where: This feature is available with Lightning web components in Lightning Experience and all editions of the Salesforce app.

Why: It was a tough task to understand which fields to utilize with @track. As soon a value in a filed altered, it was difficult to understand the re-rendering of the element and its new value.

How: This framework sees the alterations in the value of the field, re-renders the element and showcases the new value. There is an evaluation done in all expressions. Because all are reactive fields, the need to use the ‘reactive field’ is not needed anymore.

Centralized Management of Lightning Experience Configuration Converter (Beta)

With the help of the new Home tab, the converter, which is an independent tool operating outside of Salesforce, can be leveraged by running it in a sandbox and migrating its version thereafter. You can go through different tabs to understand what is to be done with them.

This converter needs to Customize Application and Modify All Data permission access. With this feature, you can simply analyze the progress and keep marking the icon as green, as the process gets done.

Where: This feature is available in Lightning Experience and Salesforce Classic in Enterprise, Professional, Performance, Unlimited, and Developer versions.

Who: This feature needs the Customize Application and Modify All Data permissions.

Why: Users can simply track the progress since there is a reduction in the needed fixes, with the status icon changing to green.

How: Since the Lightning Experience Configuration Converter is a standalone tool that operates outside of Salesforce, it is suggested that it be executed in a sandbox or Developer Edition org first, and then transfer production org.

Well-constructed Spreadsheets Affixed to Report Subscriptions (Beta)

As soon as a user asks for a report subscription, there is a novel feature that offers an option to choose the report as a highly formatted spreadsheet that will be an attachment to the email.

There will be certain basic details in the email clubbed with the main link back to the Salesforce page.

Set Up Consequent Appointments, One After Another

There may be times when you need service appointments, consecutively. The newer release offers a facility to establish an immediately Follow dependency within them.

In such a case of consecutive setting, the scheduling sets appointments exactly next to each other, choosing the same day and resource.

Where: This feature is available in Lightning Experience and Salesforce Classic in Enterprise, Performance, Unlimited, and Developer editions with the Field Service Lightning managed package installed.

Why: This feature stops any new assignment to be finalized in between two appointments.

How: To activate this, you need to go to Complex Work settings and set the schedule needs in the service appointment page. After that, mention concerned appointments and choose the type of dependency.

Availability of Lightning Extension

To leverage the latest features, this release offers the Lightning Extension for the Lightning Experience. This new addition showcases many features that can be easily availed by Lightning Experience users.

Why: It empowers users to roll out new features constantly. Admins can control which features are accessible to their users.

How: You can download it for your chosen browser and from the features panel, you can select the features you want to start off.

You can manage and set features that you want your users to access, in Lightning Extension. Enabling or disabling of features is possible and easy to implement.

Repetition Made Easy with Cloning

There is a novel feature – the ‘Clone with Related’ that simplifies the task of managing repeated records. As soon as you click that, the entire chunk of the original records gets appended to the cloned version.

Who: To practice the Clone with Related action, it is essential to have a Create Permission on the object and Read access on the cloning record.

Why: It becomes easy for users to count in the associated record while doing the cloning.

How: In the Object Manager, search for one of the supported objects and select Page Layout. Add the Clone with Related action to the layout and save.

Decide Email Scheduling in Lightning Experience

It so happens that sometimes sales representatives miss out on important emails, in case they have arrived in non-productive hours. This new feature in this release offers you the option to set your own preferred timing for incoming emails, for e.g. as the day begins.

This helps the user in not missing out on any important information. The ‘Scheduled Emails’ component allows users to alter the email’s decided dates and timings.

Where: This feature is available in Lightning Experience in Enterprise, Performance, and Unlimited editions.

Who: All those with the Use Inbox user permission, accessible with the High-Velocity Sales or Inbox license.

How: While scheduling an email, the user may choose to ‘Send Later’ while composing the email.

The user can choose the relevant timing and schedule accordingly.

Users can also edit/delete/reschedule email by using the Edit page.

Newer Section of Objects for Change Sets

Following this current version, there are many objects that are accessible for a Change Set. For e.g., Managed Content-Type, Lightning Community Theme / Template, Email Service and many more.

Sending Emails Directly Using Template

Steps can be added by sales representatives to send emails directly, with the help of templates, as soon as some activity gets over.

This saves a lot of time for the users as they get free from performing the entire routine of email generation all the while.

Where: This facility is available as an add-on component in the Lightning Experience. High-Velocity Sales is offered as an add-on in Enterprise, Performance, and Unlimited editions.

How: In the Sales Cadence Builder, add an email step, and decide to send the email repeatedly utilizing a template.

Empty Recycle Bin in Lightning Experience in One Go

Earlier, it was a tough task for users of Lightning Experience to clean their recycle bin altogether. They had to either do it one at a time or go to Salesforce Classic to do so. Now, with the new release, it is possible to do so.

Where: This feature is available in Lightning Experience in Group, Essentials, Professional, Enterprise, Performance, Unlimited, and Developer editions.

Who: The user must just click ‘Empty Org Recycle Bin’ and the work is done. Just that the user would need to Modify all Data permissions.

How: Open the org Recycle Bin and click Empty Org Recycle Bin.

It is now possible to handle removed reports and dashboards, in the Recycle bin, especially for Lightning Experience users.

Organizing Queues for Sharing Tasks

To share work amongst sales representatives, there is a new feature in this release that allocates tasks to a queue. Users can designate tasks to the shared queues and accordingly, those responsible can own that work from the view mode.

All the relevant users of the queue can contribute while assigning tasks. This gives liberty to all, not confining the entire chunk on one person’s head. It can be done as a team activity.

Embedded Engagement History Dashboard Component to Analyse Historical Information

On adding this component to a tab on your lead and contact records, users can avail of historical information of customer’s engagement movements. This becomes much easier for sales representatives to grab information as soon as they need it. Drilling down further details and different levels is possible.

Log in Using Apple ID

With the help of the Apple authentication provider created from the Salesforce Auth, users can log into the Salesforce system with their Apple Id.

Leveraging Bulk Macros for Repetitive Jobs

In this release, Lightning Experience offers bulk macros for handling repetitive tasks, which was available till now only in Salesforce Classic. This enhances the productivity level of users and saves a lot on time. Even automation of tasks is possible with these bulk macros.

Check for Uniqueness in Reports (Beta)

Users can now check for uniqueness in the reports that they execute. They can see the number of definite values that the reports process with a distinctive count. These unique answers are shown as grand totals at the bottom and as subtotals, group-wise.

Attaching Videos to Docked Prompts

Provided the video isn’t too long, this release offers users to attach the video to your docked prompts. It will preview within the prompt as an important message that the user would like to convey.

On a Wrapping Note

Salesforce has a lot to offer and the latest release of Spring ’20 says it all. Experiencing it is the only way to understand the positives of this release. Salesforce has carved a niche for itself, and partnering with a Salesforce development and implementation partner is a guaranteed way to a successful implementation.

Image Credit:- Salesforce Spring ’20