Part 2 of 3: Optimizing Pages Within Lightning Apps

In Part 1 of this series, we discussed how to leverage Lightning Apps to help your users by minimizing the noise in Salesforce. We talked about Brian, that vocal sales guy, who struggled to adopt Salesforce, but with a few simple changes to his Lightning Apps, has started using it more.

Part 2 focuses our attention to the individual pages within the Lightning App. Salesforce has released several notable components for these pages: 

• Templates – Control the general layout of the Lightning Page with sections to house your Lightning Components.
• Components – Organize data elements effortlessly into a Lightning Page Template.
• Component Filtering – Show/hide individual Components so each user sees exactly what they need to see when they need to see it.

Each of these options are configurable to the n^th degree, and with so many configuration options to discuss, let’s focus on a few concepts. The configurations will fall into place.

Stay tuned for Part 3 of this blog series, where we breakdown Page Layouts.

Define Standards for all Objects

Change is going to be difficult for most of your users. By defining a standard Template and component layout for all Objects in your org, you’ll make navigation a breeze for users with any level of experience.

Templates

Out of the box, Salesforce uses the Header with Right Sidebar, but this might not be the best option for your needs. Create a Lightning App (see Part 1 in this series), assign it to your Profile, then try out different Templates.

Tabs

With Tabs on Lightning Pages, you can maximize the visible screen space, and organize information into consistent, coherent, thoughtful panes. Too many Tabs? Try nesting Tabs! Just as you did with the Templates, choose a standard Tab order to use across all Objects in your org.

Buttons

With so many Standard and Custom Buttons on your record pages, it’s easy for these to become cluttered too. Arrange your buttons so the most commonly used ones are readily available, and the rest can be accessed through the drop-down menu. (These buttons need to be cleaned up too … but we’ll cover that in Part 3: Page Layouts.)

Build Training Information Right Into Salesforce

Rich Text Components

Using a simple Lightning Component, you can teach your users exactly how to use Salesforce. Simply drag a Rich Text Component onto your Template and create your training documentation.

Paths

Now available on any Salesforce Object, a Path will allow your users to successfully move through a defined business process, like stages of an opportunity, or phases of a project. Most importantly, they can be configured with ‘Key Fields’ and ‘Guidance For Success’.

• Key Fields – Which fields are most important for the user to access during the current stage, or which fields are required to move to the next stage (insert validation rule for extra data quality).
• Guidance for Success – How will your user collect this data? What questions should your user ask the customer to move to the next stage? Include it all here in a Rich Text Field!

Filter Components Like a Champ!

One of the great features Salesforce has included with their Lightning Pages is the ability to Filter Components. This feature has several incredible uses to explore:

• Allow users to hide Training Tips – If you build Training Tips into Rich Text Components, give your users the ability to toggle them off and on. 
• Display Screen Flows based on a record Status – Do you have processes for one department to hand-off work to the next? For example, how does your Sales team notify your Service team when a deal closes? Try placing a Screen Flow Lightning Component with pertinent information that only displays when the Opportunity is Closed Won. 
• Make Lightning Page management easier – Once you’ve created standard layouts, merge multiple functional groups into a few Lightning Pages by filtering components based on the user’s Role or Profile.

Cool Note for those migrating from Classic: Lightning Record Pages utilize the Classic Page Layouts you know and (hopefully) love. Lightning Record Pages won’t give your users access to Fields, Related Lists, or Buttons they don’t already have. We’ll explore that more in Part 3: Page Layouts. Stay tuned for the final post in this series!

Have questions about Salesforce Optimization? Give us a Shout!

At Bitwise Technology Consulting, we use a consultative approach to help you determine the best strategy to identify your challenges, implement appropriate solutions and enhance your systems. Did you miss Part 1 of this series? Don’t fear, click HERE. Worried about your Lightning transition? Check out this 5-minute read. For a free consultation, email [email protected] or call 559 550 3300 today.