Salesforce IoT Cloud: Challenges And Benefits For Business Operations

You can delight your customers and provide engaging experiences with Salesforce IoT cloud implementation. Let’s develop a broader understanding of the Salesforce Internet of Things to implement it in your business.

Alexa, let’s turn on the AC!

Did you ever wonder how Alexa can communicate with different household appliances to carry out your commands?

IoT, or the Internet of Things, enables devices to communicate with each other and share data for a more intelligent experience.

This is just a brief overview of the potential of IoT. Salesforce, the world’s leading customer relationship management solution, explores the Internet of Things to introduce new ways for businesses to engage their customers.

Here in this blog, we’ll explain what Salesforce IoT Cloud is, its features, benefits, industries that can gain from it, etc.

Ready to learn more? Let’s get started.

What is Salesforce IoT Cloud?

The Salesforce IoT Cloud provides businesses with a platform for collecting and analyzing Internet-connected device data. A business can apply this data to develop insights and actions that will help to optimize operations, improve customer experiences, and thus increase revenue.

Salesforce IoT Cloud is enabled by Thunder, described as a large-scale real-time event processing system by Salesforce. Thunder allows the IoT Cloud to collect massive amounts of data and produce real-time responses. Furthermore, Thunder uses filters to make it easier for users to identify relevant data from data streams.

How Does The Salesforce IoT Cloud Work?

Let’s understand how the Salesforce IoT Cloud works with a real-world example:

Suppose you own a company that manufactures and sells industrial equipment such as HVAC systems or heavy machinery. Embedding IoT systems into your industrial equipment, you can collect data such as equipment usage, energy consumption, maintenance needs, and so on.

Salesforce IoT Cloud integrates these massive streams of data across your company and all of your Salesforce apps. With IoT Cloud’s simple point-and-click interface, businesses are now able to listen to this data easily to identify the most frequently used equipment, as well as the most likely to need maintenance, etc.

The information will help you schedule maintenance more efficiently, reduce energy consumption, and improve equipment efficiency. These improvements will enhance the customer experience.

Put simply, IoT Cloud works to help businesses optimize operations, enhance customer experience, and grow revenues with IoT technology.

Features and Functionalities of Salesforce Internet of Things Cloud

Here are some of the best features of Salesforce Internet of Things Cloud:

Data Ingestion

IoT Cloud can ingest data from myriad sources such as sensors, wearables, websites, applications, etc.

Data Processing

Salesforce IoT comes with an intuitive point-and-click interface that makes listening to data easier. Real-time analysis and processing of the data are also possible.

The intuitive point-and-click interface makes it easier for users to filter, transform, and aggregate data. Users can also define rules and regulations based on the data.

Reporting & Data Analytics

Reporting & analytics tools come with IoT Cloud, which empowers users to analyze their data. The use of these tools enables the users to visualize the data so they can easily identify patterns and trends.

Einstein AI

IoT Cloud also Einstein AI which collects data from multiple sources and enables businesses to automatically gain insights into the data to become predictable about the customers.

Third-Party Integration

IoT Cloud is a highly customizable Salesforce Integration that can be easily integrated with third-party applications to meet specific business needs.

Output Connectors

Output connectors simplify the distribution of event data to multiple destinations and translate the data into their specific format.

Benefits of Salesforce IoT Implementation For Business Operations

Salesforce IoT Cloud brings numerous benefits to business operations. The platform gives businesses a way to analyze the data collected from IoT devices and visualize it for easier understanding. Let’s take a closer look at how Salesforce IoT Cloud adds value to business operations:

Low-Code Architecture

The most significant benefit of IoT Cloud Salesforce is its low-code architecture. By enabling users to create orchestration rules with clicks rather than coding, it’s the ideal alternative to traditional orchestration rules that require complex coding.

Connected Customer Profiles

Connected customer profiles mean businesses can interact directly with all their devices. Let’s say you own a vehicle fleet, with each vehicle connected to IoT Cloud. Whenever you feel the need to monitor the location of your vehicle in real-time, the speed it reaches, maintenance needs, or any other information, you can turn to IoT Cloud.

When an emergency occurs, IoT Cloud will automatically send an alert to the appropriate authority to take action.

Customer Context

IoT Cloud from Salesforce provides deep, data-driven insights into the customer, enabling businesses to make relevant decisions to enhance the customer experience. A series of actions are suggested based on information collected from customers such as their name, location, and purchase history as well as IOT device data.

Scalability

IoT Cloud is a highly scalable platform. It is capable of accommodating large volumes of data in response to business needs. The scalability of this solution makes it perfect for businesses of all sizes.

Industries That Can Benefit From Salesforce IoT Cloud

The application of Salesforce IoT is widespread across multiple industries. Here we have given you a walkthrough of the industries that are poised to take advantage of Salesforce Internet of Things:

Transport & Logistics

The transportation industry is being led to new heights by IoT technology. Through embedded sensors, predictive maintenance, and real-time information on fleets, businesses in the transportation & logistics industry become more efficient. The network of IoT devices collects the information and Salesforce IoT visualizes the data into useful information.

Here we have prepared a list of the Salesforce IoT use cases for the transportation & logistics industry:

• The management of fleet vehicles can be simplified for greater accuracy and precision in real-time information. Salesforce IoT provides fleet managers with real-time information that fuels their intelligence and helps them anticipate any problems and mitigate them before they escalate.
• The dream of self-driving cars has now become a reality. As part of the self-driving car paradigm, IoT sensors are heavily used to gather vehicle information and make decisions. Salesforce IoT Cloud can analyze the data in the nick of time, enabling cars to perform actions.

Manufacturing

Salesforce IoT Implementation services will bring new levels of visibility, insight, and control to the manufacturing industry. The Internet of Things will revolutionize the manufacturing industry in various ways, as described below:

• The manufacturing industry is driven by various machines and equipment. The availability of real-time information about the status of manufacturing assets will result in improved business performance.
• With IoT Cloud, manufacturing processes can be visualized in a centralized manner, allowing manufacturers to be informed about possible breakdowns to reduce downtime and improve efficiency.
• Additionally, IoT Cloud can help to optimize quality control. By embedding IoT sensors in the products, data can be collected and the IoT Cloud can use the data to visualize whether the products meet quality standards.

Healthcare

Covid-19’s outbreak accelerated the digital transformation in healthcare and IoT led to that transformation with its unparalleled capabilities. Combining the IoT Cloud with Salesforce Health Cloud can significantly improve the patient experience.

The use case of Salesforce IoT Cloud in the healthcare industry can be described below:

• A smart medical device can be fitted to a patient to monitor their vital signs and receive prompt medical attention. Smartwatches and fitness bands are the perfect examples of smart devices using IoT technology.
• Using IoT-powered medical devices, accurate real-time data can be collected and sent to healthcare professionals in real time.
• By leveraging Salesforce IoT, doctors can analyze patient information more conveniently, resulting in improved care.

Retail

The Internet of Things is considered to be a game-changing technology in retail. As IoT technology becomes increasingly mainstream, more and more retail businesses are utilizing it to stay competitive and keep pace with the technologies currently at play:

Here we have outlined the different use cases of Salesforce IoT Cloud in the retail industry:

• With the help of sensors and IoT retail devices, retail stores can collect data on the entire shopping lifecycle of the customers. With Salesforce IoT Cloud, retailers can leverage this data to make their customers’ shopping experience as seamless as possible.
• Salesforce IoT implementation in the retail sector can also pave the way for optimized inventory tracking. A retailer has a granular view of the supply chain, from the moment goods leave the factory until they are delivered to customers. It is also possible to understand the real-time condition of goods through IoT along with tracking them.
• The application of IoT in the retail industry can also expand to simplify the tracking of consumers’ behaviors. Collecting data from beacons, sensors, microphones, and in-store cameras, IoT Cloud can help businesses visualize consumers’ behavior.

Salesforce IoT Cloud Implementation Best Practices

Implementation strategies are the foundation of the best implementations, and the Salesforce IoT implementation is no different. Here we curated a list of the best Salesforce IoT implementation best practices:

1. Identify Your Business Objectives

Business requirements for implementing the Internet of Things are unique to each business. So the very first step would be to identify your business requirements to underline whether Salesforce implementation is the right choice for you or not. Understanding the IoT readability of your business will help you improve how your business operations can be improved.

A Salesforce implementation partner can be a great resource for understanding IoT’s importance to your business and how it can be implemented for your business.

2. Search for Necessary IoT Components

The selection of the IoT components plays an important role in the efficiency of the IoT cloud. It is imperative that you carefully analyze the IoT components you need. Some of the required IoT components may include sensors, edge gateways, communication protocols, and many more.

While choosing the IoT component make sure Salesforce IoT Cloud is compatible to work with them. You can have a consultation with your IoT implementation partner to make sure you’re choosing the right IoT components.

3. Integrate IoT Cloud With Other Salesforce or Third-Party Products

As a standalone product, Salesforce IoT Cloud can be used to provide a complete IoT solution for storing data and processing. However, when needed it can also be integrated with the other Salesforce product to streamline the business process. As an example, Salesforce IoT can be integrated with Salesforce Marketing Cloud to make it possible for businesses to create effective marketing campaigns based on the data gathered by IoT devices. Additionally, IoT Cloud can also be integrated with other third-party systems, like enterprise application support used by the company. Therefore, explore all the options to make sure Salesforce IoT implementation services bring the best value to the business.

4. Pay Close Attention to Security Measures

Security is the topmost concern for businesses of all scales. IoT devices transmit data over the air, therefore they are most vulnerable to security breaches. Therefore, you should ensure that Salesforce IoT Cloud is implemented following best security practices to protect your business from security threats.

Salesforce IoT Cloud Challenges

There are a few challenges that a business might face while implementing Salesforce IoT Cloud. Here’s a list of them, let’s have a look at them.

1. Security Considerations

Since the Internet of Things handles a huge amount of data, organizations utilizing it always worry about security. The data collected from IoT devices could be used against them by competitors or cybercriminals, which is not only financially detrimental but also damaging to their reputation. The Salesforce IoT Cloud relies on specialized identification tokens to handle the security issue.

2. Concerns Regarding Customer Data Privacy

The Internet of Things collects tons of data, which makes customers worried about their privacy. Businesses should inform customers regarding the data collected from them and how the data is going to be used. Customer trust will be established that their data is used for better service rather than creating any threats.

3. Flexibility Limitations

Salesforce IoT Cloud is a low-code platform that allows businesses to create their own apps with just a few clicks instead of writing complex code. However, the limitation of customized apps can limit the creativity of a business.

Discover The True Power of Salesforce IoT With Cyntexa

IoT technology has the potential to transform business operations across multiple industries. Salesforce IoT is empowering businesses with the unprecedented capabilities of IoT. If you’re also interested in applying IoT technology in your business, then you should consider partnering with an experienced Salesforce IoT implementation service provider.

Cyntexa as a Salesforce Crest (Gold) Consulting Partner drives value-centric IoT Solutions backed by the Salesforce platform. We will help you from choosing the right IoT components, collect, and analyze the data to make informed decisions. With Cyntexa you’re assured of Salesforce implementation services that are smart, and robust and offer superior connectivity and data privacy.