Salesforce Classic to Lightning Migration: Benefits and Common Challenges

Salesforce is a great tool leveraged by businesses of all kinds and settings for their customer relationship management needs. Whether you want to personalize customer journeys, convert leads to deals quickly, provide incredible experiences to end-users, or drive commercial growth for the enterprise, Salesforce has a solution for everything.

Until 2015, Classic was the legacy development platform of Salesforce. However, it lacked various features and functionalities compared to its industry peers at that point in time and became incompetent in the market. To overcome the limitations of its Classic version, Salesforce then announced the launch of Lightning – a modern intuitive interface with a component-based framework.

Salesforce Classic doesn’t receive any new updates or development features. In contrast, Lightning users get three seasonal releases from Salesforce. There are multiple enhancements and new features every year to meet the evolving needs of the business whereas Classic users need to pay additional fees to avail of those updates or services. This is why the majority of companies are now opting for Salesforce Lightning migration.

Unlocking the Power of Salesforce Lightning

Making the move to Lightning Experience allows enterprises to leverage the extended capabilities of the latest updates and releases. With the new, sleek, and improved UI comes the possibility of customizing the Salesforce platform beyond what was possible with the Classic version. Migrating from Classic to Salesforce Lightning offers numerous benefits to companies as listed here:

• Improved User Experience

Salesforce Lightning Experience has an extra modern and intuitive user interface that is more visually appealing and user-friendly. The redesigned interface aimed to be customer-pleasant offers a more streamlined and efficient workflow, making it easier for users to navigate, find information, and perform tasks.

• Boosted Productivity

Lightning Experience comes with gear that is needed to boost productivity. It offers a range of productivity features including customizable home pages, activity timelines, automate repetitive workflows, AI-powered analytics, and third-party integrations. These enhancements allow users to access relevant information swiftly and efficiently, resulting in maximized productivity and time savings

• Mobile-First Approach

Designed to be cellular pleasant, Salesforce Lightning is optimized for mobile devices. This helps in creating a consistent and responsive experience across various devices. This anytime, anywhere accessibility makes it easier for sales representatives and field workers to stay connected and productive as well as access and update information on the go.

• Lightning AppExchange

Salesforce Lightning has its dedicated marketplace, which is known as the Lightning AppExchange. It offers a wide range of pre-built Lightning components and applications, enabling organizations to extend the functionality of their Salesforce implementation easily and integrate with third-party apps to meet their unique requirements.

• Automated Processes with Lightning Flow

You can run your business better on Lightning and spark productivity as it facilitates the automation of complex business processes and workflows. Organizations can create guided, step-by-step experiences for their users and customers using Lightning Flow, reducing manual tasks and improving efficiency.

• High Degree of Customization

Unlike the Classic which was text heavy with a limited number of graphics and images, Lightning Experience allows for greater customization and flexibility when it comes to designing pages, pre-built components, and applications. The Lightning App Builder enables businesses, whether tech-savvy or not, to create custom applications tailored to their specific needs using the drag-and-drop functionality.

• Integrated AI Einstein

Salesforce's AI-powered platform, Einstein, is more seamlessly integrated into the Lightning Experience providing advanced AI capabilities to users. Organizations can leverage Einstein's AI capabilities to gain insights, predict outcomes, and make data-driven decisions to drive business success. In addition, the platform also incorporates features like voice-activated search, allowing users to search for information through voice.

• Long-term Support and Updates

Lightning provides improved reporting capabilities with features like customizable dashboards, dynamic charts, and advanced analytics. These tools provide better data visualization and insights for more informed decision-making.

From Classic to Lightning: Challenges in the Transition Process

Migrating from Salesforce Classic to Lightning can bring numerous significant advantages, but it also comes with its fair share of challenges. Some of the common challenges faced by organizations during the transition process include:

• User Adoption

Adjusting to the new and advanced Lightning UI might be time taking for some users as they may be accustomed to the Classic interface and features. The Lightning Experience has a different user interface and page layout compared to the Classic. Some users might find it challenging to locate familiar features, leading to temporary confusion and reduced productivity until they become familiar with the new layout. You can overcome this resistance to change and encourage user adoption by offering proper user training and providing support during the transition process.

• Customizations and Integrations

Organizations that modify their Salesforce Classic environment heavily might face challenges in migrating those customizations to Lightning. Some Visualforce pages, JavaScript buttons, or custom code may need rework to function properly in Lightning. Other than this, integrations with external systems might require updates to function correctly in Lightning. Not all apps may be Lightning-ready, requiring either updates from the app provider or finding suitable alternatives.

• Data Quality and Cleanup

It is essential to review and clean up data during the migration process to ensure it meets the requirements of the new Lightning environment. Data discrepancies and issues may arise during data migration, leading to potential data quality problems. Professional Salesforce migration services can help you with seamless data migration, minimize business downtime, and ensure a frictionless migration process.

• Unsupported Features and Changed Settings

Certain Classic features may not be available in Lightning or might function differently. Users need to identify and address these differences to ensure that they get the desired functionalities in Lightning as well. Additionally, switching to Lightning Experience might require reviewing and adjusting security and sharing settings. Permissions and access levels may need to be reevaluated to ensure data security in the new environment.

• Rollout Strategy

Planning the migration rollout across different teams and business units can be complex. A well-thought-out strategy with clear communication is crucial to minimize disruption and ensure a smooth transition. Migrating to Lightning involves multiple changes and configurations. Rigorous testing and quality assurance are essential to identify and rectify any issues before rolling out the changes to all users.

In Conclusion

Overall, hurdles in the Classic to Lightning transition process must not prevent you from reaping the benefits as Salesforce continues to invest in Lightning Experience and organizations can expect ongoing updates, new features, and innovations. Staying on the latest version ensures access to the most recent advancements and functionalities.

Addressing these challenges requires careful planning, involving stakeholders, thorough testing, and providing ample support and training to users. Or else, you can avail of Salesforce Lightning migration services to get professional assistance and make the transit seamless.