Moneyball: Combining Salesforce & DocuSign For A Home Run

Five Ways These Tools Are Greater Than the Sum of Their Parts

“Moneyball: The Art of Winning An Unfair Game”, details how the manager of the Oakland A’s baseball team took advantage of advanced statistical analysis to beat the competition. Through his recruiting strategy, the manager of the A’s built a team that was greater than the sum of its parts – the rest is sports history.

When it comes to Salesforce, integrating with the e-signature platform DocuSign is a home run. Not only do you benefit from all the functionality that accompanies DocuSign, but you also gain the option to create further customizations and enhancements.

Consider a case where multiple people must sign a contract. Your team can upload this agreement as a template on the DocuSign portal. Next, the contract can be sent to all parties using Salesforce. Once everyone signs, the completed document is stored automatically. Even in this brief example, you can see the potential for time and cost savings.

Let’s explore basic things your team can accomplish by using DocuSign and Salesforce. We’ll start with standard features, then detail how this combination can be greater than the sum of its parts thanks to customization.

Synergy In Action

#1. DocuSign works straightforwardly with the standard Salesforce objects (Lead, Contact, Account, Opportunity). Going a step further, this tool also meshes with custom Salesforce objects with ease.

For example, let’s say an agreement centers on a real estate property. The information pertaining to this real estate asset is stored in a custom Property object in Salesforce. The fields in the agreement – such as the Property address – are dynamic for each Contact, but thanks to the Salesforce and DocuSign integration, the data is drawn from the custom Property object as opposed to the standard Contact.

This enhanced function is like an enjoyable book: the elements are deceptively simple, just as sentences and paragraphs, yet the result is impactful. The business in question saves valuable time while gaining an edge on the competition.

#2. Next, adding multiple signature fields to a form is a useful standard function. DocuSign agreements can be set up so they require signatures from all applicable parties.

If your team wants to add extra automation, the system could auto-send the agreement to the required recipients based on Salesforce data. In this case, Salesforce scans the input on the record and reads the number of recipients. Or you could even create a custom button which reads the number of recipients dynamically. Either way, your team would be spared manual effort.

#3. Once you have the DocuSign and Salesforce integration, your team will use a specific button to send out documents. This function requires users to select a template and the number of recipients. Customarily, it takes four to five clicks to send out a contract.

To simplify this process, you could add custom code to create a one-click action. Now, the system will automatically pick a template, assign the recipients and send out the contract. Just as a hilarious joke is enhanced by well-timed delivery, DocuSign and Salesforce lend each other power.

#4. Customizations become increasingly valuable the more contracts a company sends out regularly. If you want your team to be notified as soon as all parties have signed an agreement, you can use a DocuSign object called “DocuSign Status.” Based on this Status, the Account record will auto-update.

As you would expect, this helps businesses stay organized. In cases where some signatures for an agreement are pending, your team could even send automatic reminders. Reminders are possible thanks to standard DocuSign options and can also be further enhanced. Adding these advanced functions to your CRM is a lot like baking: you start with basic ingredients like flour, butter and sugar, but end with a unique pastry creation that’s decidedly more delicious than the sum of its parts.

#5. Lastly, standard functions allow you to click a button and send out an agreement to a specific record. Or, if you require signatures from all related records, you can add them as additional recipients. The system then sends the document and collects all signatures.

You can also enhance this process; your IT team or an implementation partner can make it so that you click a button and immediately view all related account records. The system then sends one copy of the contract for each of the parties to sign, as opposed to only one copy overall. Of course, this is a specialized enhancement, much like a coach would pair two players in a sports team to execute a certain maneuver.

Getting the Team Together

Regardless of your industry, integrating with DocuSign is a plus. The ability to send agreements digitally and store contracts in an organized way can save time and energy for your team.

Like the Oakland A’s, Salesforce and DocuSign have outstanding synergy. Going further, businesses can even choose to add custom features tailored to their specific needs. Taking this extra step often adds that special “something” that puts your team a cut above the rest.

To make this happen, select an implementation partner that meshes well with your team. They should have a great deal of technical expertise, but also knowledge with respect to your industry. If you’re an insurance, banking, mortgage or retail professional, Accelerize360 might just be the partner you need.