My Perspective: How I See Small Businesses at Salesforce
Hi there! I’m Meredith Schmidt, and I work at Salesforce. Today, I want to talk about why small businesses mean so much to us. They’re not just another product for us – they’re a whole special unit!
You might be wondering, what makes small businesses so important to Salesforce? Well, let me tell you. We truly believe that small businesses make a big impact. They bring fresh ideas, unique perspectives, and jobs to our communities. So, we see them as more than just a way to make money – they’re a vital part of our economy.
Now, let’s dive into why we treat small businesses as a special business unit. First, it’s all about understanding their needs. We know that small businesses have different challenges and requirements compared to big corporations. That’s why we’ve designed specific products and services tailored just for them. We want to give them the tools they need to thrive.
But it doesn’t stop there. We also know that small businesses need a personal touch. That’s where our team comes in. We have a whole group of experts who are dedicated to helping small businesses succeed. They provide guidance, support, and advice, so that small business owners can feel confident in their journey.
Speaking of journeys, we understand that small businesses are constantly evolving. They might start with just one person and grow into a bustling team. They might explore new markets or launch innovative products. We’re here for all of it! Our goal is to grow with small businesses, adapting our solutions to their changing needs.
So, when I say small businesses are a real business unit for us, I mean it. We see their value, we understand their needs, and we’re dedicated to helping them succeed. When small businesses thrive, we all thrive. That’s why we’re committed to this important work.
Thank you for joining me on this journey. Together, let’s empower small businesses and make a real impact!
A while back, I attended Salesforce’s yearly meeting with analysts. During that event, I had the chance to chat briefly with Meredith Schmidt. She holds the role of Executive Vice President and General Manager for Salesforce Essentials and SMB. Salesforce Essentials is a collection of products designed specifically for small businesses. But what really grabbed my interest was something else that came up in our conversation. It turns out that Essentials is now operating as its own separate business, rather than just being treated as a regular product line within Salesforce. And Meredith is leading Essentials like a CEO.
Now, let’s talk about Salesforce Essentials for small businesses.
Last week, Meredith joined me to talk more about how Salesforce Essentials is positioning itself within the larger company. We discussed what changes will be made and how these changes will impact Salesforce’s small and medium-sized business customers. Meredith also talked about the ways in which new technologies like AI and voice interfaces are already starting to impact small businesses.
Below, you can find an edited transcript of our conversation. If you want to see the full interview, you can watch the video below or listen to the SoundCloud player embedded in this page.
So, guess what? Salesforce has given me the awesome role of being the CEO for their small and medium-sized businesses (SMB) division. How cool is that? Salesforce, in case you didn’t know, just celebrated their 20th anniversary. They started out by serving small businesses, but now I have the exciting responsibility of taking care of all the SMB customers that Salesforce has. But before we dive into the significance of Salesforce turning 20 and what it means for SMBs, let me tell you a bit about myself.
My name is Meredith Schmidt: I’ve been a part of the Salesforce family for 14 years now. When I first joined, I was actually the very first employee in our finance team. My role was to work under our Chief Financial Officer (CFO) and create a whole new department focused on revenue. Can you believe it? They wanted me to make the sales team fall head over heels for finance. At first, I was like, What does that even mean? But I was up for the challenge. Throughout my time at Salesforce, my motto has always been I’ll figure it out.
Contents
- 1 Let’s Get Started!
- 2 Achieving the $13 Billion Milestone
- 3 Revolutionizing Essentials
- 4 Transforming the Conversation about Small Business
- 5 Using AI and Data to Assist Customers
- 6 Innovation without the Price Tag
- 7 Introducing a Digital Personal Assistant
- 8 Using Voice Interface with Essentials
- 9 Learning from Your Small Business
Let’s Get Started!
I want to share with you my experience working for a company with 600 employees and earning $300 million in revenue. It was a time filled with possibilities and opportunities to make things better. Whenever I heard about a problem, I took it upon myself to find a solution. Many of these challenges were related to small businesses, and over the course of 14 years, there were some aspects that remained unchanged and bothered me.
When I first joined the company, we were on the verge of transforming into an enterprise company. We had just secured big customers like Cisco and ADP, but back then, most of our revenue still came from smaller clients.
Throughout my career, I had the privilege of leading a team of 300 people. Together, we supported various products and introduced new ones for our entire company. One of my main responsibilities was overseeing sales compensation, which required me to fully understand our go-to-market and selling strategies across all segments, as well as our direct and indirect channels.
Achieving the $13 Billion Milestone
One of my proudest accomplishments was implementing internal technology that empowered our sales team and revenue departments. For 13 out of the 14 years I worked here, I had the honor of overseeing revenue and helping the company reach the incredible milestone of $13 billion in sales.
When the opportunity for the role of Salesforce Essentials CEO came up, the more I discussed it, the more enthusiastic I became. This role isn’t just about a single product; it involves leading an entire business unit focused on serving small businesses.
When I first started building this product, I questioned whether it was the right fit for me. But then I realized that everything I do is about making things easier, simplifying tasks and processes. And that’s exactly what we aimed to do with this product: understand the needs of small businesses and put ourselves in their shoes.
Revolutionizing Essentials
The first step we took was to offer month-to-month contracts. It may seem simple, but ironically, in the 14 years prior, we had never allowed customers to purchase contracts on a monthly basis. It was always an annual commitment. But we decided to change that and give people the flexibility they were asking for.
I apologize for the long answer to your short question, but that’s the journey that brought me here.
USamerica.US: Wow, that’s awesome! The month-to-month thing is a big deal for small businesses, but what other changes are you making as the new addition to Salesforce?
Meredith Schmidt: We’re revamping our product in a whole new way. What I mean is, we have different aspects called clouds, like the Sales Cloud and Service Cloud. But if you’re a small business, you don’t care about all that. You just want to get the job done. That’s our main focus – creating a product that acts as a user-friendly front end to the backbone of the business. We’re combining sales and service into one. In small business terms, we call it support, not service. When they hear call center, they think it’s not relevant to them. And they’re right.
Transforming the Conversation about Small Business
So, let me tell you something exciting. We’re totally changing the way we communicate with our small business buddies. But not just that, we’re also looking at it from a whole new angle – the product angle. Let me introduce you to Salesforce Essentials – it’s a game-changer! And guess what? It does it all for one simple price. No need to stress about which cloud option to go for or what to choose. We’ve got you covered!
But wait, there’s more! We’re constantly improving and expanding this amazing product, and get this – we’re not charging you extra for the added features and capabilities. We’re focused on understanding what a small business needs to get the job done, and how we can make it easier for them. I mean, isn’t that just mind-blowing? We’re taking a really different approach here, and it’s awesome.
USamerica.US: There are so many technologies that people talk about, like AI, short for artificial intelligence. How does my new group and my role help small business customers understand these technologies? And not just understand, but also help them use and take advantage of technologies like AI?
Meredith Schmidt: What’s interesting is how I use AI to gather data that helps customers make the most of our product. AI helps me know when a customer hasn’t used a certain feature. And it turns out, that feature actually boosts sales by an average of 36%, something I’m aware of.
Using AI and Data to Assist Customers
But sometimes, customers might miss out on a useful feature or not fully understand it. And with the large number of small business customers we have, it’s just not possible to call each one individually. So, how can I use AI and data to truly assist our customers in adopting the product and reaping its benefits for their business? One way is by providing real-time, personalized information that’s tailored to their specific needs, rather than offering generic advice. We’re here to support you on your unique journey.
Currently, achieving this level of support requires more than just sheer effort. It’s about using our own intelligence and leveraging AI to enhance our interactions with customers and provide them with the right tools and guidance to make the most of our product’s features.
So, let me tell you about AI and how we’re using it. This is what really gets me excited about Salesforce Essentials. We’re not only making the product easier to use, but we’re doing it in a way that benefits all of our customers, no matter how big or small. And you know what’s even better? We’re starting with small businesses and learning from them. But here’s the kicker – we also get the advantage of being a part of Salesforce.
Innovation without the Price Tag
So here’s the deal: We score some seriously cool innovation from Salesforce, and it doesn’t cost us a dime. You see, we’ve been cooking up some cutting-edge stuff in the world of artificial intelligence, machine learning, and predictive analytics. Our enterprise customers have been begging for these features, and boy, oh boy, are we delivering. We’ve got a secret lab tucked away in the depths of San Francisco, where geniuses are locked away, coming up with mind-blowing ideas. And get this: it’s not just for big companies. Nope, this treasure trove of innovation is available to every last one of you.
My duty is to ensure that we release features that are easy to understand and use for our small business owners. There’s no need to feel intimidated. When I consider simple things like Einstein Activity Capture, I think about how it reads your emails, helps you create tasks, and reminds you to call your customers. It might say, ‘Hey, you haven’t spoken to this customer in 30 days, maybe you should give them a call’.
Introducing a Digital Personal Assistant
It’s moments like these that make me wish I had a personal assistant to remind me of my daily tasks. When I come into work, I often wonder, ‘What was I supposed to do today?’ I have my to-do list, whether it’s on a sticky note or a piece of paper, but it’s not just a static list. It’s a learning list that adapts based on what it observes.
When you connect your email to Salesforce Essentials, it’s like having a personal assistant. It helps you stay organized and streamlines your tasks. As a small business owner or employee, your focus should be on your customers, not on mundane tasks. Let technology handle those routine jobs for you so that you can dedicate your time and effort to where it really matters: building relationships with your customers.
USamerica.US: I’m really intrigued by the concept of voice assistants. There was a significant announcement about Einstein Voice during Dreamforce. Could you explain what it is and whether it will be accessible to small business customers?
Meredith Schmidt: Yes, it’s available and we’ve tested it. It works with Salesforce Essentials. We joined the early pilot program to let our users try it out and provide feedback. Over the next few months, you’ll start seeing some exciting updates. We’re thrilled that it works for everyone.
This isn’t like talking to Alexa or Siri on your phone. We’re using a voice interface to update and find records in Salesforce. For example, you can say hey, look up Brent for me to the Salesforce application.
Using Voice Interface with Essentials
I want to let you in on a cool feature with this tool. It can recognize that I’m assigned to your account, so it’ll automatically filter down to the stuff you’re most likely searching for. Pretty neat, right? It’s definitely the one I’m looking for. But here’s the best part – I can also tell it that I just talked to Brent today and add some notes. And get this – it doesn’t just take notes, it actually updates relevant objects inside Salesforce. I can simply say, My opportunity just went to $10,000, and it’ll go and update the opportunity for me.
That’s right, I don’t have to go digging around for all these objects to update fields everywhere. I can just talk to it, and it intelligently listens to me, gathers the data, and updates everything for me. It’s seriously powerful stuff. It’s not just your typical note-taking app or a simple dictation tool. It’s way more than that.
Learning from Your Small Business
Let me break it down for you. See, what I’m doing is taking that information and dividing it into different pieces. It’s like I’m learning from you, soaking up all that knowledge. And let me tell you, it’s pretty awesome! I’m really excited about it.
Imagine this: you’ve just had a meeting with a customer, and as soon as you hop in your car, you’re already talking to Salesforce. By the time you’re back at your desk, everything’s magically done! No need to jot down notes, update opportunities, or change addresses. It’s all taken care of for you.
USamerica.US: Yeah, I think that’s a game-changer for small businesses in terms of being more productive-
Meredith Schmidt: Absolutely!
USamerica.US: Because if it’s too complicated for them to input the information, they won’t bother, which defeats the purpose altogether.
Meredith Schmidt: Yeah.
This interview is part of the One-on-One Interview series with influential thinkers. The transcript has been modified for publication. If the original interview is in audio or video format, click on the embedded player above, or subscribe on iTunes or Stitcher.