Salesforce Fundamentals (Beginner Level) — Detailed Module

1) What is CRM & Salesforce

CRM (Customer Relationship Management)

CRM is a system that helps companies manage:

1. Customer details
2. Sales activities
3. Service/support cases
4. Marketing interactions
5. Follow-up reminders
6. Reports & dashboards

Example

Imagine a mobile shop storing customer details:

Instead of Excel, CRM stores everything smartly.

What is Salesforce?

Salesforce is the #1 cloud CRM platform.

✔ 100% cloud-based

✔ No installation required

✔ Used on mobile or browser

✔ Fully customizable

✔ Used by Amazon, Google, HDFC, Airtel

2) Cloud Types (SaaS, PaaS, IaaS)

SaaS (Software as a Service)

Ready-made software accessible via browser.

Examples:

1. Salesforce
2. Gmail
3. Zoom

PaaS (Platform as a Service)

Platform for developers to build apps.

Examples:

1. Salesforce Lightning Platform
2. Heroku
3. Google App Engine

IaaS (Infrastructure as a Service)

Virtual machines, networks, firewalls.

Examples:

1. AWS EC2
2. Azure VM
3. Google Compute Engine

3) Salesforce Editions (Enterprise, Unlimited, Developer)

Example

You will use Developer Edition for practice.

4) Salesforce Org Types (Production, Sandbox, Developer Org)

Example

When you complete a new automation rule, you test it in Sandbox, then move it to Production.

5) Understanding Objects, Fields, Tabs

Objects

Tables in Salesforce (like a sheet in Excel).

Examples: Account, Contact, Opportunity

Fields

Columns inside an object.

Example:

Contact object fields → Name, Email, Phone

Tabs

UI elements to access objects.

Example

If “Car” is an Object:

Fields = Model, Color, Price, Owner

Tab = Cars

6) Standard vs Custom Objects

Standard Objects

Prebuilt by Salesforce.

Examples:

1. Account
2. Contact
3. Lead
4. Opportunity

Custom Objects

Created by admins based on business needs.

Example

A hospital may create a custom object:

Patient__c

Fields: Age, Treatment type, Doctor

7) Record Types & Business Processes

Record Types

Allow different forms, picklist values, layouts based on business type.

Example

Lead Record Types:

1. B2B Lead
2. B2C Lead

Each type can have different fields or values.

Business Processes

Used in:

1. Lead process
2. Sales process
3. Support process

Example:

Sales process for “Enterprise Sales” vs “Retail Sales”.

8) Apps, Tabs, Page Layouts

Apps

Collections of tabs + business functions.

Tabs

Used to open objects.

Page Layouts

Decide which fields appear on the record page.

Example

Sales App → Leads, Accounts, Contacts, Opportunities

Service App → Cases, Knowledge, Contacts

9) Relationships (Lookup, Master-Detail, Many-to-Many)

Lookup Relationship

Simple link between two objects.

❗ Child can exist without parent.

Example:

Contact → Linked to Account

(Contact still exists if Account is deleted)

Master-Detail Relationship

Strong relationship.

❗ Child depends on parent.

❗ If parent is deleted → child also deleted.

Example:

Invoice (Master) – Invoice Line (Detail)

Many-to-Many

Created using a junction object.

Example:

Student —< Enrollment >— Course

A student can join many courses, a course can have many students.

10) Salesforce Navigation & UI Basics

Main UI Elements

1. App Launcher → Shows apps
2. Tabs → Leads, Contacts, Accounts
3. Setup → All settings
4. Global Search → Search anything
5. Object Manager → Manage objects
6. Reports Dashboard Icons
7. Record Pages (details, related lists)

Example

To create a field:

Setup → Object Manager → Contact → Fields & Relationships → New