Should I use E-Signatures with Salesforce?

Are you considering using E-Signatures with Salesforce? We like to think of Salesforce as an operating system for your business. It should drive efficiencies amongst sales and service teams alike that enables you to ultimately generate more revenue.

Entering offline details into documents to then be manually downloaded, printed and signed prior to upload and return email goes against why you bought your licenses.

Why Integrate Your E-Signature Platform with Salesforce?

The reason you want to use E-Signatures with Salesforce is because they are game changers once combined with automated document generation. So, if you already use e-signature, is the integration really worth it?

For those already using an external e-signature solution the argument still stands. You need a single source of truth for business documentation and to make it easy for users to manage this.

In a sales process without integration, you send a quote out to a prospect or client using Salesforce. Your salesperson then needs to go to a separate system to lookup that file, work with it in the e-signature platform to send to the prospect.

What Will Integrating a E-Signature Platform Do?

Once a salesperson receives the alert it is signed, they need to download and upload the file and manually adjust Salesforce to show  it is closed. When we bring an integration into this process it can be as simple as the following:

• Salesperson clicks a button on the opportunity to send document for signature.
• Prospect / customer receives document and signs.
• Salesforce is automatically notified that the document is signed, pushes the opportunity to closed won, creates order or service objects and notifies anyone that needs to know.

What Do You Need to Consider?

Before you start integrating E-Signatures with Salesforce, you should think about all the different use cases where e-signature may help. These use cases as well as industry, data sensitivity and commercial implications will influence the platform you need:

• Quote / Statement of Work
• Terms & Conditions
• Non-Disclosure Agreements
• Consent forms
• Service Requests & Completion
• Delivery Confirmation
• HR documentation

Types of E-Signature Platform

Different solution providers have varying levels of stringency in their technology and thus they may be more or less appropriate for your needs. The UK Government has a useful whitepaper which defines 3 categories of e-signature. Before using E-Signatures with Salesforce, consider the following types:

Simple electronic signatures

These include scanned signatures and tick-box plus declarations.

Advanced electronic signatures

These are uniquely linked to the signatory, are capable of identifying the signatory, and are linked to data within the signature that can detect any changes made.

Qualified electronic signatures

This is an advanced electronic signature that is created by a qualified electronic signature creation device. It is based on a qualified certificate for electronic signatures.

What Solutions Can You Integrate with Salesforce?

When considering E-Signatures with Salesforce, there is no ‘Best vendor’, because it depends on the criticality of your documents and the budget you have available. Give thought to your use case and be sure to look at the level of integration each vendor will allow.

Adobe Sign: The Adobe Sign for Salesforce User Guide can be found here

Conga: The ‘Installing Conga Sign from the Salesforce AppExchange’ documentation can be found here

DocuSign: The DocuSign eSignature for Salesforce Overview can be found here

Formstack: The ‘How it works’ page provides a useful overview and links to further information

Hellosign: An overview of the solution can be found here

PandaDoc: A detailed view of the capabilities can be found here

Find out more..

Here at Marketing Logic, we’ve been in the Sales and Marketing Strategy game for longer than we care to remember. However, we’re proud of the exposure we’ve had to markets globally and the strategy we offer as a result.

If you are looking for Salesforce / Pardot Support with an existing Org or want to know if Salesforce or Pardot is right for you, get in touch with Marketing Logic for a free consultation or simply a chat. We work alongside Start-ups and Enterprises alike, we’re certain we will find you a path to growth, whatever your plans.

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