Are you curious why over 11 million installs from the Salesforce AppExchange have happened since its inception? Have you faced the same business challenge at multiple organizations? Have you ever said, “There should be an app for that?”
If you answered “yes” to any of these questions, you might be ready to build your first app for the AppExchange.
This article will discuss where digital transformation product ideas come from, the differences between a managed and unmanaged package, and when one type makes sense versus the other.
This article will also cover how to transform your idea into an MVP (minimum viable product), find your first group of users, and prepare for and pass the Salesforce platform security review so that you can launch your app on the Salesforce AppExchange.
Often, ideas for apps come from everyday challenges end users face. These solutions can be for issues the end user solved at multiple employers throughout their career, or a one-time experience that was very difficult to overcome.
Some of these solutions arise through using managed and unmanaged packages.
Simply put, a managed package has its code builder hidden. The users of a managed package get all the package benefits, but they don’t have to worry about updating or accessing the code base for any reason.
You can think of a managed package as an app. Managed packages are typically what Salesforce ISV partners place on the AppExchange to sell and distribute to customers.
Managed packages are also fully upgradeable. To ensure seamless upgrades, specific changes (such as removing objects or fields) can not be performed.
Some other features of managed packages include:
Unmanaged packages are typically used to distribute open-source projects or application templates to provide developers with the essential components needed for an application. Once these components are installed from an unmanaged package, they can be edited in the organization they are installed in.
At first glance, you might think unmanaged packages are superior because – as the app’s end user – they are free to use. However, if you’re looking for an app that will be constantly developed, improved, and supported by its creator, then the managed package should be your preferred choice.
From the viewpoint of someone building apps, while the unmanaged package takes less time and effort to develop, it doesn’t carry the Salesforce stamp of approval from the security review that the managed package does.
The first step in creating a software product is to determine what functionality and features are the ‘bare-bones’ – the minimum criteria necessary for the product to showcase its potential benefits to those who would use it.
Once this set of requirements is built, you have essentially created your minimum viable product (MVP). This process is usually done in-house with product developers and testers at your company. What you are building becomes your alpha version.
The primary purpose of an alpha version is to identify bugs and features that are not functioning as intended. Think of this as your ‘pre-release’ version – not available to people outside your organization.
Hopefully, along your journey, you have talked to some companies about your idea (your product) to help validate that your product will meet the needs of a gap identified in business processes.
You will also gain some interest from these companies in becoming one of your early (beta) test customers to install the app and put it to use with real-world scenarios.
Congratulations! It’s time for a celebration – you have a product being used by a customer. Now it’s time to scale your app for the masses (and public signups).
The security import review process helps identify security vulnerabilities that hackers, malware, or other threats can exploit.
The Salesforce security review team tests your cloud solution using threat-modeling profiles based on the most common web vulnerabilities. The review team essentially attempts to penetrate the defenses programmed in your solution.
Their goal is to extract or modify data they don’t have permission to access. Understanding what issues are scanned helps you prepare your application for the security review.
All solutions published on the AppExchange must meet the exact security requirements. Some of the more common secure coding violations include:
You’ve just received notice that your app passed the security review? Awesome! Now you’re ready to launch that app, right? It’s not that simple. Salesforce will want to review and approve your business plan first.
Salesforce must approve your business plan before you can launch your app on the AppExchange for list views. If you’re new to the AppExchange Partner Program, you can sign your partnership agreement with Salesforce after they approve your business plan.
Launching apps on the AppExchange can lead to market leader gains by helping other companies:
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