Salesforce is not losing sight of the SME at Dreamforce 2024. Although the big Agentforce announcement on stage is mostly illustrated by enterprise examples, the company expects quick results from smaller enterprises.
“If there’s one thing SMEs do well, it’s innovate quickly.” So says Giovanni Crispino, head of EMEA ESMB for Salesforce. Therefore, he expects SMEs to have the opportunity to differentiate themselves with Agentforce.
Future of AI?
Salesforce is building its Dreamforce conference this year around Agentforce. CEO Marc Benioff and CEO of Salesforce AI Clara Shih appear on stage several times to explain the power of the solution. Agentforce revolves around AI-driven agents, which live in the Salesforce environment and can perform tasks autonomously based on business data.
Salesforce thinks it owns the future of AI, and backs this up with examples from larger companies such as Saks Fifth Avenue: a large American clothing chain. However, quite a few Belgian customers and partners are also present at the Dreamforce conference, and they tend to represent somewhat smaller companies. What does Agentforce mean for them?
Key to disruption
Crispino first points out that Salesforce consistently has a focus on SMEs. “We have an internal team focused exclusively on the SME market. We work with specialized partners, of course, but we are also in direct contact with smaller companies.”
I would not be surprised if small businesses start to cause disruption in the market.
Giovanni Crispino, Head of EMEA ESMB Salesforce
He expects Agentforce could have a major impact on the capabilities of SMEs. “I wouldn’t be surprised if small businesses start causing disruption in the market. SMEs will have the opportunity to operate at the enterprise level.” For example, Crispino envisions companies using agents to create new and personalized campaigns every week, on a scale that was impossible before.
Agentforce vs. DIY and Copilot
Agentforce has the potential to democratize AI to a degree for businesses of all kinds, at least as long as they are in the Salesforce ecosystem. Right now, after all, there are few off-the-shelf options. Those looking to integrate AI models into workflows still have some tinkering to do. Benioff calls that DIY (do-it-yourself) AI, and paints it as the black-and-white segment of an infomercial. He doesn’t think highly of co-pilots either.
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As for AI customization, projects are indeed expensive with little guarantee of success. (Generative) AI is still in its infancy, so that should not be surprising. Copilots, according to Benioff, are little better than Clippy, although that is very short of the mark. Among customers at Dreamforce itself, we hear a more nuanced view: Copilots like Microsoft’s do seem to catch on in the right scenarios. Certainly developers benefit greatly from them.
However, a Copilot is an assistant, while an agent is autonomous. Creating autonomous workflows usually falls under customization, which is less accessible to SMEs. Agentforce, on the other hand, will be available to all Salesforce customers starting next month and requires no special development expertise.
Quickly left
“The technology is low-code and already live with customers today,” Crispino continues. “With a partner, you can build an agent in very little time. Everyone will have a use case to start with, and one day it can be ready.” The price of Agentforce itself is also consumption-based, so customers can get started with their existing subscriptions. Note that the core stack is essential.
Salesforce insists that Agentforce is immediately integrated into the existing environment: data in the data cloud, automations in flows, APIs, Mulesoft… All the work a company large or small has already done remains relevant to agents. This is exactly why even small companies can theoretically roll out AI in production via agents so quickly, with a tangible impact.
(Not) for everyone
Salesforce thus democratizes AI, bringing truly productive AI applications in a manageable way to companies of all sizes. At least: if those companies are Salesforce customers. That detail should not be overlooked. Agentforce will work easier, faster and better than any alternatives, according to the Benioff-Ohana, because of its integration with the entire Salesforce platform.
On the other hand, you must already be an (enthusiastic) customer. The deeper you are in the ecosystem, the faster you can realize value. In effect, Salesforce is enabling its customers to get a head start. SMEs that embraced Salesforce can now take the heat from enterprises that didn’t. And those who have yet to jump on the bandwagon? They can turn to an enthusiastic Crispino or someone on his team.