alivirgo Salesforce CRM Platform AI Skill Guide
Overview & Engine Architecture
Salesforce is a multi-tenant CRM platform built around standard and custom objects, declarative automation (Flows), and programmatic layers (Apex, LWC). Data is queried with SOQL/SOSL; external systems use REST/Bulk APIs with OAuth. Agents prefer declarative solutions first, keep governor limits in mind, and never hard-code org IDs or secrets in Apex.
UI (Lightning / LWC)
-> Objects + Fields + Relationships
-> Flows / Process automation
-> Apex / Triggers (when needed)
External apps -> OAuth + REST / Bulk / Streaming APIs
When to use this skill
- Modeling custom objects and relationships for CRM processes
- Writing safe SOQL and bulk-friendly Apex
- Designing Flows vs Apex trade-offs
- Integrating Salesforce with middleware or custom backends
Operational directives
- Prefer Flow for straightforward create/update/routing; use Apex for complex bulk logic or callouts.
- Bulkify everything: no SOQL/DML inside loops.
- Enforce FLS and sharing (
with sharingwhere appropriate); never assume admin context in integrations. - Use Named Credentials for callouts; store secrets outside source.
- Version metadata with SFDX/source format; avoid editing production directly.
SOQL sketches
SELECT Id, Name, Account.Name
FROM Contact
WHERE Email = :email
LIMIT 1
SELECT Id, (SELECT Id, Subject FROM Cases__r)
FROM Account
WHERE Id = :accountId
Apex trigger pattern
trigger ContactTrigger on Contact (before insert, before update) {
ContactService.beforeSave(Trigger.new, Trigger.oldMap);
}
// Service class: one SOQL, one DML path, unit-tested with Test.startTest/stopTest
Common pitfalls
| Pitfall | Result | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| SOQL in for-loop | Governor limit exceptions | Collect IDs, query once, map results |
| Hard-coded record type IDs | Breaks across sandboxes | Query by DeveloperName |
| Unrestricted guest/API user | Data leaks | Least-privilege profiles + permission sets |
| Flow recursion | Infinite updates | Entry criteria + recursion guards |
Best practices
- Name custom APIs with
__cawareness; document External IDs for upserts. - Use Bulk API 2.0 for large data jobs; respect daily limits.
- Cover Apex with tests that assert behavior, not just coverage percentage.
- Prefer Change Data Capture or Platform Events over polling for near-real-time sync.
Limitations
- Edition, licenses, and feature gates (e.g. Flow types) vary by org.
- Managed packages and AppExchange apps add opaque automation.
- Multi-org middleware patterns need explicit identity and conflict rules.
Related skills
@hubspot- lighter CRM alternative for marketing/sales teams@zapier- no-code sync into Salesforce@postman- explore Salesforce REST collections