The Nextdoc Stream origin story

TL;DR; We built a document streaming system for users that need to see documents fast.

Some Salesforce users need to be able to see generated documents before sending them.

This can be for many reasons but they all want to know that the documents they send to customers make them proud and not embarrassed.

History

Nextdoc was created in 2017 with the goal of improving document creation for consultants. We felt that consultants were spending too much time doing word processing.

At the same time, we talked to Salesforce users and discovered similar problems there. Generating documents for customers was taking too long.

We decided to solve this problem first.

The Problem

Users were wasting time clicking or waiting for documents to be created.

One case we found was generation of documents using rich text fields in Salesforce. Sometimes it was just formatting text but other times it was content being cut and pasted from other systems into rich text fields.

Even more difficult was the use of images in rich text fields. This was common in the real estate world where contractors would take pictures before and after their work for quotes and invoices. Frequently these images would reformat documents in unpredictable ways and the results looked unprofessional.

Slow generation meant having to choose between waiting or not checking. No surprise, there was frustration.

The Solution

Starting from nothing, we imagined what perfect document generation would look like. How could we reduce the time and clicks needed to create documents.

What about no clicks at all? Could this be done? This was the birth of document streaming.

If the preview is open, it will re-render after any save. This is why our AppExchange package is called Stream.

Since then, we’ve continued to strive for a stream-lined user experience for every feature. Typically this means removing UI elements, not adding them.

That’s why Nextdoc Stream looks so simple. It takes a lot of effort to make complex systems look simple. We find this effort very satisfying and our customers have confirmed the value.

The document streaming user experience has become an expectation for users in our community.

We hope we can demonstrate the experience for your community.

The Benefits

The original users were delighted with the results. All that time was recovered. The time saved over large groups of users was significant.

We discovered that any Salesforce user who create documents also like the high-speed, low-touch user experience of streaming.

We also found ISV partners wanted document streaming included in their solutions. They told us that the streaming user experience felt “premium” for their customers.

Great products find uses in unpredictable ways.

We’d love to hear from you if these benefits might help you. You can register here