The power of Conversation Design in Salesforce Agentforce implementations
Everyone’s rushing to build AI agents. It feels like déjà vu. As we move from prompts to AI “colleagues,” companies are making the same old mistake: focusing on the tech and forgetting the human who has to use it.
A Quick Trip Down Memory Lane
We’ve been here before. Think back to those big, expensive software projects a decade or two ago. Companies would spend a fortune, but when it came time to actually use them… crickets. Why? Because the software wasn’t designed with real people in mind. The projects that worked asked a simple question: “Hey, you, the person who has to use this every day… what would actually make your job easier?”
The lesson was clear: great design isn’t a luxury; it’s the difference between a tool people love and an “expensive paperweight.” And history is repeating itself with AI.
Getting Lost in the Tech Weeds
Because AI sounds so futuristic, the conversation drifts to technical details: “Can it search the web? Is the RAG working? Does it hallucinate?” All good questions, but irrelevant if the agent isn’t valuable.
This is where the ownership model breaks. When the AI’s tone is off or it misunderstands a customer, who gets the blame? Usually IT. But think of your AI agent as a new hire. You wouldn’t onboard a salesperson, hand them a laptop, and then hold IT responsible for their numbers. So why treat an AI agent any differently?
Clicks Are Not Conversations
Designing a good conversation is a completely different ballgame than designing a website. On a website, you design predictable paths: a user clicks button A, they go to screen B. A conversation is messy, dynamic, with endless outcomes.
That’s why our best Agentforce projects are empowered by Conversation Design Experts. They don’t just write prompts. They design the agent’s personality, tone of voice, and ability to handle tricky situations with grace. They ensure the AI is helpful, trustworthy, and maybe even a little bit charming.
Welcome to the Age of Talking to Your Tech
For thousands of years, talking was how we got things done. The digital age forced us into decades of clicking through menus. Previous voice-assistants didn’t make the cut, but now we’re entering a “Conversational Renaissance.” Technology is finally catching up to the way humans naturally work. And we’re expecting Dreamforce to be all about Conversation and Voice.
The challenge is no longer just about technology; it’s about people. The key question isn’t “What can the agent do?” It’s “How will this agent make our people’s lives better and help us win?”
That is why we strongly advise: Don’t skimp on the design. The success of your AI will be measured by the quality of the partnership between your people and your AI, and that partnership has to be designed from the start.
Learn more about design and our approach, or contact us below.