Goodlabs’ managing director Matt Wilson shares his thoughts about AI-influenced changes to the Salesforce brand and wider product offering
It’s corporate logo is a blue cloud with the word Salesforce in it. The brand presides over a huge range of interconnected digital data products, many with “cloud” in the title. But now many are being re-badged with “agent” instead — part of a serious pivot to AI. Recent articles circulating after this year’s Dreamforce, including one reporting Marc Benioff’s comment that he might even rename the company Agentforce, made me stop and think about what this could mean for the #nonprofit sector.
And why, despite my reservations about the terminology, I’m genuinely excited about what AI agents could mean for charities. I’ll share three reasons.
My business introduces lots of charities to Salesforce, largely because of its core CRM strengths and the generous discounts available for smaller organisations. But every time I demo the system to a new prospect, I have to start with: “Why would a charity be interested in a product with ‘Sales’ in its name?” I’d be quite happy not to have to do that any more.
That said, I’m not convinced that the words Agent and AI naturally go together in most people’s minds. There’s a real risk of confusion. But if we put the branding to one side, the underlying direction of travel is fascinating — because AI agents could genuinely reshape how busy charities manage and report on their services.
Here are three reasons I’m excited.
1. More human referral journeys
Referral pathways for people seeking help can be long, clinical, and complicated. AI agents could make them feel far more human. Instead of navigating complex forms, someone could describe their situation in their own words and be guided through a gentle, conversational process that captures exactly what a service needs. The same outcomes, but with greater dignity and far less friction.
2. Reporting that feels like insight, not admin
Salesforce reports and dashboards already help to reduce the stress around impact reporting — but the learning curve is still steep. AI could flatten it. Imagine asking, “Show me referral trends over the past six months and highlight anything unusual,” and receiving a dashboard, a narrative summary, and suggested next questions. Not replacing good measurement practice, but making it accessible to every organisation.
3. Training and support woven directly into the CRM
Many frontline workers don’t see themselves as ‘tech-confident’, and they shouldn’t have to be. AI assistants could sit within the CRM as a calm, patient guide: helping staff complete tasks, record interactions accurately, follow safeguarding steps, or simply remember where a field lives. Real-time support embedded in daily work, improving confidence and data quality simultaneously.
If Salesforce is serious about reframing its ecosystem around agents and AI, I hope our sector doesn’t just brace for the change — but sees the opportunity in it. Done well, these tools could help charities spend less time wrestling with systems and more time doing what they do best: supporting people.