What type of object should be used to allow sales teams at Universal Containers to view order information without replicating it?

Utilizing an external object is an effective way to enable sales teams to view order information without the need for replication. External objects in Salesforce allow users to access data that resides outside of the Salesforce database, such as in other systems or databases. This approach is ideal for situations where duplicating data could lead to inconsistencies or increased storage costs.

By using external objects, sales teams can seamlessly reference and work with the order information as if it were natively part of Salesforce, allowing for real-time access to up-to-date data. This capability enhances data integrity and ensures that the sales team is always relying on the most current order information, which can be critical for decision-making and customer engagement.

In contrast, standard orders would involve storing and managing data within Salesforce itself, which could lead to data duplication issues. Custom objects would also require additional configuration and data management efforts, which may not be necessary if the data already exists externally. Reports, while useful for data presentation, do not provide the direct access necessary for viewing or interacting with order details like external objects do.