Questions to ask before going for a Salesforce Certification

Salesforce is used in nearly every industry and innumerous companies today. Plus, it’s one of the top certifications in today’s world. Salesforce is leading in the CRM world as it is the most scalable CRM. Nearly every large tech enterprise is now conducting some sort of educational certification program to help users with a better understanding of their product. This, in turn, is helping enterprises in enhancing the overall product’s utility. Salesforce certifications are no different, in fact, these certifications makeup to be the most sought-after certificates at the intersection of sales and IT.

In 2017, Salesforce increased its market share by more percentage than all other top CRM providers combined. Whereas in 2018 IDC named Salesforce as #1 in CRM. Salesforce also tops on the Fortune Magazine’s list of the ‘100 Best Companies to Work With 2018’. According to a survey, Salesforce economy is expected to create 3.3 million new jobs by 2022.

There are two main areas in Salesforce certification: Administrator or Developer. But of course, if you have decided to get certified, the next step can be confusing. Every applicant ponders the following questions before going for a Salesforce Certification:

“Do I have the skills to become a Salesforce Administrator?”

“I want to get Salesforce certified. Should I go for Admin or Developer?”

In this blog, we will discuss questions which will provide you with enough context and help you make an informed decision before going for a Salesforce Certification.

However, you need to ask yourself these five questions first to make sure that a Salesforce certification is right for you.

1. Are you dedicated enough to put the work into garner big rewards?

Getting a Salesforce certification is not as easy as you think. You must go the extra mile to get yourself accredited Salesforce certification. As said previously, Salesforce certification should not be taken casually. Every candidate that has managed to achieve the fundamental level certification need to work extremely hard to get “certified” status. It calls for research, trailhead tutorials and a lot of revision in your free time. Though the certifications are not easy, they are remarkably feasible for everyone that puts a level of dedication and effort. There is no doubt that there are a number of resources out there, both free and paid, to help take you to the next level. In addition to resources, many professionals of the Salesforce community are ready to help you at the drop of a hat. You just need to reach out to the right person.

2. Are you willing to invest in yourself?

Everyone who wants to succeed in their Salesforce career has to invest both time and money to do so. So are you willing to do the same to get Salesforce certified? The time and money you need to invest depend upon the certification path you choose. Salesforce is one of the most fantastic careers I have ever come across. Apart from this, you will get extremely positive feedback, speaking to any member of the Salesforce community about their career path. But that also means an investment of both your time and money. There is a fee related to the certification path you choose. In addition to that cost, the average Salesforce exam cost is $200 and if you don’t qualify then you need to pay a fee to retake the exam. It is vital to keep in mind that different certifications have different exams and retake costs. Thus, making an investment in quality training is a smart move.

3. Are you prepared for sustainable knowledge?

Once you have qualified the entry level exams of Salesforce, don’t think that battle is over. As Salesforce is evolving and ever-changing platform, so one must also have to keep up with all the latest updates to maintain certification. Salesforce does this in the form of Maintenance Exams. These exams come out three times a year in line with Salesforce product releases (Spring, Summer, Winter). Exams are conducted to test your knowledge based on the upcoming features and updates. This helps you in imparting this knowledge on to your team members and customers as well.

4. Are you willing to tackle real-life scenarios during the exam?

Salesforce certifications are not just about learning theories! These are all highly based on real-life scenarios, giving your business requirements and hands-on learning. And based on that you have to select the correct solution.

For example, Salesforce Administrator Certification Training includes two real-world projects as part of the course. The first project challenges students to implement an end-to-end recruitment process, while the other requires them to implement customer service process management.

5. Are you choosing the right Salesforce Certification?

When you decide to get Salesforce certified, you will need to be surefire which certification you need to go for. The most popular foundation level certifications are: Certified Administrator Exam and Platform App Builder Exam. The administrator is focused more on maintaining and administering the Salesforce platform while the App Builder is more likely on Salesforce customization. Before you start your Salesforce Certification process, you need to be aware of which to go for.

Now what? If answers to all the questions above are in the affirmative then you’re all set to take the first leap in your Salesforce career. There are countless Salesforce certifications and you can choose a certification that fits your needs. Survey also shows that the majority of companies require at least a base level Salesforce certification in all of their job postings. Long-story-short, Salesforce Certification can help you fast-track your career, so go for it now!