Salesforce is the top CRM system provider, with over 150,000 clients and 73,500 employees. Many businesses have already adopted CRM systems to improve their sales, and many more will jump on the bandwagon this year. Each of these companies needs professionals with Salesforce training to back up their ecosystem.
Salesforce is equipped to atone for the digital transformations and rise of AI amidst the threat of economic deterioration. Businesses primarily rely on Salesforce and other CRM systems to stay ahead of the curve. Salesforce boasts a recession-proof business model that will remain unwavering in the impending economic slowdown and layoffs.
The pandemic era is not over, and so are digital transformations and SaaS technologies. With the sudden increase in skill shortage, Salesforce ramped up the training modules and courses with a vision to create 9.3 Million new jobs by 2026.
If millions of new professionals pass the Salesforce Certification Exams, you may wonder how you would stand a chance to find a dream job. But isn’t it better now to start your Salesforce training than never? You have to begin your Salesforce journey now to find your way to stand out in the Salesforce ecosystem.
Why Should You Get Salesforce Certified In 2023?
Gone are the times when a technical degree or diploma could get you a job at a Fortune 500 company. Job trends 2023 predictions have pointed out that the future workforce will be focused on specializations and certificates. With tough competition in the market, businesses rely on customer relationship management to ensure that they retain their customers. With the widespread use of Salesforce by big and small companies, from Shopify to Netflix, they need a vibrant workforce skilled in their specific job role. And through Salesforce training, they ensure the delivery of qualified candidates to work on the Salesforce platform.
- Become Eligible to Get Listed in the Salesforce Job Market
Your certification is the credential that proves you have the necessary skills to work on the specific job.
- Displays Your Dedication
Gaining a Salesforce certification is a challenging task. And you also have to maintain your certifications with maintenance examinations on every release.
- Provide Smart Business Solutions
Salesforce exams gauge your skills in solving real-world business problems. It proves that you are skilled in formulating quick and intelligent solutions.
- Step Up in Your Current Job
Your certification will make you eligible for a promotion by setting you above the others. It can also prove beneficial during the annual review and be a factor for your salary hike.
How Much Does Salesforce Certification Cost?
The cost of Salesforce certifications depends on the level of examination. You can find the cost associated with each certificate on the exam guides. There are 40 Salesforce examinations, with the lowest certification cost of $75 for the Salesforce Certified Associate foundation-level exam. Most other certifications cost $200 for the first attempt and $100 for retakes.
Salesforce provides Architect Specialization examinations priced at $400 for the first try and $200 for retakes. The costliest is the Certified Technical Architect (CTA) exam which costs $6000 as it requires a Review Board exam.
Study Guide for Salesforce Certifications in 2023
Dedicated Salesforce training is required to prepare for and pass the exam. Check the below study guide to help you organize your Salesforce learning plan.
- Decide The Certification Exam
Starting trouble is an issue most newbies face as they need help figuring out where to begin. You will initially need to understand your core skills and choose the most suited certification exam. You can start with Salesforce Administrator Certification if you have a technical background. The recently added Salesforce Certified Associate Exam is the right place for newbies to understand the Salesforce ecosystem and decide on their Salesforce training and career pathway.
- Start with Trailhead
You can begin with Salesforce Trailhead, which will help you get started. It contains online learning modules and Trailhead Playground, which gives you a hands-on learning experience. You can learn the digital and soft skills required to develop your sales and marketing skills. The candidate can also add the Super Badges earned on Trailhead to their CV.
- Take Guided Training with a Reputed Course Provider
Guided online/offline courses are for those who do not have a technical background or are not good at self-learning. Online classes are conducted live or recorded. Most online courses also provide one-to-one doubt-clearing sessions, making it easy to learn basic concepts.
- Extra Learning Resources
Trailhead or online courses will give the basic Salesforce training required to pass the exam. But it is always recommended to refer to additional sources like white papers, YouTube videos, books, and guides. Join the Salesforce Community to stay updated with the latest happenings. You can also download the Salesforce Learning App for Android and iOS for a seamless learning experience.
- Planning Your Study Time
Candidates who cannot stick to timelines can schedule the exam before starting the preparations so that they have a deadline before which they have to finish the learning process. Create a checklist of the topics based on the syllabus, and ensure you have enough time for revisions and practice exams.
- Learn the Concepts
Refrain from trying to memorize and mug up the topics, as there is much documentation and the exams have primarily implementation-level questions. While planning for a Salesforce career, you should have the vision to accrue more certifications, demanding that you know the basics.
- Revision & Flash Cards
Plan your timetable with weekly revision. During the revision time, you can utilize the weekends to surf more about the topics learned and understand the concepts. Create notes and flashcards alongside the daily learning schedule so you can quickly revise the points the week before the exam.
- Role of Salesforce Practice Exams
Attending a multiple-choice question is a tricky affair. Some questions may have two right choices, but you have to choose the best option. Sometimes all options may look the same with very minute differences; you should be well acquainted with attempting such questions to deduce the answer. Salesforce practice exams are available online for free and paid. Try to attend the maximum number of such exams that will help you to understand the exam type and how to manage time.
Exam practices also help to understand the elimination technique to answer multiple-choice questions. You should be able to make quick eliminations from the options and then choose the most suited one. You can make vague guesses as there is no negative marking.
- Get Hands-On Experience
Trailhead Playground and Trail mixes are the best way to get hands-on experience on the platform. Besides the foundation level exams, all Salesforce cert exams have predominantly real-time scenario questions. And to solve such questions, it is essential to have worked on the Salesforce ecosystem.
- Do Not be Discouraged by Failure
If you have prepared well for your exam and followed all the above steps to the T, it is improbable that you may fail beginner-level exams. But be prepared to face failure. Salesforce exams are prepared with a designated difficulty level to ensure that companies hire the most knowledgeable candidates to operate on their Salesforce Org.
If you fail on your first attempt, you can schedule the retest in half an hour. But you have to pay the retake fees, so try to make sure that you are well-prepared before attempting the exam.
- Get Specialized
The goal is not to gain one certificate and enter a job. The first Salesforce certification should be your guiding light that will pave the path for a long Salesforce journey. The aim is to add in as much certification as possible. The future of any career is specialization. There are more than 30 Salesforce Specializations, and more are added with every quarterly release. Skill mastery in Salesforce training can put you above the rest and grant you a secure career.
How to Balance Salesforce Exam Preparation with Work and Life?
The Salesforce Certified Administrator exam is foundational, and the estimated preparation time is 115-125 hours. Ideally, you can plan to finish the exam preparation in 2 months, yet for working people, it could be a challenge. The below tips help you balance your work life and exam preparation.
- Try waking up a few hours early; a fresh mind is the best learning time.
- Use your commuting time on the bus or metro by listening to YouTube videos or Podcasts on Salesforce.
- Set a fixed time outside the daily working hours for exam preparation.
Conclusion
The post-pandemic world of 2023 may be challenging, with several factors like layoffs and AI influencing the job market. But, as we had mentioned earlier in the article, Salesforce jobs and skilled professionals are predicted to be safe from the recession. Break out of the job role definitions and explore new certificates and Salesforce training specializations. Businesses need proficient people who can bring about digital transformations rather than go by the books and take orders.
As more businesses are looking up to CRM and cloud systems for data processing and automation, they are frantically searching for the change makers who can improve the efficiency of the Salesforce org. Even though skill shortage is still an issue that dawns over the Salesforce job market, companies are looking to hire affordable skilled candidates. With more skills and certifications, candidates can cherry-pick the company they wish to work for rather than chase behind jobs.
