The Best Salesforce Certifications to Look for in 2020

Salesforce tops the charts across the world in Customer Relationship Management. It is not one of the best, but the best in the game. It is not that others do not know how to play, but just the fact that they haven’t got the rules well. Salesforce seems to have got the basics right and they not only know how to but also when to play the masterstroke. No wonder, in such a short span of time the company rose to prominence. It found wide-scale acceptance and adoption over a large spectrum of industries ranging from healthcare, tourism, media, etc. The company now knows no end in sight as far as its scale and reach are concerned.

So, one thing is sure that a career in Salesforce is highly promising. But, the larger question is what is it that is needed to get into it and what is it that takes you higher in the hierarchy?

Let us see how to be successful at Salesforce. Here it does make a good fit to go through the fact, about what Salesforce actually is. Let us quickly glean through it!

What is Salesforce?

Salesforce, in simple terms, is the most successful Customer Relationship Management software in the world today. The software has changed fortunes for many small and large organizations alike. It has brought a paradigm change to the once mundane area where only archaic marketing rules were at play. What made such a huge tectonic shift possible was the introduction of the cloud to the game! Yes, it was the shifting of the marketing to the cloud that made such shifts possible.

With that information in mind, you have to chart out your way to make in-roads to the Salesforce. What most individuals get wrong is the fact that they have to be from a particular background to get to learn it. The apprehension is justified to a certain extent but you have to get it right that Salesforce has something for everyone. This means that it offers a line of certifications that fit the needs of many different professionals.

Hence, if you are looking at growth in 2020, Salesforce certification is one thing that you can consider to be a highly strategic and forward-looking move. It has relevance today and will hold the same in the future for the cloud has become the new normal and is here to stay. It will help you not only get a new job but also earn a raise and definitely bag a promotion. Really, a Salesforce certification comes loaded with many benefits. Here are a few to fit your kitty.

Why will you Get yourself a Salesforce Certification?

That seems to be a reasonable question. Why will you take all the hustle and delve into a certification that is so new to what you have been doing so far? What will you get in the end?

The first thing that the certification will win you is your marketability in the job market and will help scale that career ladder much faster. We really mean it! Some of the major benefits linked with the certification include:

A). Boosts your Knowledge:

Certification is not easy, at least not in Salesforce. We are not saying it is difficult to cross but trying to make a point that you will have to put your efforts into it. Unlike many other certifications that you can just cross, this one demands commitment. Not only that because each Salesforce exam comes at a cost, you surely do not want to falter at this. So, the preparation itself will leave you with a mine of information, which is not only relevant but also will continue to be the same even going forward. One thing stands clear is that if you undertake this certification (any of the types), you will definitely come out much more enriched in knowledge.

B). Training in Real Situations:

This is one of the major attractions of the Salesforce certifications. They actually walk you through some real-life scenarios and replicate such situations that give you invaluable practical experience on the app. The certification is so-knit that you get a lot of practical experience. For instance, the training for the certifications may involve a typical 12-hour training session all dedicated to living projects or another 20 hours for practicing in class. Such interruptions are not replaceable by any amount of reading or browsing. Such experiences stay on with the students for life. Lessons mastered during such sessions are often beyond the reach of any routine curricula.

C). Importance in Organization:

Technologies that are based on cloud come endowed with a feature that they are able to update themselves. This means, whenever there is a new version or edition of that technology, it is taken up by the application itself. Salesforce also releases many updates in a year at different times. Now if the organization that you work for, already has Salesforce then understand the fact that you do not have to wait for months to upgrade your software. So, one of the other jobs that you can possibly get after being certified is that you can take it on yourself to keep the whole software completely updated. This also will eventually mean that you will become the most sought-after person in your organization whenever the new update is released by Salesforce.

D). Better Planning:

Salesforce, you have to understand works for professionals from different backgrounds, those who are looking at different futures and also the ones who are planning a career switch. The software will also help you have a proper balance between your professional and personal life. How? Now if you have some power in your hand that will help you foresee and plan your tasks accordingly, what will you do? The first thing that a human brain does in such a case is to prioritize work so you can get enough space for personal life. This way you can be both productive at work and equally satisfied at your personal front. This will serve as a great way forward to maintain your work-life balance.

E). Optimized Implementation of Software:

There has been an incidence where the organizations have had access to the Salesforce software but have not been able to utilize its benefits optimally. The organizations have often been caught in this puzzle even after taking the time to implement the same. So, what really resulted was not being able to use the platform to its full potential, why? Just because there was nobody out there to handle it with ease. Now, imagine if you are a part of the same and on top of that you are also certified, then you actually know what you are looking at. This will get you an unexpected opportunity to be able to prove yourself to your management and colleagues.

F). Compulsory for Salesforce Jobs:

This is an open secret, that if you are looking at jobs in Salesforce, then you have to be certified. Now, this should follow a sound decision that yes, you want to work in an organization that has Salesforce. So, if that is done, you have to know that almost all the jobs that are linked to Salesforce, have kept it as a prerequisite. Alternatively, if you think you have a lot of experience and yet when you actually look for jobs, you are not able to find any or do not get any calls, etc. Hence, every such situation calls for only one answer and that is certification.

G). Opportunities Galore:

The best thing the certification will do for you is to validate and authenticate whatever you have studied so far. We mean to say that you may have studied far and wide about Salesforce, but always have a hard time explaining the same to your employers. This part if sufficed by certification is completely overlooked. Your certification thus acts as a passport to your way to the job. Such individuals are said to have excellent processing skills.

H). Better Salaries:

This is seen as one of the major benefits of certifications. Also, undeniably this is the most compelling one too. The difference is too good to be ignored. Now, if there are two people running for the same position, with one having much more experience than the other, while the latter may not have the experience that is being asked for the job, then without a doubt, the one with the certification will get an edge over others? Not only that, it has been found that the ones who are certified are able to bag many salaries than their non-certified counterparts. For instance, the average pay of a non-certified professional hovers around $69,000 while for the certified person it is around $89,850. With time, the Salesforce certified people are able to earn nearly $100,000 annually.

These are some of the known benefits of certification. Let us get started and see what is in the bag for you?

What are the Different Types of Certifications available?

There is a whole bunch of options that are available for the professionals. These are administrators, developers, architects, marketers, app builders, consultants, etc. Let us explore them more deeply.

1). Certifications for Administrators:

Needless to say, administrators form the backbone of any online organization, so your success as an administrator will be authenticated by the fact that you are certified. Of course, as an administrator, you will be in charge of many important tasks like management of users, data, customization of sales cloud and even building of reports, dashboard, etc. There are basically two types of certifications that fall under this category and these are:

• Salesforce Certified Administrator: This is primarily focused on authenticating the knowledge and skill-set of the person in customization of Salesforce, management of users, and even configuration of the software.
• Salesforce Certified Advanced Administrator: This looks forward to the part that it is basically designed for highly experienced professionals who are proficient in using the Advanced administration features of Salesforce in addition to expertise in other areas.

2). Certifications for Developers:

Any certification to validate the skills of a developer should comprise that the person is able to undertake an extreme level of customization of CRM applications and come up with the right choice of coding skills that lead to fully changed and dynamic platforms for the clients. The Salesforce certification for the developers comes in three different levels. It is said that these are enough to test the technical proficiency and also the practical experience of the same. The certifications that fall under this category are as follows:

• Salesforce Certified Commerce Cloud Digital Developer: This one is directed at measuring the ability of the candidate about the Commerce Cloud Digital platform. The person is able to handle various synchronization issues between UX Studio and also the sandbox environment. In addition to this, also the person should be able to configure OCAPI permissions for both the Data and the Shop APIs.
• Salesforce Certified Platform Developer I: A highly useful certification for the employers as it clearly marks the ability of the candidate for building better and customized applications. This one becomes possible only when the candidate has a proven track record of designing data models, logic and even user-interface. Also, knowledge about how to use Apex and Visualforce for the development of customized applications is also important. Basically, the person who is serious about this certification has to have a clear idea of the full development lifecycle of the product.
• Salesforce Certified Platform Developer II: This one is aimed at testing the extent of knowledge about data modeling and also coding. It also helps in the verification of the skills of the developer for the creation of highly intricate business logic and other interfaces. The certification exam will evaluate if the person is able to produce topmost design patterns, development and is also involved in various reusable programs. This certification typically tests the candidate on the extent of knowledge about the Apex design patterns and object-oriented best practices.

3). Certifications for Architects:

The certifications in this realm come in three tiers namely:

• Salesforce Certified Architecture Designers: They exhibit their expertise in a particular domain.
• Salesforce System Architect: They are the ones who show their expertise in architecture over many domains. This is meant for the professionals who are highly experienced and have already got the certifications like the Certification for Development Lifecycle and Deployment Designer, Identity and Access Management Designer, Integration Architecture Designer, and finally the Level I of the Certified Platform Developer. All these are essential to get the Salesforce Certified System Architect.
• Salesforce Certified Technical Architect: They are the ones who are known for their skills and other abilities for both designing and high-performance technology solutions. This is the highest tier of the certification in the Architects path of Salesforce. So, if you have reached this level so you need to brace up for a broad-based evaluation that is spread across many development platforms. The certification tests their experience and other skills for a complete assessment of the architecture and other kinds of customer requirements. They are also tested for giving shape to some of the high-performance technical solutions that are both secure and can maximally bring up the potential of the Salesforce platform. Being the top-tier the basic requirements also include the candidate not only will have the desired experience but also would have earned the Salesforce Certified Application Architect and Salesforce Certified System Architect.

4). Certifications for App Builders:

These are typically those certifications that are built to accommodate special skills of app building and other kinds of implementation experts.

• Salesforce Certified Platform App Builder: The certification serves a special niche of those professionals who possess and have also shown special skills in the realm of application design and development. The certification will test your skills around designing reports and other kinds of custom applications.

5). Certifications for Consultants:

These are those professionals who have developed expertise in various Service and Sales Cloud products.

• Salesforce Service Cloud Consultant: These are professionals who have proven record for executing various service cloud solutions as per the requirements of the client. The candidate has to exhibit skills related to design on contact centers, interaction channels and also the management of data and analytics.
• Salesforce Sales Cloud Consultant: Here the candidates have to demonstrate their skills in sales and marketing solutions for completely fulfilling the demands of the business.
• Salesforce Pardot Consultant: The candidates have to showcase their skills for both designing and implementation of the marketing automation of Pardot as per the requirements of the customers. The candidate has to also demonstrate an ability to build various tools for automation, forms, and even emails.
• Salesforce Marketing Cloud Consultant: This certification is for those professionals who offer solutions for the execution of both strategic email campaigns and are able to make data-driven decisions for optimization of the customer solutions.

Summary

Salesforce is huge and has wide-ranging certifications that cater to professionals from varied backgrounds. The fact that Salesforce will continue to drive business around the world cannot be challenged. So, any investment that you make in this will definitely prove highly beneficial as you move forward. Certifications not only aid your knowledge-base but make you ready for the industry for these are specially designed with a lot of practical sessions. Also, you will enjoy an edge in salary when compared to others. The benefits are huge and if you are really serious about it, you should definitely pick the one that is closest to your area of expertise. We will love to hear your experiences in the same way. Have a great future ahead!