Salesforce is one of the most influential cloud computing technologies out now, although there are many. It is one of the most popular and widely adopted customer-relationship management ( CRM ) tools. It is a top-rated, cloud-based solution that assists different teams of an organization, including marketing, sales, IT, commerce, and service teams, in working from anywhere as one.
This world’s #1 CRM platform primarily has its focuses on marketing automation, application development, customer services, and analytics. Organizations leverage Salesforce for the following purposes:
- Attract more customers using personalized marketing.
- Get to know the needs and concerns of customers and provide them the best-in-class solutions.
- Offer the best shopping experience to customers exactly the same as they expect.
- Respond faster to customer issues through any channel.
- Build customs applications to automate various other operations.
There is a growing need for experts with Salesforce knowledge since Salesforce is being quickly adopted by a variety of enterprises to help them grow their business. Therefore, building a career with Salesforce would be rewarding and lead to a variety of work prospects.
It is important to note that there is no single role in Salesforce as it has a wide-ranging ecosystem. Instead, there are five different Salesforce roles, namely Administrators, Developers, Consultants, Marketers, and Architects. Targeted to these roles, Salesforce provides various certifications.
The best way to acquire a job and work as a Salesforce professional with any of the aforementioned job roles is to obtain Salesforce Certification aligned with your selected job role.
If you aspire to become a Salesforce professional but are unaware of which Salesforce certification to choose, this article is for you. In this article, we shall make you familiar with different Salesforce Certification Types spread across five different tracks.
Salesforce Certification Path
As discussed earlier, Salesforce certifications are categorized into five different tracks, as follows:
- Administrator
- Architect
- Developers
- Marketers
- Consultants
Let us discuss some of the best Salesforce certifications in all five tracks below.
Salesforce Administrator Certifications
For Salesforce administrator certification, there are two options, one for beginners and the other for professionals.
1. Salesforce Certified Administrator
Level: Entry-level
Salesforce Recommended Experience: 6 to 12 months
Prerequisites: None
This foundational Salesforce admin certification validates candidates for their knowledge of Salesforce features and functionality required to maintain Salesforce implementation. It requires professionals to possess in-depth knowledge of various configuration options available for administrators and the features available for end-users.
About the Exam
To earn this certification, candidates have to appear and qualify for the examination. The exam consists of 60 multiple-choice and multiple-select questions, and the duration is 105 minutes. In order to pursue this certification, you need to score at least 65% in the examination.
Registration Fee: $200
Retake Fee: $100
2. Salesforce Advanced Administrator
Level: Mid-level
Salesforce Recommended Experience: 1 to 2 years
Prerequisites: Salesforce Certified Administrator
This advanced administrator credential is ideal for those who have experience working with advanced features and functionality of Salesforce to solve various business problems. In addition, professionals looking to take this certification in Salesforce should be able to design advanced automation processes, reports, and dashboards.
About the Exam
This Salesforce certification exam comprises 60 multiple-choice or multi-select questions. The duration of the exam is 105 minutes, and the passing score is 65%.
Registration Fee: $200
Retake Fee: $100
Salesforce Developer Certifications
For a Salesforce developer certification, there are four popular options as follows:
3. Salesforce Platform Developer - I
Level: Entry-level
Salesforce Recommended Experience: 3 to 6 months
Prerequisites: None
The one who is aspiring to pursue this certification should possess sound knowledge of using the capabilities of Salesforce Lightning for developing and deploying business logic and custom interfaces. In addition, applicants should know where and when to leverage declarative and programmatic methods. They should be able to extend the Lightning Platform through Apex and Visualforce.
About the Exam
The exam for this Salesforce developer certification consists of 60 multiple-choice and multi-select questions. With a duration of 105 minutes, the passing score for this exam is 68%.
Registration Fee: $200
Retake Fee: $100
4. Salesforce Platform Developer - II
Level: Mid-level
Salesforce Recommended Experience: 2 to 4 years
Prerequisites: Salesforce Certified Platform Developer I Certification
This mid-level Salesforce certification requires professionals to have a thorough knowledge of creating custom applications on the Lightning platform. They should be able to leverage the advanced programmatic capabilities of Salesforce Lightning. In addition, professionals should possess experience in data modeling to create complicated business logic and interfaces.
About the Exam
In this Salesforce certification exam, you will find 60 multiple-choice and multiple-select questions. You have to solve these questions in 120 minutes, and the passing score is 70%.
Registration Fee: $200
Retake Fee: $100
5. Salesforce Marketing Cloud Developer
Level: Senior-level
Salesforce Recommended Experience: 1+ years
Prerequisites: Marketing Cloud Email Specialist
This Salesforce Marketing Cloud certification is intended for individuals having more than one year of full-stack development experience in Marketing Cloud. They should be able to create personalized and dynamic messages and landing pages and experience working with Marketing Cloud. In addition, professionals must have prior knowledge of working with data configuration, reporting and analytics, and manipulations and advanced segmentation.
About the Exam
In this certification exam, there are 60 multiple-choice and multiple-select questions that applicants need to answer in 105 minutes. Also, the passing score for this exam is 63%.
Registration Fee: $200
Retake Fee: $100
6. Salesforce Certified B2C Commerce Developer
Level: Mid-level
Salesforce Recommended Experience: 3 to 6 months of specific experience and one year of general experience
Prerequisites: None
For those who have experience working as a developer for Salesforce B2C Commerce Digital, this certification is ideal for showcasing their expertise. The certification, Salesforce Certified B2C Commerce Developer, validates individuals’ skills in customizing Salesforce, configuring the platform regularly, and finding various approaches to leverage the platform’s features and functionality fully.
In order to appear for this certification exam, applicants should have a sound understanding of the elements that belong to the digital site interaction and know how to troubleshoot issues related to site configuration.
After earning this certification, individuals can work in one of the following job roles:
- Full-stack developer
- Front-end developer
- Web application developer
- Software developer
- Support engineer
- Java or JavaScript programmer
About the Exam
The certification exam comprises 60 scored multiple-choice questions, and the duration is 105 minutes. The passing score is 65%.
Registration Fee: $200
Salesforce Architect Certifications
For this certification type, Salesforce offers a three-tier system, namely Designer, Domain, and Technical.
The bottom level consists of design-related certifications, as follows:
- Certified Sharing and Visibility Designer : It is a senior-level certification that requires individuals to possess 4 to 5 years of experience implementing complex security models and 2 to 3 years of experience in Salesforce.
- Certified Identity and Access Management Designer : It is also a senior-level Salesforce Architect certification, generally taken by individuals having experience in Identity and Access Management, Salesforce, and Security technologies.
- Certified Development Lifecycle and Deployment Designer : This senior-level certification requires applicants to have 5+ years of experience working with the Salesforce Lightning platform to develop and deploy applications.
- Certified Integration Architecture Designer : It is a senior-level certification for candidates with 3 to 4 years of experience in the Salesforce platform, 1 to 2 years in Salesforce integration, and another 1 to 2 years in Integration architecture.
- Certified Data Architect : Individuals having 3 to 4 years of experience in developing data-centric solutions and 2 to 3 years of experience in Salesforce are ideal for pursuing this certification.
- Certified Platform App Builder : This is an entry-level certification ideal for individuals with 3 to 6 months of experience working with the Salesforce platform to design and develop custom applications.
Once you pursue designer track certifications, you can move on to the Domain Architect track. There are two options in this track, namely Application Architect and System Architect.
The technical architect is the final and the top-most level in the architect track. After pursuing domain-related certifications, you can move on to the technical architect track.
7. Salesforce Certified Application Architect
Level: Senior-level
Salesforce Recommended Experience: 5+ years
Prerequisites: Platform Developer I, Platform App Builder, Data Architect, and Sharing and Visibility Architect
One who is looking to earn this certification should have a profound knowledge of native Salesforce features and functionality. In addition, it is essential for Salesforce professionals to possess the ability to model a data model, role hierarchy, and sharing mechanisms.
There is no examination to pursue this certification. Instead, you need to pursue all the four prerequisite certifications to get the Salesforce Application Architect Certification. More importantly, there is no Salesforce certification fee, as you will receive this certification automatically after all four prerequisite certifications.
8. Salesforce Certified System Architect
Level: Senior-level
Salesforce Recommended Experience: 5+ years
Prerequisites: Platform Developer I, Development Lifecycle and Deployment Designer, Identity and Access Management Designer, and Integration Architecture Designer
This certification validates applications for their expertise in managing off-platform systems and integrating and securing access between systems. Also, they should be able to manage governance and testing capabilities for deployment and ongoing Salesforce modification requirements.
You do not have to pay any Salesforce certification cost as you will receive this credential once you earn all the prerequisite certifications.
9. Salesforce Certified Technical Architect
Level: Senior-level
Salesforce Recommended Experience: 8+ years
Prerequisites: Application Architect and System Architect
Technical Architect professionals are proficient in multiple development platforms. They have high-level expertise in assessing customer requirements and architecture to design high-performant and secure technical solutions on the Salesforce platform. This certification is commonly known as the ‘pinnacle certification.’
About the Exam
The exam comprises a hypothetical scenario that applications need to solve and present it to the panel of CTA judges. They will be allocated 3 hours for reviewing and preparing a solution for the given hypothetical scenario. Later, they need to present their solution to judges in 45 minutes, followed by 40 minutes of a question-answer session.
Registration Fee: $6,000
Retake Fee: $3,000
Salesforce Consultant Certifications
A Salesforce consultant is a professional who is in charge of working with stakeholders to outline requirements, customize the Salesforce platform, and let users get the most out of the platform. The following are some best Salesforce consultant certifications:
- Salesforce Certified Education Cloud Consultant : This mid-level credential validates applicants’ knowledge in implementing Salesforce Education Cloud solutions. The Salesforce Administrator credential is a prerequisite to earning this certification.
- Salesforce Certified Sales Cloud Consultant : It is a mid-level certification for professionals with 2 to 5 years of experience designing, developing, and implementing Sales Cloud solutions. Applicants should possess the Salesforce Administration certification.
- Salesforce Certified Service Cloud Consultant : It is also a mid-level credential for professionals holding the Salesforce Administrator credential. Service Cloud Consultants are responsible for implementing Sales Cloud solutions that are scalable and maintainable and satisfy business and customer requirements.
- Salesforce Certified Marketing Cloud Consultant : For those who are proficient in setting up and implementing Salesforce Marketing Cloud application tools, this credential is for them. Also, applicants should be able to design and provide solutions to implement strategic email campaigns. However, the prerequisite to this certification is holding the Marketing Cloud Administrator credential.
Other credentials in the Salesforce consultant track include:
- Salesforce Certified Community Cloud Consultant
- Salesforce Certified Einstein Analytics and Discovery Consultant
- Salesforce Certified Field Service Lightning Consultant
- Salesforce Certified Nonprofit Cloud Consultant
- Salesforce Certified Pardot Consultant
Salesforce Marketer Certifications
A Salesforce marketer is responsible for creating effective and targeted email campaigns to attract and connect with more customers. There are six different credentials in the marketer track. Some of the best ones are listed below:
10. Salesforce Certified Marketing Cloud Administrator
Level: Entry-level
Salesforce Recommended Experience: 3 to 6 months
Prerequisites: None
This credential validates applicants for their skills in configuring Marketing Cloud products by leveraging the best practices that are industry-recognized. In addition, they should be acquainted with the data structure used in subscriber data management. A certified marketing cloud administrator can effectively troubleshoot user requests and account configuration.
About the Exam
The certification exam has a total of 60 multiple-choice questions that candidates have to solve in 105 minutes. To earn the certification, one must score 67% in the exam.
Registration Fee: $200
Retake Fee: $100
11. Salesforce Certified Pardot Specialist
Level: Entry-level
Salesforce Recommended Experience: 3 to 6 months
Prerequisites: None
Individuals with in-depth knowledge and advanced skills in the Pardot platform to design, develop, and implement marketing workflows are ideal for this certification. It validates their skills in developing focused marketing processes and strategies for lead generation, email marketing, and lead qualification.
About the Exam
This Salesforce certification exam validates applicants’ knowledge with 60 multiple-choice and multi-select questions within 90 minutes. Individuals who score 72% and more qualify the exam and earn the credential.
Registration Fee: $200
Retake Fee: $100
What is Trailhead?
Trailhead is an online learning platform that offers free Salesforce certification training. This platform offers certification training personalized by different Salesforce roles and levels. Conversational and bite-sized content makes any complex topic easy to grasp.
Moreover, Trailhead’s hands-on learning makes it popular among Salesforce professionals, enabling them to work on projects in a free instance of Salesforce. After completing your certification training, you can simply solve the quizzes to test your grasp of the learning. As you solve quizzes, you earn badges and points that you can showcase on your Trailblazer.me profile.
Since it is a free Salesforce learning platform, you just need to signup for a free Trailhead account, check the Salesforce certification that you wish to earn, and get started with the certification training.
In addition, Trailhead offers a program called Salesforce Certification Days, which conducts half-day webinars to guide you in preparing for your Salesforce certification. Expert instructors conduct these webinars where they share their expertise, best practices, and tips and tricks to ace the Salesforce certification exam.
Salesforce Certification Verification
It is essential to be mindful that Salesforce certifications come with an expiry date. If you hold any Salesforce certification, you should know its expiration date. Fortunately, you will come to know which certification is going to expire soon as Salesforce will contact you for your maintenance module.
There is another way to check the upcoming maintenance requirements of your certifications. It is through the Salesforce Certification Verification module. This module also helps employers to verify employees’ or applicants’ active Salesforce certifications.
Conclusion
This was about the discussion of the Salesforce certification path. Based on the role that interests you the most and the level of experience with the Salesforce platform, you can choose the best Salesforce certification among the available ones. Furthermore, because Trailhead offers free online Salesforce certification training, you don't need to bother about choosing any other learning platform.
We hope this article was helpful to you to get enough clarity on Salesforce certifications.
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