With a projected 9.3 million jobs in the Salesforce economy by 2026, certifications are one of the best ways to demonstrate your skills to employers (Salesforce, Inc., 2022). But studying for Salesforce certifications, especially if it’s your first one, can be a little daunting. With so many resources out there, where do you start? With my study tips below of course!
1 – Start your certification journey with career paths.
Career Paths will help ensure you’re completing certifications that support your long-term career goals.
Salesforce’s Career Paths and Salesforce Ben’s Certification Pathways are great resources to review and understand different paths and learning journeys.
If you’re still unsure where to start, the Salesforce Administrator certification is a prerequisite to a lot of other certifications. As a result, it may be a good option for your first certification and to provide baseline knowledge about Salesforce.
2 – Review the Salesforce Credentials Information page.
Once you’ve identified the certification you want to acquire, review the credentials page for additional information.
Examples of the credentials page are:
Note that the Trailblazer Community is also linked on the exam information page. Other Trailblazers are a great resource for additional study tips for specific exams!
3 – Review the exam guide and any prerequisites in the ‘About the Exam’ section.
On the credentials information page, be sure to review the exam guide for guidance on what to study. Also, make sure to review prerequisites so you don’t end up studying for an exam if you don’t have the correct prerequisites.
Although Salesforce does not officially require prerequisites for some certifications, for example, the CPQ Specialist certification, completing other certifications first will help provide a better understanding of Salesforce functionality and therefore users will have a more thorough understanding of the certification material when studying.
4 – Take a Practice Exam.
The best options are a Certified Practice Exam from Salesforce or a practice exam from another reputable resource. Focus on Force is one of my favorite resources for practice exams!
Practice Exams allow you to benchmark your current understanding of the material and prioritize topics to study.
5 – Study and engage with Trailmixes.
Each Salesforce Credentials Information page has recommended Trailmixes for the selected certification. Trailmixes are pre-configured learning modules from Salesforce about that topics in the exam.
6 – Determine if flashcards will help you.
Not everyone benefits from using flashcards to study, but I do! If you’re like me and find that flashcards really help you with understanding new materials, Quizlet is a great resource for creating and organizing online flashcards.
If you do create flashcards, consider writing down the correct flashcard answers in a blank or digital notebook when studying. Studies show that the act of physically writing, as opposed to typing, helps students learn and retain knowledge better. (It can seem a bit redundant to create digital flashcards and then write the answers over and over again. However, this way you can study flashcards on the go! And you also won’t have to wonder where you put them months after passing your certification exam! They’ll always be there to reference, wherever your life may lead you!)
7 – Consider engaging with additional learning resources.
Other learning resources like Focus on Force or Mike Wheeler on Udemy are great tools for learning additional information.
However, when engaging with supplemental certification resources, it’s important to not get bogged down with too many resources at a time. Studying for certifications can quickly become overwhelming with the vast array of additional resources available. So review the differences between a handful, be sure to look at the reviews, and then just pick one additional resource to focus on for your primary studying to start.
8 – Complete another Practice Exam.
By comparing another Practice Exam with your benchmark Practice Exam, you’ll be able to gauge how much you’ve progressed in your learning.
If you’ve reached this point in your study journey without taking practice exams and this is your first certification attempt, I highly recommend taking at least one Certified Practice Exam from Salesforce. It is structured the same way as the actual certification exam, so it would be a good way to get a feel for the real exam for only $20 (as opposed to the real certification cost of $200+!)
Other resources like Focus on Force, Mike Wheeler, and Salesforce Ben are good for testing your knowledge. But just be aware that the test styles may be different. Practice Exams from other resources frequently allow you to review results question-by-question. The Salesforce exam does not allow you to review any answers (correct or incorrect) at the end. These types of practice exams are extremely useful. But just be aware of the differences so you don’t encounter any surprises for your actual certification exam.
Also be careful that you’re not trying to memorize the questions or answers from any practice materials, even the Salesforce Certified Practice Exams. Salesforce specifically structures their exams so that you must understand the underlying reason for the correct answer. Memorizing practice questions will not help at all.
9 – Review the areas from the practice exams where you didn’t score well.
Focus additional studying efforts on the sections where you didn’t score well to round out your knowledge.
10 – Take your exam!
Once you’ve consistently scored a passing grade on about 2 or 3 practice exams, you’re ready to take your exam!
I’ve personally found that the Mike Wheeler practice exams are easier than the Focus on Force practice exams. For this reason, you may want to ensure that you have a higher pass rate if you’re basing your readiness on the Mike Wheeler practice exam results to ensure that you’re ready for your certification exam.
11 – Celebrate once you’ve passed! You’ve earned it!
Additional Resources
Cover Photo by Windows on Unsplash
