Partner expertise comes in Handy when you really need it:
You can benefit from the breadth of experience and up to date platform knowledge a partner can bring, when you are handling challenges that are entirely new to your team.
Access additional resources when you are up against tight timelines and deadlines
Gain in-depth technical capabilities that aren’t held within your current team
One of the biggest benefits of engaging with a Salesforce technical delivery partner is using their expertise to stay on top of frequent changes to the Salesforce Platform.
Ensure if the Partner has Sufficient Solution Expertise:
The more experience a Salesforce consultant has with clients in different fields, the more expertise they will have in addressing your needs. Because every organization is different, each project will bring new learning experiences. This variety enables your partner to develop the most effective, customized solutions for various processes, domains, and customer components.
Some of the questions on the track record of the partner that can help you:
Can you describe a similar project and the results you achieved?
How have you helped other customers with similar goals?
Can you provide customer references?
With experience comes domain expertise in how to overcome some of the common challenges, eventually leading a faster implementation and better result.
Referral calls can help you get a feel of experiences with a partner, and take a broader look at their customer success ratings to gain a deeper understanding of a prospective partner’s knowledge.
Salesforce Certifications:
Salesforce consulting partners are committed to delivering customer success and have access to a robust partner community and myriad resources for support and training.Salesforce certification validates if a partner has the Salesforce knowledge and experience necessary to handle your implementation. It is also a great way to make sure that the individual is up-to-date on the most recent Salesforce releases.
Here are five different certifications that Salesforce offers: Certified Salesforce Administrator, Certified Salesforce Platform Developer, Certified Salesforce Advanced Administrator, Certified Salesforce Sales Cloud Consultant, and Certified Salesforce Service Cloud Consultant.
At a minimum, your consultant should hold both Administrator and Developer certifications. The rest depends on your needs.
Overall experience:
When you hire a good Salesforce partner, they will be experts in providing solutions not only on Salesforce but there are other areas like project management, integration technologies and product delivery which they have to be good at. They need to carry all the experience, in project management where they will make sure that the project stays on course, the post-implementation training is successful, and the delivery is flawless.
Budget & Pricing:
When it comes to Salesforce support, prices can be varied! It is important for you to have a proper discussion, regarding your budget and it will be easier for you, to find a good yet experienced partner, under that given range. You don’t have to choose the first partner that falls in that range. While cost is always a concern when considering a new partner, it shouldn’t be your primary focus. Ask partners for proposals and compare their offerings. Even without a formal RFP, you can learn a great deal about the partner — regarding their delivery and level of detail.
You may think pricing qualifies under budget, but when it comes to ongoing support it actually differs. Make sure you have a clear understanding of the “per hour” pricing. Some of the questions below can go a long way toward keeping control over your purse strings:
Do you charge any additional fees above stated hourly rate?
What is the lead time required for staffing the project?
Will certified resources be assigned for the duration of the project?
Did you consider initial and overhead costs, which might include licensing, as well as support service costs?
Be mindful of what’s in your contract and ask these questions upfront, before you move ahead.
Make sure your partner can offer ongoing system support:
Talk about what happens after you complete your project and think clearly about what happens next. If it’s a company-wide implementation, you need to find a partner who has a clear support and account management program as you consider future improvements.Consider the partners who provide 24×7 support which can be on-site and offshore.
Conclusion:
Searching for the right Salesforce Consulting Partner can be a daunting task, as consultants seem to be many, it can be difficult to decide on the best choice for your business. Keeping the qualities listed above in mind during your search can help ensure that you find the best Salesforce Consulting Partner for your needs.
Why select Node.Digital ?
✅ Deployed several Salesforce solutions across cloud and mobile platforms that were well received and adopted
✅ Salesforce certified partners with several employees having certifications across a wide range of Salesforce products
✅ Cost effective proprietary hybrid delivery model with qualified Onsite/Offshore resources and reusable components combined with Customer Engagement, Design Thinking and Agile Development