What is a Salesforce Consulting Partner and How Can It Help You?

Implementing Salesforce demands active commitment and technical expertise to achieve the desired goals. In theory, any team that has received proper training could implement any software; however, Salesforce’s learning curve can be steep and would require a lot of time to realize the full potential of the solution. The chances of success increase significantly for organizations that use a consulting partner to help them get up and running with this powerful CRM.

Salesforce has a partner program that allows you to improve and grow successful businesses while providing customer success. This program includes four classifications:

• Consulting partners (System Integrators) & Agencies: Provide strategic business consulting, system design, solution integration, and product implementation. They contribute to business growth and increase efficiency by applying their experiences, leading personalized practices, and taking advantage of innovative tools.
• AppExchange partners: Independent Software Vendors (ISV) who develop and market software solutions built on or integrated with the Salesforce Platform.
• Resellers Partners: Partners who sell Salesforce licenses but are not necessarily involved in their implementation (currently only available in EMEA, APAC and LATAM).
• Managed Services Provider (MSP): Program designed for companies that provide ongoing, recurring and post implementation services, such as administration. Only Consulting Partners can opt for this program.

Are you interested in how a Salesforce consulting partner can help? If so, you are in the right place. In this article we will answer the following questions:

• What is a Salesforce consulting partner?
• How to become a Salesforce consulting partner?
• What are the levels that Salesforce consulting partners can achieve?
• Are there additional tools and resources for a Salesforce consulting partner?
• What does it mean to be admitted as a Salesforce consulting partner?
• How do you know if you need a Salesforce consulting partner?
• Why hire a Salesforce consulting partner?

What is a Salesforce consulting partner?

A Salesforce consulting partner is a company authorized by Salesforce to develop and provide custom solutions, as well as project implementations and integrations. These companies are trained to lead the innovation phase and help companies connect with their customers in new ways.

These organizations market their Salesforce expertise to customers who need help with software migration, implementation, systems integration, and custom application development. They demonstrate this expertise by keeping their Salesforce certifications current and by displaying portfolios of successful projects. In this way, they help you improve and grow your business while enriching your experience.

How to become a Salesforce consulting partner?

To become part of the Salesforce family of consulting partners, applicants undergo a very demanding selection process. They must meet the necessary requirements and provide the requested information in order to be accepted. This requires a significant effort in terms of investment, training, certifications, etc.

Accepting the policies established by the agreement of the Salesforce partner program is the first step of many to access your community (Salesforce partner community).

Among the requirements that endorse Salesforce consulting partners are:

• Certifications: To register into the program, a partner requires a minimum of two certifications. This can be one person with 2 or more credentials or two people with at least one credential each.

• Payment Fees: For Fiscal Year 2024 (FY24) there are no annual program fees.

What are the levels that Salesforce consulting partners can achieve?

Salesforce has 4 levels (Base, Ridge, Crest, Summit) to classify consulting partners. Each quarter, based on Salesforce’s fiscal year, partners are evaluated and may be reassigned to a different level based on their Trailblazer consulting partner score.

Trailblazer score measures a partner’s contribution against the goals set by Salesforce in four main categories: customer success, innovation, growth and impact (formerly called lead). This score can reach a maximum of 1000. You can see here all the elements of the program, the maximum number of points per attribute, and the requirements needed to obtain full points in each category.

Assessments take place during the first month after the end of a Salesforce fiscal quarter, with any resulting reassignments effective the first day of the following month.

Salesforce notifies each partner of their new level either on or before the effective date of the level. Those who do not meet the requirements can be removed from the program and the partner community without any refund of fees. Members who are promoted to a higher level during a fiscal year maintain the highest level obtained during the remainder of that year and the following year, after which they will be reassessed accordingly.

Are there additional tools and resources for a Salesforce consulting partner?

Salesforce provides consulting partners with resources, training, and tools which enable them to develop expertise in specific business functions, product areas, and industries so that they can better serve their customers and hone their practices.

Below, we show you some of the benefits that the consulting partner program offers. For FY24, benefits have been grouped into new categories:

1- Technical (Technologies and tools to help you develop skills and drive customer success):

• Unlimited access to technical support through the Partner Community.
• Certification vouchers for the Trailhead and Accredited Professional exams.
• Discounts on instructor-led courses.
• Discounts on certification exams.

2- Sales and alliances (support to drive the growth and productivity of your training and stimulate relationships with Salesforce):

• Partners can earn incentives when a referred lead is submitted through the Partner Community.
• Access to an internal production organization with Sales and Service Cloud Enterprise Edition licenses.
• Access to Sales, Service and Marketing Cloud demo organizations for training, solution development, etc. These organizations are based on a standard Salesforce environment, but have more user licenses and storage.
• Consulting meetings with advisors.

3- Marketing (Resources to generate brand awareness and create omnichannel marketing plans):

• Availability of the Marketing Cloud Account Engagement Plus License (previously called Pardot Plus) for internal use for lead generation.
• Possibility of using “Salesforce” to promote ads on Google (Google Ads).

The benefits to which you will have access in fiscal year 2024 will depend on the highest level of consulting you have achieved in the current year.

If you want to know more details, here you can find more information.

What does it mean to be admitted as a Salesforce consulting partner?

This means that the organization reflects excellent work and demonstrates a strong commitment to its clients. It indicates that this company or service provider has met the requirements and standards established by Salesforce to become one of its esteemed team. This recognition signifies the company’s experience and competence in the implementation and configuration of Salesforce.

From that moment on, the company admitted as a Salesforce consulting partner gains access to additional resources and benefits provided by Salesforce. This may include ongoing training and certification, technical support, access to exclusive tools and resources, participation in events, and collaboration opportunities with other Salesforce partners and customers.

How do you know if you need a Salesforce consulting partner?

If you have difficulties with the structuring and migration of your database, implementation, introduction of updates, integration by systems, departments and custom application development, a Salesforce consulting partner is the solution to your problems. They are highly trained to lead the innovation phase and help companies connect with their customers in new ways.

Why Hire a Salesforce consulting partner?

Hiring a Salesforce Consulting Partner can help you maximize the performance of your solution. In addition, it could ensure a successful implementation and ongoing support. Their experience and expertise can make the difference in the success of your Salesforce investment. In the long term the benefits far outweigh the costs. Some of them are:

Implement Salesforce effectively (before, during and after)

When a Salesforce consulting partner accesses an organization, they perform a diagnosis to identify the problems that affect or may affect the implementation process. This is an advantage because, knowing the problems, they can be addressed immediately to project solutions that have a positive impact on the organization.

If you rely on an expert for the Salesforce implementation, everything will be easier. This means that you will have at your side a partner who masters the characteristics and potential of the platform, the necessary changes to be made depending on the type of organization, the new functionalities, etc. There is no point in using Salesforce in your business if you are not going to make the most of it.

Ensure your customization needs are met

All organizations are not the same, they differ in turnover, number of workers, objectives, territorial distribution, etc. The ability of a consulting partner to carry out effective configurations and customizations plays a fundamental role here. The extensive knowledge they have in using the platform allows them to tailor a suit for each organization.

Salesforce provides consulting partners with resources, training, and tools, enabling them to develop expertise in specific business functions, product areas, and industries so they can better serve their clients and refine their practices.

Achieve your goals efficiently

It is part of the daily life of a consulting partner to stay up to date with all the news that Salesforce offers in its three annual releases. They demonstrate their interest and commitment by keeping their certifications renewed and obtaining new ones. Salesforce consulting partners support their experience and commitment to each of their clients by showing portfolios of successful projects. The accumulated knowledge and expertise achieved allow them to help you achieve the maximum benefit from a Salesforce implementation based on the objectives you have set for yourself.

Save time and money

Organizations often decide to go through the implementation process on their own, and when they find themselves at a dead end, they turn to a Salesforce consulting partner. By then, they have already invested time and resources of all kinds, which will be wasted because the proposed objective was not achieved.

A wise decision is to hire the services of a consulting partner to carry out the Salesforce implementation from the beginning, as well as the corresponding updates with each release. They will be able to help you with integrations by systems, departments and third-party applications. Whether you hire the service part-time or full-time, it will save you significant time and money.

Partnering with a Salesforce consultant will help you meet deadlines for completing tasks while minimizing setbacks. You can dedicate yourself to other high-impact activities while delegating responsibilities to your consulting partner.

Improve your business decisions

Making the right decisions is more complex than it seems. Sometimes we do not have the necessary information to do so. A Salesforce consulting partner can help you enrich the information you need to make your decisions right. You will work together with your management team to meet the proposed objectives.

Increase return on investment

With the support of a Salesforce consulting partner, your business will get better and better. This means that, with their help, your goals will be met as planned, increasing the efficiency and profitability of your business. You will obtain greater productivity from your workers, saving time in unnecessary activities, good implementation practices and a wide range of opportunities that will make your business more efficient.

At SkyPlanner, we have more than 100 certifications in Salesforce. We offer Salesforce consulting services aimed at driving the growth of your business, whether by implementing a new custom solution or improving an existing implementation. Our experts have placed us among the top 20 consulting partners worldwide. If you need help, do not hesitate to send us an email at hello@skyplanner.com. Our team will guide you towards the results you desire.