Often times, I meet customers who have been using Salesforce for their business and still have questions or struggle with the basics of using application (CRM, Force.com, Marketing Cloud ect).  Even as a former customer prior to joining Salesforce, I never fully took advantage of all the online courses and tools SalesforceU publishes for its customers. Currently, when you purchase Salesforce basic, you do get some short “out of the box” classes and instruction, but as you upgrade your support to “Premier”, “Premier +” or “Mission Critical” support models, you have access to the vast catalog of Salesforce online training classes to help your company or key resources get properly trained. Remember, nothing can replace onsite or in classroom instruction for your training, however if you are remote, time is an issue or you simply operate better with online course, Salesforce online training is the way to go. This blog will give you the info needed on how to user Salesforce online training. Layout and Getting Started. When you login to your Salesforce org, you should have the option for “Training and Help” in the top right hand side of your browser.

Once you click “Help & Training”, you will be directed to a new page which is a Salesforce “Success Community” as you can see below. This is similar to all the other communities you go to online, however you are logged with your Salesforce login from your company and therefore you should them have access to training (depending on your level of Premier Support purchased).  When you get this page, click the option for “Take Training” link as indicated below:.

At this point you are at the gateway for the Salesforce online training and have access to 100s of online classes. Classes range from “What is CRM” to advanced developer courses on APEX and Force.com. Salesforce offers online training in at least 16 languages to include traditional and simplified Chinese. Also, you can select classes based on regions or even product type. My favorite part about the online offering is when you  can choose a class based on role (discussed below). Overall the layout is pretty strait forward and easy to navigate.

Role Based Training When determining how to use Salesforce online training, the “Role Based” option is a pretty cool option. Whether you are an admin or a marketing user, the role based training gives you insight as to what classes you should take to sharpen your skills within the Salesforce platform. A great advantage to this online training is Salesforce has not just created courses for technical IT like personal, but also has a large array of classes for business focused personal.  So you can take online courses as a Sales or Service agents to ensure agents get the training they need.  Keep in mind, if you have customized your instance of Salesforce, your training may need to be augmented to reflect customizations your company or organization may have made. There several 3rd party companies that will customize training to fit your needs. If you are still not sure of your role (perhaps you wear multiple hats!) or want some help finding the right path, then try out a “Learning Path”.  As SalesforceU puts it “A learning path is a recommended sequence of courses designed to help you build the skills and knowledge you need to reach your goals with Salesforce. Learning paths are organized around the most common Salesforce roles, products, and business objectives.” Below is the tab where this can be found and has helped me alot over the last six months when I secured my last four certifications.

Taking the Course Once you find the course you want to take, simply click the link to the title and the course begins. Most of the courses flow pretty easy and are up to date with what the Salesforce platform has to offer. Most courses also have simple, quick quizzes to ensure you comprehend the training material. The quizzes are not the best in the user interface department, but work for what they are intended to accomplish.  You are also able to see the course length (in minutes) before you the course begins which helps quite a bit if you are in a crunch for time and need to plan ahead.  Either way, if you begin a class and  halfway through have to exit, the tool allows you to start where you left off.

When you actually start taking the class (notice below) the left side panel will have the outline of the course for you to view. In addition, the “Notes” tab,  which typically has attachments and other docs (not always) is always something to look for.  As you take the course, always do the exercises and extra work to ensure you are ready to pass the certification exam plus doing the exercises allow you to better understand the material .

In conclusion, this blog should give you some insights into how to use Salesforce online training”, plus you will figure out what works best for you when you navigate through the online tool. If you are trying to secure your Salesforce certification with these online classes, be sure to check out my other blogs on “Your First Salesforce Certification” and “How to Study for the Salesforce Service Cloud Consultant Exam“.  Will end with some compelling stats on customers who take Salesforce training.

Good luck with the online courses and I do hope this post helps you  as to “How to Use Salesforce Online Training”

Hector Perez Jr.

• Tags: CRM, Salesforce, Training