Why this matters:
Customers often feel more empowered when they’re able to accomplish something on their own — and to their specific approach. A Salesforce consultant candidate should be able to leverage their fine-tuned communication skills to express their Salesforce knowledge to these sorts of customers.
What to listen for:
- Refined process for onboarding customers to Salesforce based on significant knowledge
- Experience educating customers on complicated processes
- Strong communication skills that help accommodate nontechnical audiences with hard-to-grasp technical concepts
Why this matters:
Sales Cloud helps businesses manage their sales cycles, while Service Cloud supports businesses with customer service. While the two have some overlap in functionality, they ultimately serve entirely different purposes. A Salesforce consultant candidate should be able to demonstrate a deep understanding of the differences in these fundamental Salesforce products.
What to listen for:
- Close familiarity and significant experience with Sales Cloud and Service Cloud
- Understanding of how the two products are similar to each other, as well as how they’re distinct
- Able to articulate why both products are important aspects of the Salesforce ecosystem
Why this matters:
While in the past, Salesforce was only developed to service B2B relationships, the organization later introduced the Person Accounts record feature to accommodate the B2C world. Salesforce consultant candidates should know that enabling Person Accounts is for B2C relationships. Awareness of this bit of company history would also demonstrate a candidate’s broader knowledge of Salesforce.
What to listen for:
- Knowledge about what Person Accounts are and why they’re important elements of Salesforce
- Firm understanding of the circumstances that would make enabling Person Accounts necessary
- Able to explain to someone how to enable Person Accounts
Why this matters:
Many customers trying to use tech products lack technical experience. If a Salesforce consultant candidate has experience explaining a piece of Salesforce jargon, they’ll be more likely to hit the ground running servicing customers in this position.
What to listen for:
- Experience communicating information about Salesforce to a lay audience
- Ability to speak clearly, informatively, and amiably about Salesforce products and functionality
- Understands and can communicate what makes Salesforce unique relative to competitive product offerings
Why this matters:
Sometimes clients can be obstinate and insist that their way is best — even when that’s not the case. A Salesforce consultant candidate should have experience being friendly and calm in explaining to a client how a different implementation can help to optimize their business.
What to listen for:
- Experience helping clients understand why they should change their Salesforce implementation
- Ability to calmly yet firmly explain the benefits of adjusting an implementation or process
- Can analyze why changing a client’s Salesforce implementation is productive and helpful
Why this matters:
Salesforce consultant candidates with experience improving a client’s operations are able to more clearly explain why their Salesforce processes and knowledge are useful, since they can point to a time when they made a positive impact on a client in a Salesforce role.
What to listen for:
- Experience using Salesforce to positively impact a client’s operations
- Ability to articulate how their experience benefitted the client’s workflow or business operations, and why
- Able to recognize areas where the candidate’s Salesforce consulting approach can be improved
Why this matters:
Technical abilities don’t matter in the business world if they don’t positively affect the customer experience — thereby bolstering your business. A Salesforce consultant candidate should understand why what they do aligns with your company’s mission and contribute to its bottom line.
What to listen for:
- Empathy for the customer’s experience with your business’ Salesforce operations
- Understanding of how the candidate’s abilities fit into the greater business arrangement
- An ability to positively impact customers throughout all avenues of the customer interaction
Why this matters:
When an entire team can properly and efficiently use the same tech toolsets, the organization can quickly see many improvements. As the name implies, Salesforce consultant candidates are there to consult, so they should be able to effectively communicate their knowledge and experience to teammates — thereby improving the business.
What to listen for:
- Understands how Salesforce positively impacts teammates’ ability to perform their respective roles
- Has an experience-based process for improving teammates’ Salesforce experience
- Enjoys identifying where teammates struggle and working with them to improve those pain points
Why this matters:
This question demonstrates the candidate’s personality and their long-term career goals. It provides you an opportunity to see how their goals align with your organization’s goals, and reveals what excites the candidate about the role. If the candidate can see themselves at your company, you’ll know they’re a strong mutual fit.
What to listen for:
- Clear career goals that are attainable in the Salesforce consultant position at your company
- A firm understanding of why they want to work at your firm specifically
- An excitement about salesmanship and interest to grow in this role
Contact a sales specialist.