Salesforce Sales-101 Salesforce Certified Sales Foundations Exam Practice Test

Business acumen is the ability to understand the business environment, the customer’s industry, and the customer’s specific challenges and goals. A junior sales representative who engages with key accounts to understand their pain points, current solutions, and future goals is growing their business acumen skill. By doing so, they can better align their product or service with the customer’s needs and expectations, and create more value for them. Business acumen isone of the core competencies of a sales professional, as it helps them build credibility, trust, and rapport with the customer, and differentiate themselves from the competition. References:

Cert Prep: Salesforce Certified Sales Representative, unit “Build and Maintain Relationships with Key Accounts”

[Sales Rep Training], unit “Prepare Your Team to Sell Successfully”

Customer experience is the factor that the sales representative can focus on to win the customer first and support their sales quota long term, because it is the sum of all the interactions and emotions that the customer has with the sales representative and the company throughout the sales cycle and beyond. A positive customer experience can lead to customer satisfaction, loyalty, retention, and advocacy, which can result in repeat purchases, referrals, and testimonials. Product evangelism and maximizing opportunities are not the best answers, because they are more focused on the sales representative’s own goals and interests, rather than the customer’s. Product evangelism is about promoting the product’s features and benefits, but it may not address the customer’s specific needs or challenges. Maximizing opportunities is about increasing the contract value or volume, but it may not align with the customer’s budget or expectations. References: Certification - Sales Representative - Trailhead, [Sales Rep Training: Prepare Your Team to Sell Successfully - Trailhead]

One of the techniques that can help improve the sales rep’s forecasting accuracy is implementing AI-based deal scoring systems, such as Salesforce Einstein. AI-based deal scoring systems use machine learningalgorithms to analyze historical and real-time data from various sources, such as CRM, email, calendar, and social media, and assign a score to each opportunity based on the likelihood of closing. The score reflects factors such as the customer’s engagement level, buying signals, past behavior, and fit with the ideal customer profile. By using AI-based deal scoring systems, the sales rep can prioritize the most promising opportunities, focus on the best actions to move them forward, and forecast more accurately and confidently. References:

Improve Sales Forecasting Accuracy with These Best Practices, section “Use AI to Score Deals”.

How to Improve Sales Forecasting Accuracy, section “Use AI to Score Deals”.

Following the company's sales methodology is important because it creates a consistent vision across sellers. A unified sales approach ensures that all sales representatives understand and adhere to the same principles, strategies, and goals. This consistency helps in delivering a uniform customer experience, aligning sales efforts with the company's objectives, and facilitating collaboration among team members. Salesforce highlights the significance of a structured sales methodology to streamline sales processes, improve efficiency, and achieve better sales outcomes.

Obtaining guidance from a manager and creating a follow-up cadence is what the sales rep should do to improve stage velocity. Stage velocity is the measure of how fast an opportunity moves from one stage to another in the sales process. Obtaining guidance from a manager helps to get feedback, advice, and support on how to advance the opportunity. Creating a follow-up cadence helps to maintain communication, engagement, and momentum with the customer.References:https://www.salesforce.com/resources/articles/sales-pipeline/#sales-pipeline-metrics

Customer needs are what thesales rep should focus on when qualifying a prospect who visited a company’s website and completed a form expressing interest in a product. Customer needs are the problems, challenges, goals, or desires that the prospect has and that the product can address. Focusing on customer needs helps to understand the value proposition of the product, build rapport and trust with the prospect, and determine their fit and readiness for the product.References:https://www.salesforce.com/resources/articles/sales-process/#qualify

Lead conversion rate is a metric that the company should use to track the effectiveness of the new value proposition. A value proposition is a statement that summarizes how the product can solve the customer’s problems, fulfill their needs, and provide them with benefits that outweigh the costs. Lead conversion rate is a measure ofhow many leads (prospects who have shown interest in the product) become customers (prospects who have bought the product). Lead conversion rate helps to evaluate how well the value proposition resonates with potential customers and influences their purchase decisions.References:https://www.salesforce.com/resources/articles/value-proposition/#value-proposition-metrics

A customer-centric proposalis one that emphasizes the value and benefits that the solution will provide to the customer, rather than the features and specifications of the product or service. By focusing more on the anticipated outcomes, the sales rep can show how the solution aligns with the customer’s objectives and needs, and how it will help them achieve their desired results. This will also help the sales rep differentiate themselves from the competition and build trust and credibility with the customer. References:

Cert Prep: Salesforce Certified Sales Representative, Unit 4: Value Selling

[Sales Rep Training], Unit 2: Sell with Value

Salesforce Certified Sales Representative Exam Guide, Section 4: Value Selling

Net Promoter Score (NPS) is a metric that evaluates the loyalty and satisfaction of customers based on how likely they are to recommend a product or service to others. It is calculated by asking customers one question: “On a scale from 0 to 10, how likely are you to recommend this product/service to a friend or colleague?” Customers who respond with a 9 or 10 are considered promoters, customers who respond with a 7 or 8 are considered passives, and customers who respond with a 6 or lower are considered detractors. The NPS is then calculated by subtracting the percentage of detractors from the percentage of promoters. NPScan help sales reps identify their most enthusiastic and loyal customers, as well as those who are at risk of churn or dissatisfaction. NPS can also help sales reps generate referrals, testimonials, and reviews from their promoters, as well as improve their products and services based on the feedback from their detractors and passives. References:

What is Net Promoter Score (NPS)? How to Calculate & Interpret - Hotjar

Net Promoter Score (NPS): The Ultimate Guide - Qualtrics

What is Net Promoter Score (NPS)| Definition and Examples - ProductPlan

Expansion target is the best answer because it refers to the opportunity to sell more products or services to an existing customer who isgrowing their business or entering new markets. The sales rep should focus on understanding the customer’s needs and goals in the new regions, and offer solutions that can help them achieve them. Efficiency target and growth target are not relevant to thisscenario, because they are related to the sales rep’s own performance and objectives, not the customer’s. Efficiency target is about improving the sales rep’s productivity and effectiveness, while growth target is about acquiring new customers or increasing market share. References: Certification - Sales Representative - Trailhead, [Sales Rep Training: Prepare Your Team to Sell Successfully - Trailhead]

Making a draft of the value proposition and seeking customer feedback is the best way to introduce the value proposition to the customer, because it allows the sales rep to validate their assumptions, test their hypotheses, and refine their solution based on the customer’s input. This also helps to build trust and rapport with the customer, and demonstrate that the sales rep is genuinely interested in solving their challenges. Collaborating internally to iterate on the value proposition for the customer is not a bad idea, but it does not involve the customer in the process, and may result in a solution that does not match the customer’s needs or expectations. Unveiling the value proposition to the customer after it is finalized is a risky strategy, because it may surprise or disappoint the customer, and leave no room for adjustments or negotiations. References: Certification - Sales Representative - Trailhead, [Sales RepTraining: Create Effective Selling Habits - Trailhead]

The desired outcome of an upsell proposal is to optimize existing product offerings by selling more features or services to an existing customer. Upselling helps to increase customer satisfaction, loyalty, and retention by providing them with more value and benefits from the product. Upselling also helps toincrease revenue and profitability for the sales rep and the company.References:https://www.salesforce.com/resources/articles/upselling/#upselling-definition

Price objections are related to the customer’s perception of the value of the solution and their ability or willingness to pay for it. Return on investment (ROI) is a measure of the value that the solution provides in relation to its cost. If the customer is concerned about ROI, it means they are not convinced that the solution is worth the price or that they can afford it. The sales representative should addressthis objection by demonstrating the value proposition of the solution, highlighting the benefits and outcomes that the customer can expect, and showing how the solution can help the customer achieve their goals and solve their problems. The sales representative should also explore the customer’s budget and decision-making process, and offer flexible payment options or discounts if possible. References: Certification - Sales Representative - Trailhead, [Sales Rep Training: Create Effective Selling Habits - Trailhead]

Asking questions to determine if they can get the deal backon track is the next step that the sales rep should take to address the objections from the customers after understanding their reasoning and negative emotional reaction. Asking questions helps to understand the root cause, scope, and impact of the objections, as well as to show empathy and respect for the customers’ concerns. Asking questions also helps to clarify any misunderstandings, provide relevant information, and propose solutions that address the objections.References:https://www.salesforce.com/resources/articles/sales-objections/#sales-objections-handling

Account planning is the business capability that can help a sales representative foster team selling, increase customer satisfaction, and decrease customer attrition at a critical account. Account planning is the process of creating and executing a strategic plan for each key account, based on the account’s goals, challenges, needs, and opportunities. Account planning helps the sales representative to align with the account team, understand the customer’s business and industry, identify and prioritize the most valuable opportunities, and deliver personalized solutions that drive customer success and loyalty. References: [Sales Rep Training: Plan for Success], [Cert Prep: Salesforce Certified Sales Representative:Plan for Success]

Sharing a customer success story is a powerful way to convince a contact to make an introduction to the decisionmaker, as it demonstrates the value and credibility of the sales rep’s solution. A customer success story should include the following elements: the customer’s challenge, the solution they implemented, and the results they achieved. The sales rep should also tailor the story to match the contact’s industry, role, and pain points, and highlight how the solution can help them achieve their goals. By sharing a customer success story, the sales rep can create a sense of urgency and curiosity in the contact, and motivate them to introduce the sales rep to the decision maker who can benefit from the solution as well. References:

Sales Rep Training: Create Effective Selling Habits, unit “Use Customer Success Stories to Sell with Value”.

Cert Prep: Salesforce Certified Sales Representative, unit “Close Deals with Value”.

Professional competency is the ability to demonstrate knowledge and skills that arerelevant and valuable to the customer. By collecting and processing information on products, competitors, and industries, a sales rep can show their expertise, credibility, and confidence in providing solutions that meet the customer’s needs and expectations. References:https://trailhead.salesforce.com/en/content/learn/modules/sales-representative-certification-prep/sales-representative-certification-prep-prepare-for-your-exam

Understanding the customer’s pain points and what they attempted in the past that was unsuccessful is a way to determine if a customer might be a valid prospectfor the product. This helps to identify the customer’s needs, challenges, goals, and motivations, as well as to assess their fit and readiness for the product. This also helps to position the product as a solution that can address their pain points and provide value.References:https://www.salesforce.com/resources/articles/sales-process/#qualify

Assessing prospect and account quality to prioritize leads is an activity that can help ensure sales success mid-year by focusing on the most promising opportunities and allocating resources accordingly. Assessing prospect and account quality involves evaluating factors such as fit, interest, urgency, and authority, and ranking leads based on their likelihood and readiness to buy.References:https://www.salesforce.com/resources/articles/lead-generation/#lead-generation-strategies

The stage in the sales process where asales representative delivers a proposal and checks in with the prospect on the perceived value and alignment is typically known as the "Confirm" stage. During this phase, the sales rep seeks to ensure that the proposal meets the prospect's needs and expectations, and that there is a mutual understanding of the value the solution offers. This step is crucial for moving towards closing the sale, as it involves resolving any outstanding questions or concerns and solidifying the prospect's commitment to proceeding. Salesforce outlines various stages in the sales process, and the confirmation stage is critical for validating that both parties are aligned before finalizing the deal.

A sales process is a set of steps and stages that guide the sales team from prospecting to closing deals. A sales process helps ensure data quality across teams by providing a common framework, language, and methodology for managing opportunities and forecasting. A sales process also helps align the sales team with the customer’s buying journey, and enables them to track and measure their progress and performance. A sales process can improve the accuracy, consistency, and completeness of the data in the pipeline, and help the sales team make better decisions and predictions. References:

Cert Prep: Salesforce CertifiedSales Representative, unit “Assess Risks and Opportunities”

[Sales Rep Training], unit “Create Effective Selling Habits”

Salesforce Certified Sales Representative ExamGuide, section “Assess Risks and Opportunities”

BANT is a sales qualification model that stands for Budget, Authority, Need, and Timing. It helps sales representatives identify and prioritize the most qualified prospects based on four key criteria:

Budget: The prospect has the financial resources to purchase the product or service.

Authority: The prospect has the decision-making power or influence to approve the purchase.

Need: The prospect has a specific problem or pain point that the productor service can solve.

Timing: The prospect has a clear timeline or urgency to buy the product or service. BANT helps sales representatives focus on the most promising opportunities, avoid wasting time on unqualified leads, and align their sales process with the customer’s buying journey. References: [Cert Prep: Salesforce Certified Sales Representative: Qualify Leads], [Sales Rep Training: Qualify Leads]

A sales rep can use whiteboarding while exploring a customer’s business challenges to organize ideas by level of importance. Whiteboarding is a technique that involves using a whiteboard or a similar tool to visually capture and structure information during a sales conversation. Whiteboarding can help the sales rep to understand thecustomer’s situation, needs, and goals, and to prioritize the most critical issues or opportunities. Whiteboarding can also help the sales rep to engage the customer in a collaborative dialogue, and to demonstrate their expertise and credibility. References: [Sales Rep Training: Explore Customer Needs], [Cert Prep: Salesforce Certified Sales Representative: Explore Customer Needs]

Proactively engaging with the customer to renew or expand the contract is how the sales rep should adapt their sales activities to address the upcoming end-of-contract period for a key customer. Proactively engaging means reaching out to the customer before the contract expires, and initiating a conversation about their satisfaction, needs, and goals. This helps to build trust and loyalty, demonstrate value and differentiation, and identify opportunities to renew or upsell thecontract.References:https://www.salesforce.com/resources/articles/account-management/#account-management-renewals

A type of strategy that the sales rep should use when negotiating with a customer who has been unwilling to purchase additional products due to cost concerns is bundle pricing. Bundle pricing isa pricing strategy that involves offering a set of products or services together at a lower price than if they were sold separately. Bundle pricing can help the sales rep to increase the perceived value of the solution, cross-sell or upsell additional products or services, and differentiate from competitors. Bundle pricing can also help the customer to save money, simplify the purchase decision, and meet their needs more effectively. References: [Sales Rep Training: Negotiate and Close], [Cert Prep: Salesforce Certified Sales Representative: Negotiate and Close]

Clarifying questions are the type of questions that the sales rep is leveraging when they encourage the customer to elaborate on their hesitation and responses. Clarifying questions are questions that help to understand, verify, or confirm the information or meaning of what the customer says. Clarifying questions help to avoid confusion, misunderstanding, or miscommunication, as well as to provide relevant information or solutions.References:https://www.salesforce.com/resources/articles/sales-questions/#sales-questions-types

Educating prospects about the key benefits of new products through storytelling is an effective approach. Storytelling involves sharing examples, customer success stories, or hypothetical scenarios that illustrate how the product can be used and the benefits it delivers. This method helps prospects visualize the product in action and understand its value in a real-world context. Salesforce often highlights the importance of storytelling in sales to make products more relatable and to create a connection with potential customers.

Create is the phase of the sales process where this deal is when the sales rep is working to understand a prospect’s pain points, desired outcomes, and emotional drivers. Create is the phase where the sales rep presents and demonstrates how their product can address the prospect’s pain points and needs, and deliver tangible benefits and outcomes. Create is also where the sales rep builds rapport and trust with the prospect by showing empathy and understanding of their emotional drivers.References:https://www.salesforce.com/resources/articles/sales-process/#sales-process-stages

The create phase of the sales process is where the sales representative works to understand the prospect’s pain points, desired outcomes, and emotional drivers. This phase involves asking open-ended questions, conducting discovery sessions, and identifyingthe prospect’s challenges and goals. The create phase helps the sales representative to build rapport and trust with the prospect, and to uncover the value proposition and the solution fit for their needs. References:

Sales Rep Training: Define the Scope of a Solution, unit “Use Discovery to Understand Customer Needs”.

Cert Prep: Salesforce Certified Sales Representative, unit “Define the Scope of a Solution”.

Approved budget, authority, business need, and timing are key factors that the sales rep should consider when assessing the probability of winning the business. These factors are also known as BANT criteria, which are used to qualify a prospect as a potential customer. Approved budget means that the prospect has enough money to buy the product. Authority means that the prospect has the power or influence to make a purchase decision. Business need means that the prospect has a problem or challenge that the product can solve. Timing means that the prospect is ready or willing to buy withina reasonable time frame.References:https://www.salesforce.com/resources/articles/sales-process/#qualify

Confirming is thestage in the sales process where the sales representative delivers the proposal and checks in with the prospect on the perceived value and alignment. This stage is also known as the presentation or proposal stage, and it involves demonstrating how the solution meets the prospect’s needs, goals, and challenges, and addressing any objections or concerns. The sales representative should also confirm the decision criteria, timeline, and next steps with the prospect, and ask for their commitment to move forward.Connecting is the stage where the sales representative identifies and reaches out to potential prospects, and establishes rapport and trust. Collaborating is the stage where the sales representative works with the prospect to understand their situation, needs, and desired outcomes, and co-creates a solution that fits their requirements. References: Certification - Sales Representative - Trailhead, [Sales Rep Training: Create Effective Selling Habits - Trailhead]

Asking pointed questions to identify customer interests is what the sales repshould do to uncover why the customer is delaying the decision. Pointed questions are questions that are direct, specific, and focused on a particular topic or issue. Pointed questions help to get to the core of the customer’s hesitation, concerns, or objections, as well as to provide relevant information or solutions that can persuade them to take action.References:https://www.salesforce.com/resources/articles/sales-questions/#sales-questions-types

A success story is what the sales representative should use to transition to a recommendation in a way that demonstrates their ability to provide a competitive solution, because it shows the customer how the sales rep’s solution has helped other customers with similar needs and challenges, and what results and benefits they have achieved. A success story can also help to build trust and credibility with the customer, and inspire them to take action. A summary statement or a solution unit are not the best answers, because they are not as effective as a success story in demonstrating the sales rep’s competitive advantage. A summary statement is a brief recap of the customer’s situation, needs, and desired outcomes, but it does not show how the sales rep’s solution can meet them. A solution unit is a specific feature or benefit of the sales rep’s solution, but it does not show how it has worked for other customers or what outcomes it can deliver. References: Certification - Sales Representative - Trailhead, Sales Rep Training: Customer Engagement - Trailhead

Negotiating is the final stage of the sales process, where the sales rep and the customer agree on the terms and conditions of the deal. Negotiating helps to overcome any remaining objections, address any concerns, and close the deal with mutual satisfaction.References: https://www.salesforce.com/resources/articles/sales-process/#negotiate

The first step in defining the scope of a solution for a prospect is to frame the challenge, which means understanding the problem, the desired outcome, and the value proposition. Framing the challenge helps the sales rep to align with the prospect on their needs and goals, and to establish credibilityand trust. Framing the challenge also helps the sales rep to identify the key stakeholders, decision makers, and influencers involved in the buying process, and to tailor their communication and messaging accordingly. References:

Sales Rep Training: Define the Scope of a Solution

Cert Prep: Salesforce Certified Sales Representative:Define the Scope of a Solution

A sales quota is a target or goal that a sales representative or a sales team is expected to achieve within a given period of time. Sales quotas can be measured by different criteria, such as revenue, profit, units sold, market share, or customer satisfaction. A lead conversion rate is the percentage of leads that become customers. This is a sales quota measurement that focuses on the end result rather than the relationship with the customer, as itreflects the final outcome of the sales process. The other options are sales quota measurements that focus on the relationship with the customer, as they reflect the activities and interactions that the sales representative or the sales team performs to engage and nurture the leads. References:

Cert Prep: Salesforce Certified Sales Representative, unit “Assess Risks and Opportunities”

[Sales Rep Training], unit “Create Effective Selling Habits”

Salesforce Certified Sales Representative Exam Guide, section “Assess Risks and Opportunities”

During the prospecting stage, a sales representative identifies and reaches out to potential leads to assess their interest and fit for the company's offerings. Completing a qualification call with new leads at this stage is crucial to understanding their pain points, needs, and whether the company's solutions can meet those needs. This step is essential for efficiently allocating resources to leads with the highest potential for conversion. Salesforce emphasizes the importance of effective prospecting and qualification processes to ensure sales efforts are focused on the most promising opportunities.