Trailhead - GAME ON!

It's here and everyone should be talking about it!

Trailhead is a great way for Salesforce Admins/Developers to learn the application. Challenges range from mutiple-choice questions, to creating real objects in a Developer Org.

Gamification has come to the Admins & Developers!

For every challenge you complete, you earn points.

You earn more points for a correct response on the first try and then fewer points for the following attempts. Answer enough questions correctly in a section and you're awarded a Trailhead Badge. Finally, a fun and interactice way to learn Salesforce!

A few tips for those getting started on Trailhead

Create a new Developer Org before starting. You will need the latest update to Dev. Orgs in order for Trailhead to connect and verify your work (yes, it's able to check and verify the creation of objects!)

Log out of your other Orgs when you want to spend time working on Trailhead Challenges. I lost some points on this one (pulling on the Hulk Hands: Admin <SMASH!>) I was logged into another Org in a different browser and thought this was safe. I created a custom App and when I tried to verify, Trailhead wasn't recognizing it as correct. After deleting the App/Object and then recreating, I tried again and still a no. Turns out it was trying to verify through the other Org. I shut everything else down and then it worked.

Update your name and profile details on your Dev Org. I use the name field to identify which Org I'm working in, but now that there are points/badges being awarded, I want to show off my beautiful new badges.

Future for Trailhead?

I'll be interested to see if companies will start utilizing Trailhead Badges as an additional layer of HR vetting for new hires. I've read posts in the Community about Admins that are certified, but don't have real life experience in Salesforce and that has been a top concern for some employers. I always recommend hiring certified individuals because it demonstrates a passion for the CRM, as well as verifying that the individual is up to date on Salesforce releases. I think the future of Trailhead Badges could easily lend itself to demonstrate the capabilities of the Admin/Developer. It is also a great way for someone learning Salesforce to become certified and gain experience building Objects and Apps.

Could the future hold the ability for us to create our own challenges? Imagine you've got a group of new hires and you want to track their progress as they go through Salesforce training. How wonderful would it be to tally results based on awarded badges, while also creating a fun, competitive environment for your users? The competitor in me says this could be a huge enhancement in the future...