Salesforce events we're looking forward to this Spring

​Which Salesforce events should I attend?
There are a huge number of Salesforce events out there, from small user groups and sector-specific events to juggernaut conferences like Dreamforce. With the world moving online, the last year has seen even more opportunities to take part without the need to travel to a different city (or even country) to attend.
With events lasting anywhere from a few hours to a few days, it can be hard to discern which ones to attend and whether it will be worth your time. So we’ve put together this list of 5 events coming up in the next few months with an honest run down of what to expect.

Preparing for your Administrator certification webinar
Date: 16th March 2021
Time: 11:00-16:00
Cost: Free
Good for: An in-depth look at how to pass your admin certification
If you or a colleague have started to develop your Salesforce skills and would like to take it to the next step by becoming a certified Salesforce professional, the free Certification Day webinars run by Salesforce are a great resource. 
They’ll run you through how the exam is structured, the different areas you’ll need to have confidence in, and give you a high-level look at some of the fundamentals in each area. You won’t walk away ready to take the exam, but you’ll have a solid idea of how and what you need to study. 
Plus, every attendee gets a $40 discount voucher for a certification exam (the exam normally costs $200).
Find out more (you’ll need to register with Trailblazer)

London’s Calling
Date: 19th March 2021
Time: tbc
Cost: £7.36 
Good for: Tips and tricks for administrators and developers
London’s Calling is a not-for-profit community-organised event. It’s not specifically for charities, but focusses on practical advice for Salesforce users across all sectors. From having a look at the session names, I’d say this one would be most useful for Salesforce admins and developers with a few years’ experience. Sessions will include ‘Formulas and life hacks for the everyday admin’ and ‘Must know NPSP config. and automations’. 
Find out more

Non-profit user group
Date: 25th March 2021
Time: 14:00-15:30 
Cost: Free
Good for: Networking and problem-solving with other UK non-profit users

The London non-profit user group are holding their first meeting of the year on 25th March, focusing on Event Management. Because it’s specifically a non-profit group, the focus is always on affordable and easy-to-implement solutions, and there’s usually time for general questions amongst the group as well.
Find out more (you’ll need to register with Trailblazer)

Salesforce.org non-profit summit 
Date: 21st April 2021
Time: 13:00-16:30
Cost: Free
Good for: An overview of Salesforce products available for non-profits and a roadmap of future features
From previous experience, the Salesforce run events tend to be more focused on showcasing particular products at a high-level, often geared towards potential customers or existing ones looking to expand the features they’re paying for on the platform. So it might be most useful for you if you’re not particularly familiar with Salesforce and want to hear about how non-profits utilize it in their work. 

I expect the summit will showcase the Non Profit Success Pack (for fundraising), Case Management (for case work with service users) and Program Management (for running program delivery).
The breakout sessions are likely to be a good opportunity to discuss solutions with other people from the sector – I’ve got some absolute gems from breakout sessions in the past!
Find out more

Salesforce.org Education Summit 
Date: 16th June 2021
Cost: Free
Time: tbc
Good for: An overview of Salesforce products available for educational organisations and a roadmap of future features
As above, but with a specific slant towards educational institutions, I’d expect to hear about the Education Data Architecture (EDA) and tracking a student journey on Salesforce.
Find out more