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luna_grey's avatar
luna_grey
Community Member
2 days ago

Salesforce Plat-UX-102 Exam Scenarios: When Customization Is the Wrong Answer!

This topic hits right at the heart of why so many capable Salesforce professionals find Plat-UX-102 exam harder than expected. You read a scenario, your Admin or Developer instincts kick in, and your brain immediately jumps to custom objects, custom Lightning components, or complex automations. And that’s exactly where the exam quietly sets the trap.

In Plat-UX-102 exam scenarios, customization often looks like the smartest answer, but Salesforce isn’t testing how creative you can be with features. It’s testing whether you can step back and design strategically. Many questions describe a business problem that can be solved with customization, but the exam wants to know if you recognize when that solution would hurt usability, adoption, maintenance, or long-term scalability.

Salesforce’s design philosophy leans heavily toward “standard first, simple first, user first.” If a requirement can be met with standard objects, standard page layouts, or declarative tools, that option is usually the stronger answer especially when users, training effort, and future growth are part of the scenario. Over-customizing may solve today’s problem but create tomorrow’s headache, and the Plat-UX-102 exam is very aware of that trade-off.

This is exactly what the Salesforce Certified Platform Strategy Designer role is about, deciding when not to build, protecting user experience, and ensuring long-term platform success before any technical solution is chosen.

This becomes especially clear in questions involving multiple user groups or evolving requirements. When the exam mentions things like future expansion, user adoption challenges, or maintenance concerns, it’s a signal to pause. Custom solutions can reduce flexibility and increase technical debt, even if they look impressive. Salesforce wants you to think like a strategy designer, not a builder rushing to implement.

To prepare for this properly, it helps to change how you review topics. When studying Salesforce official resources like Trailhead modules on UX strategy, governance, and adoption, don’t just ask “How can this be built?” Ask “Should this be built at all?” Pair that mindset with scenario-based Plat-UX-102 practice questions (including resources like Pass4Future alongside official materials), and really analyze why a simpler or standard approach beats customization in a given context.

A useful habit during practice is to treat customization as a last resort, not a default. If a question offers a standard feature that meets most of the requirements with minimal user disruption, that’s often the answer Salesforce expects, even if a custom option seems more powerful.

Once you start seeing customization as a strategic decision rather than a technical reflex, Plat-UX-102 questions become much clearer. The exam stops feeling subjective, and you begin recognizing the consistent pattern: design for users, plan for the future, and customize only when it truly adds value.

2 Replies

  • Thanks for sharing this, luna_grey​! I'm curious how much overlap you see between the work you do in this salesforce realm and the work of learning design? 

    I'm drawn to this sentence: "treat customization as a last resort, not as a default." I'm wondering how broadly applicable you think that practice is across multiple disciplines? 

    This conversation sort of reminds me of one that Lori_Morgan​ shared a while back—I wonder if she has thoughts? 

    • Lori_Morgan's avatar
      Lori_Morgan
      Community Member

      The “standard first, simple first, user first” approach aligns with UX best practices and ensures content remains the priority over visual design.

      Thank you, luna_grey​, for highlighting user-centered design principles.

      Thank you, Noele_Flowers​, for the article.