I have eight years of sales experience, but my average tenure is about 1.7 years due to the startup landscape. How can I best navigate interviews with hiring leaders who may view that as job hopping? And given my SaaS and enterprise background, which technical or industry certifications would you recommend to help me stand out to larger, more established companies?
Try to outline specifically what it is that you are looking for in a platform based on your prior experiences and build out your question set based on those priorities. Additionally, develop a tight no more than 2 to 3 bullets as to why your tenure length at those firms was what it was. Offer early that your priority is to find an outfit you can grow with, that you want to demonstrate growth in role and the time to mature your skillset.
Do you have at least one job on your resume that is 3+ years? If so then I think you can focus on the fact that when you're in a good situation, you can excel. If not... well, then it sounds like job hopping is probably the reality. As for certifications - I've never really seen them matter - with the exception of certain orgs that are very committed to a sales methodology (SPIN, Challenger, MEDDIC / MEDDPICC, etc).
Hard to answer this question without knowing more specifics. But be honest with yourself about why tenure at certain places was short (not the right fit, company went under, downsizing, let go). Then think about what you liked/did well in each role, and what you didn't thrive at with each role. Use this to create a story for what role/company you would fit well with, and what value you bring to the team. This will help you sell based on your strengths, and help your story you tell to a hiring manager have more weight to it.