MCE-Dev-201 Salesforce Certified Marketing Cloud Engagement Developer Questions and Answers

To configure an Email Send Logging Data Extension for a new business unit, the recommended approach is to use the SendLog Data Extension Template. This ensures that all necessary fields and configurations are correctly set up to log email send data.

SendLog Data Extension Template: This template includes predefined fields and settings that are required for logging email sends. Using this template ensures that the data extension is set up correctly for tracking send logs.

Go to Email Studio -> Subscribers -> Data Extensions.

Click on "Create".

Choose "Create from Template" and select the "SendLog" template.

Follow the prompts to configure and save the new Send Log data extension.

Salesforce Email Send Logging

To handle unexpected errors gracefully in a custom subscription center, wrapping the code in a Server-Side JavaScript (SSJS) Try/Catch block is recommended.

Try/Catch Block: Using a Try/Catch block in SSJS allows the developer to catch and handle exceptions, providing a mechanism to manage errors without disrupting the user experience.

SSJS Example:

<script runat="server"> Platform.Load("Core", "1"); try { // Code that may throw an error } catch (e) { // Handle the error Write(Stringify(e)); } </script>

Salesforce Server-Side JavaScript (SSJS) Guide

When a send is initiated directly to a Sendable Data Extension that includes records targeted for deletion, the following behaviors are expected:

Records still in the suppression phase will be excluded from sends (B) - These records are in the process of being deleted and will not be included in the send.

Records that have been deleted will be excluded from sends indefinitely (D) - Once records are deleted, they are permanently excluded from future sends.

To optimize a SQL Query Activity in Automation Studio that is experiencing timeouts, the developer should use intermediate tables to break queries into smaller parts (B). This approach helps in managing complex queries by breaking them down into smaller, more manageable steps, thus reducing the likelihood of timeouts.

To normalize customer data in a staging data extension where a text field named 'birthday' contains date values in various formats, the developer can use the following SQL keywords and functions:

CASE, ISDATE, CONVERT (A) - These functions can be used to handle different date formats and convert them into a consistent format.

CASE, ISDATE, CAST (C) - Similar to the above, CAST can be used to convert text to date format if ISDATE returns true.

Example SQL query:

SELECT CASE WHEN ISDATE(birthday) = 1 THEN CONVERT(DATE, birthday) ELSE NULL END AS normalized_birthday FROM StagingDataExtension

If the email send's tracking information is not available in Sales Cloud, the next step is to confirm that the audience was a Salesforce Data Extension containing the appropriate Salesforce ID (SFID).

Salesforce Data Extension: Ensure that the data extension used for the send is a Salesforce Data Extension that includes the appropriate SFID for each subscriber. This is crucial for the integration to correctly match the tracking data with the Salesforce records.

Salesforce Marketing Cloud Connect Troubleshooting

A Contact can be reintroduced into the system only after the deletion is fully complete. The Contact Delete process in Salesforce Marketing Cloud is designed to ensure that all references and data associated with the contact are thoroughly removed. Reintroducing the contact before the process is fully complete would disrupt this cleanup process and potentially lead to data integrity issues.

The outdated subject line variable could be located in the HTML body which is processed after the subject line (D). This is because AMPscript variables declared in the HTML body can affect the overall email content, including the subject line, and if not updated, they can cause discrepancies in the displayed subject line.

To alternate the background color of rows in an HTML table using AMPscript, the MOD function can be used to determine if the row number is odd or even.

MOD Function: The MOD function returns the remainder of a division operation. By using MOD(@numerator, 2), the function returns 1 for odd rows and 0 for even rows, allowing the background color to be set accordingly.

AMPscript Example:

%%[ SET @numerator = 1 FOR @i = 1 TO RowCount(@rows) DO SET @color = IF MOD(@numerator, 2) == 1 THEN 'Red' ELSE 'White' ENDIF SET @numerator = ADD(@numerator, 1) ]%% <!-- Row content --> %%[ NEXT @i ]%%

Salesforce AMPscript Functions

To optimize the performance when retrieving a large number of rows from a Data Extension via the API:

Use a SimpleFilterPart to retrieve small sets of relevant data (A) - This approach helps in fetching only the necessary data by applying filters, thus reducing the amount of data transferred and processed.

Use the ContinueRequest feature (C) - This feature in the SOAP API allows for pagination of results, making it possible to handle large sets of data in manageable chunks.

To accurately identify subscribers who have unsubscribed from any of the child business units in an Enterprise 2.0 account, it is necessary to create data extracts of all subscribers within each child business unit. This approach ensures that unsubscribes specific to each business unit are captured.

Data Extracts: By creating data extracts within each child business unit, you can gather comprehensive unsubscribe data for all subscribers specific to each unit.

Salesforce Enterprise 2.0 Account Management

When creating a Server-to-Server Installed Package and associated API Integration in Marketing Cloud, it is essential to grant specific scopes (permissions) to the API Integration component. This ensures that the integration has the necessary access to perform its tasks without granting unnecessary permissions.

Salesforce Installed Packages and API Integrations

The RedirectTo AMPscript function prevents link href values from getting recorded in tracking (C). When RedirectTo is used, it bypasses the standard link wrapping and tracking process, causing the link click not to be captured in the tracking data.

The RaiseError AMPscript function can be configured to log the source of the error (C). This functionality is useful for error handling and debugging, allowing administrators to identify the cause of an issue and take appropriate action.

The error message "Cannot Perform 'Post' on objects of type 'SentEvent'" indicates that the SentEvent object is not updatable via the SOAP API. The SentEvent object is typically read-only and is used for tracking purposes.

Read-Only Object: The SentEvent object is used to log events and is not designed to be modified via API calls. This is why attempts to perform POST operations on it will result in an error.

Salesforce SOAP API Error Codes

Regarding the Marketing Cloud SOAP API, the following statements are true:

Most SOAP calls can be synchronous or asynchronous (B) - This means that API calls can either wait for the operation to complete (synchronous) or proceed with other tasks while waiting for the response (asynchronous).

Uses XML in request and response body (C) - The SOAP API utilizes XML for both requests and responses, providing a standardized format for data interchange.

To build out a series of CloudPages that will interact with several REST APIs, the developer should use SSJS (Server-Side JavaScript) (C). SSJS is supported in Marketing Cloud and provides robust capabilities for interacting with external APIs, handling HTTP requests, and processing data.

To select a subset of records that contain a phone number, the field that ensures the phone number is valid and non-blank should be used.

ValidPhone Field: The ValidPhone field is a formula field that evaluates to 'true' if the phone number is valid. This ensures that only records with a valid phone number are included in the synchronization.

Salesforce Data Synchronization

To add records to a Data Extension using the SOAP API, the DataExtensionObject object is utilized. This object represents a row within a data extension.

DataExtensionObject: This object is specifically designed to interact with data extensions, allowing you to insert, update, and retrieve rows. Here is a basic example of how to use this object to add a record:

DataExtensionExternalKey SubscriberKey example@example.com FirstName John LastName Doe

Salesforce SOAP API Developer Guide

The Balance field is a text field and contains the value "S6.96", which is a string. The IF statement is comparing a string with a numeric value (6.00). Since the operands are not of the same data type, this can yield unintended results. To correctly compare the balance, the string should be converted to a numeric value.

Example:

%%[ SET @Balance = "6.96" /* Simulating text field value */ IF (Value(@Balance) > 6.00) THEN SET @Result = 'Balance is more than $6.00' ENDIF ]%%

Salesforce AMPscript Data Types and Conversion

To ensure a blank email will not be sent when creating a complex dynamic email with multiple sections and content blocks, the developer should confirm every version has default content (D). This practice ensures that if any dynamic content fails to load or meet the conditions, the default content will be displayed, preventing a blank email from being sent.

Salesforce Marketing Cloud offers various encryption options when creating a new key in Key Management. The three encryption options that can be used are:

Asymmetric (B) - Asymmetric encryption uses a pair of keys (public and private) for encryption and decryption. This method is highly secure as the private key remains confidential.

RSA (C) - RSA is a specific type of asymmetric encryption. RSA stands for Rivest-Shamir-Adleman, and it is widely used for secure data transmission.

Symmetric (E) - Symmetric encryption uses the same key for both encryption and decryption. It is efficient for encrypting large amounts of data.

The purpose of the IF statement in the AMPscript code is to check if any rows are returned by the LookupRows function. If rows are returned, it retrieves the image field from the data extension and sets the image source accordingly. If no rows are returned, it defaults to using a standard image.

Salesforce AMPscript LookupRows Function

An Exclusion Script is used to exclude certain subscribers from an email send based on defined criteria. It can also log or capture details of those excluded addresses for reporting purposes.

Exclusion Script: This script runs before the send and can dynamically exclude recipients based on logic you define. It allows you to prevent competitors from receiving the email and to log their email addresses.

Salesforce Exclusion Script Documentation

Automation Studio provides tools for extracting tracking data from the Marketing Cloud. This can be done using the Data Extract Activity, which allows you to extract various types of tracking data such as email send, open, and click information.

Salesforce Automation Studio Data Extract Activity

Content Builder uses the REST API to manage content within Salesforce Marketing Cloud. The REST API allows developers to create, update, retrieve, and delete content assets, making it suitable for cross-channel campaign functions.

Salesforce Content Builder API

To successfully create a TriggeredSend object using AMPscript's API functions to send a confirmation email when an email is texted into their shortcode, the following objects are required:

Subscribers (A) - Represents the individual recipients who will receive the triggered email.

TriggeredSendDefinition (B) - Defines the parameters of the triggered send, including the email to be sent and the associated attributes.

The IIF function in AMPscript is a shorthand way to perform conditional logic within an inline expression. It evaluates a condition and returns one of two values based on whether the condition is true or false.

AMPscript IIF Example:

%%=IIF(@level = 'premier', 'You are a premier member!', 'Upgrade to premier now!')=%%

Salesforce AMPscript IIF Function

After using the messageDefinitionSends REST API endpoint to send a triggered send email, and receiving a 202 (success) response code, the developer can validate if the email was successfully sent by using the messageDefinitionSend/key:(key)/deliveryRecords REST endpoint with the GET method. This endpoint provides delivery records and allows verification of the email's delivery status.

The Contact Delete process in Marketing Cloud removes contact data from various locations to ensure complete deletion. This includes both sendable data extensions and mobile lists.

Sendable Data Extensions: The Contact Delete process will remove contact data from sendable data extensions, ensuring that the contact is no longer present in any data used for sending.

Mobile Lists: Contact data will also be removed from mobile lists, ensuring that the contact is fully deleted across all communication channels.

Salesforce Contact Deletion Process

The Contact Delete process can be slow for a large number of contacts. To expedite this process, the best approach is to stop the current delete process and delete smaller groups of contacts. This allows the system to handle smaller chunks of data more efficiently.

Stop Current Process: Stopping the current large delete process helps avoid system overload and potential timeouts.

Delete in Smaller Groups: By segmenting the contacts into smaller groups and deleting them in batches, the process becomes more manageable and faster.

Salesforce Contact Deletion Best Practices

To retrieve a row of data from a data extension using the SOAP API, the developer should use the DataExtensionObject API Object. This object allows for operations such as retrieving, updating, and inserting rows within a data extension.

To ensure the expiration date on a coupon is the last day of the month, the developer should find the first day of the next month and subtract one day (A). This approach guarantees that the expiration date is set to the last day of the current month.

Example AMPscript:

SET @firstDayNextMonth = DateAdd(DatePart(Now(), "MM"), 1, "M") SET @lastDayCurrentMonth = DateAdd(@firstDayNextMonth, -1, "D")

The newly created data model in Contact Builder can be used for segmentation in the following applications:

Email Studio (A) - Email Studio can use data extensions and attribute groups from Contact Builder for segmentation.

Journey Builder (C) - Journey Builder can leverage the data model created in Contact Builder for creating targeted journeys and audience segments.

Before importing a compressed file into Marketing Cloud, a File Transfer activity is required to move and decompress the file. The File Transfer activity allows you to specify the source and destination locations and to decompress the file, making it ready for the import process.

Salesforce File Transfer Activity

To securely pass parameters between CloudPages without exposing them, use the CloudPagesURL function within a form action. This method encodes the parameters and securely posts them to the target CloudPage.

CloudPagesURL: Encodes and includes parameters securely.

Form Method: Using the post method ensures parameters are sent in the request body, adding another layer of security.

Salesforce CloudPagesURL Function

To ensure the security of Client ID and Client Secret credentials, they should be stored securely and not exposed in the application source code or URL parameters.

Environment Variables: Setting credentials as environment variables in the application platform is a secure way to handle sensitive information. This method ensures that the credentials are not hardcoded in the source code and can be managed securely by the application platform.

Environment Variables

Key Management System (KMS): Storing credentials in a key management system (KMS) provides an additional layer of security. KMS solutions are designed to securely store and manage sensitive information such as API keys, passwords, and other credentials.

To transform the date and time 'Data_Enrolled' from Daylight Savings time and fall back one hour, the developer should use the following AMPscript function:

%%=DateAdd(Data_Enrolled, -1, 'H')=%%

This function subtracts one hour from the 'Data_Enrolled' date and time.

The "View Email As Web Page" (VAWP) link relies on the original email content being available. If the email used at the time of send was deleted, updated, or moved, the link will not be able to retrieve and display the content, resulting in the error message.

Salesforce VAWP Documentation

When importing data files to Marketing Cloud, the supported file encryption options are:

PGP encryption (A) - Pretty Good Privacy (PGP) encryption is supported for securing files.

AES encryption (D) - Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) encryption is also supported for file security.

To ensure the MobileConnect Contact is tied to the Email Contact when making a QueueMO call for an existing email subscriber, the parameter to include is emailaddress. This ensures that the MobileConnect Contact is correctly linked to the existing Email Contact.

The Contact Delete process in Marketing Cloud removes contact data from the contact model but does not remove records from the data extensions themselves.

Contact Delete Process: When you perform a Contact Delete in Contact Builder, it removes the contact data from the contact model but leaves the actual rows in the data extensions intact.

Salesforce Contact Deletion Process

To create a query that aggregates clicks grouped by the language of the recipient, the developer needs to use Data Views that store subscriber and click information. The required Data Views are:

_Subscribers (A) - This Data View contains information about subscribers, including their profile attributes such as language.

_Click (D) - This Data View contains information about click events for email messages, which can be used to aggregate clicks.

The query would join these Data Views on a common identifier (e.g., SubscriberKey) and group the results by the language attribute.

For a data extension to be selected for journey entry in Journey Builder, it must be configured for sending. This configuration ensures that the data extension is recognized as a source for sending communications.

Configure for Sending: When creating or editing a data extension, ensure that it is set as "Sendable." This involves specifying the appropriate fields for sending, such as Subscriber Key and Email Address.

Salesforce Journey Builder Data Extension Configuration

A File Drop Automation should be configured to handle files that arrive at varying times and have unique filenames. This type of automation triggers when a file is dropped into a specific folder on the Enhanced FTP site, allowing the system to handle imports as soon as the file arrives.

Salesforce File Drop Automations

To secure a CloudPage and its elements (such as images) using SSL, a single SSL certificate can be used if both the CloudPage and the images are hosted under the same domain. This SSL certificate ensures that all content served from that domain is encrypted and secure.

Salesforce SSL Certificates

In AMPscript, the valid syntax for comments is /* comment */. This allows you to add comments within your AMPscript code for documentation or clarification purposes.

Salesforce AMPscript Syntax Guide

The UpdateDE function in AMPscript updates the data extension rows as the emails are being sent. If the send is canceled and only 400 emails are sent, then only the 400 subscribers who received the email will have their data extension rows updated by the UpdateDE function.

Salesforce AMPscript UpdateDE Function

To dynamically create data extensions in Marketing Cloud, the developer should use the SOAP API using the Create method and the DataExtension object (A). This allows for the creation of data extensions with dynamic names and structures.

The operational order of the Contact Delete process for Marketing Cloud is as follows:

Delete initiated - The process begins when the contact delete request is initiated.

Suppression phase - During this phase, the contacts are marked for deletion and are suppressed from further communications.

Final Deletion - The contacts are permanently deleted from the system.

AMPscript is evaluated in the following order before an email is sent:

Subject Line: Evaluates AMPscript in the subject line first.

HTML Body: Evaluates AMPscript within the HTML body of the email.

Text Body: Evaluates AMPscript within the text body of the email.

This order ensures that any dynamic content or personalization logic is correctly applied in all parts of the email.

Salesforce AMPscript Evaluation Order

When using the REST Authorization Service to obtain an OAuth access token, the standard method to include this token in subsequent API requests is by adding it to the Authorization header with the Bearer scheme.

Correct Method: Authorization: Bearer YOUR_ACCESS_TOKEN

This format is a standard practice for OAuth 2.0 token usage.

Salesforce Authentication and Access Tokens

In Salesforce Marketing Cloud, access tokens are valid for one hour (D). After one hour, a new access token must be obtained to continue making API calls. This ensures security and helps manage the lifespan of tokens effectively.