MCE-Dev-201 Sample Questions Answers

The developer can find information about the available properties for the DataExtensionField SOAP API object in the Developer Center at https://developer.salesforce.com (B). The Developer Center provides comprehensive documentation and reference materials for Salesforce APIs, including the SOAP API.

To collect a representative sample from a larger data set, the developer should use the NTILE (C) SQL function. The NTILE function is used to distribute rows into a specified number of approximately equal-sized buckets or tiles, which can be useful for sampling purposes.

Example usage:

SELECT * FROM ( SELECT *, NTILE(10) OVER (ORDER BY SomeField) AS TileNumber FROM LargeDataSet ) AS Sample WHERE TileNumber = 1

This query divides the dataset into 10 tiles and selects rows from the first tile, effectively providing a sample.

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.

In an Enterprise 2.0 account, the Contact Delete feature can only be used from the Parent account. This centralization ensures that contact deletion is managed consistently and in compliance with organizational policies.

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

When configuring an API integration component in an Installed Package, it is best practice to select the minimum required scope for the integration. This approach ensures that the integration has only the necessary permissions, enhancing security by limiting access to only what is required.

Minimum Required Scope: Selecting only the scopes that are necessary for the integration helps maintain a secure and controlled environment.

Salesforce API Integration Best Practices

To build an audience by identifying subscribers who opened a specific email, the developer should use the following query:

SELECT SubscriberKey FROM _Open WHERE JobID = '1234'

This query selects the SubscriberKey from the _Open data view where the JobID matches the specific email send.

Before using the 'contacts/' route of the REST API to update records in a data extension, the developer should verify that the data extension should be linked in an AttributeGroup in Contact Builder (D). This ensures that the data extension is part of the contact model and can be accessed and updated using the REST API.

The best Data Type to use for the Purchase_Price column, which includes values ranging from '$.05' to '$100', is Decimal(9,2) (C). This data type ensures that values are stored accurately without data loss, allowing for precision up to two decimal places.

Before deleting a sendable data extension that contains a large number of contact records, it is important to manage the contact deletion through Contact Builder. Deleting the data extension from Contact Builder ensures that all related contact information is also removed from the contact model.

Salesforce Contact Builder

Data extension functions in AMPscript, such as LookupRows, LookupOrderedRows, and UpdateDE, can most negatively impact send processing because they involve querying and manipulating data extensions. These operations can be resource-intensive and time-consuming, especially when dealing with large data sets.

Salesforce AMPscript Functions

To identify all subscribers who were sent Job ID 420 but did not click any links, the developer should use a SQL statement that selects subscribers from the _Sent Data View where the Job ID is 420 and excludes those who are found in the _Click Data View. The correct SQL statement is:

SELECT s.SubscriberKey FROM _Sent s LEFT JOIN _Click c ON s.SubscriberKey = c.SubscriberKey AND s.JobID = c.JobID WHERE s.JobID = '420' AND c.SubscriberKey IS NULL

This query performs a left join between the _Sent and _Click data views and filters the results to include only those subscribers who do not have a corresponding click record.

To track different versions of content within an email using dynamic content contained in a series of conditionals, the marketer should use the BeginImpressionRegion AMPscript function. This function marks the beginning of a region of content to track impressions, making it easier to analyze which versions of the content were viewed.

The first step in using the Transactional Messaging API to send emails is to authenticate and obtain an access token. This is done by making a POST request to the /v2/authorize endpoint with the client credentials.

Salesforce Transactional Messaging API Authentication

In AMPscript, comments can be added within a code block using the /* comment */ syntax. This allows developers to include notes or explanations without affecting the execution of the script.

Example:

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%%[ /* This is a comment */ SET @var = "value" ]%%

Salesforce AMPscript Syntax Guide

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.

When receiving an "insufficient Privileges" error while attempting to upload a base64-encoded file to Content Builder using an API Installed Package, the developer should validate the Client Id and Client Secret are correct. These credentials are necessary for authentication and authorization when interacting with Salesforce Marketing Cloud APIs.

A 401 Unauthorized HTTP status message indicates that the request was not authenticated properly. This error commonly occurs when the access token is missing, invalid, or expired.

Access Token Issues: The most common cause of a 401 error in REST API requests is related to the access token. The request must include a valid access token in the authorization header.

Example Authorization Header: Authorization: Bearer YOUR_ACCESS_TOKEN

Salesforce API Access Tokens

A developer should request a new token once an hour when making multiple API calls in v1. Salesforce Marketing Cloud access tokens are typically valid for one hour, and refreshing them every hour ensures that the API calls are authenticated.

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

To define a filename pattern that matches files starting with the current month and day, you can use the %%MMDD%% pattern and the "Begins With" operator.

%%MMDD%% Pattern: This pattern represents the month and day in a two-digit format.

Begins With Operator: This operator ensures that the automation matches filenames that start with the specified pattern.

Salesforce File Drop Automations

The Describe method in the SOAP API provides metadata about the objects available in the system, including Profile and Preference Attributes. This method can be used to dynamically retrieve and display these attributes in a custom profile center.

Describe Method: This method returns the schema of the objects, including fields and their properties, which can be used to dynamically generate forms and interfaces.

Salesforce SOAP API Describe Method

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.

Profile attributes like AGE in Profile Manager are not directly accessible via the _Subscribers data view or _EnterpriseAttribute data view. To retrieve subscribers over 30 years of age, creating a filtered Group based on the AGE attribute is the most effective method.

Salesforce Subscriber Filters and Groups

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.

To find all subscribers who made a purchase in the last 30 days, an INNER JOIN should be used to join the Customers data extension with the Orders data extension on the ContactKey. This ensures that only subscribers with matching records in both data extensions are retrieved.

SQL Query Example:

SELECT c.ContactKey FROM Customers c INNER JOIN Orders o ON c.ContactKey = o.ContactKey WHERE o.PurchaseDate >= DATEADD(day, -30, GETDATE())

Salesforce SQL JOINs

To configure a File Drop Automation with a filename pattern that allows for timestamps and starts with the month and day, the developer should use:

Begins With operator (D) - This ensures that the automation triggers when the file name begins with the specified pattern.

%%Month%%%%Day%% (C) - This is the correct syntax to match the month and day in the file name. For example, if the file name is "MAY15", the pattern will be %%MMMM%%dd.

To personalize the welcome email with the recipient's first name from the Customers data extension, you use the Lookup function to retrieve the FirstName field based on the CustomerKey field.

Lookup Function: The Lookup function retrieves a value from a specified data extension.

Syntax:

%%=Lookup('Customers', 'FirstName', 'CustomerKey', CustomerKey)=%%

'Customers' is the name of the data extension from which to retrieve data.

'FirstName' is the field to retrieve.

'CustomerKey' is the field to match on.

CustomerKey is the value to match in the 'CustomerKey' field of the 'Customers' data extension.

Salesforce AMPscript Lookup Function

Transparent Data Encryption (TDE) is designed to protect data at rest by encrypting the underlying storage of the database. This method ensures that data is encrypted on disk to prevent physical data theft while allowing it to remain accessible to authorized users within the system.

Salesforce Transparent Data Encryption

To populate a data extension with the date of the most recent click for each subscriber, the developer should use the following SQL query:

SELECT c.SubscriberKey, MAX(c.eventDate) AS eventDate FROM _Click c GROUP BY c.SubscriberKey

This query selects the SubscriberKey and the maximum eventDate for each subscriber from the _Click Data View, ensuring that the most recent click date is retrieved.

To exclude sending an email at send time to those with a record on the 'Exclude' Data Extension where the primary key is Subscriber Key, the developer should use the following Exclusion Script:

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RowCount(LookupRows('Exclude', 'SubscriberKey', _SubscriberKey)) > 0

This script checks if there are any rows in the 'Exclude' Data Extension that match the Subscriber Key. If the count is greater than 0, the email is excluded from being sent.

To append the subscriber's zip code to a link and ensure that the clicks are tracked, you should use the Lookup function to retrieve the zip code from the data extension and the RedirectTo function to create the link with tracking enabled.

Lookup: Retrieves the zip code from the data extension.

RedirectTo: Ensures that the link with the appended zip code is tracked.

Example:

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%%[ SET @zipcode = Lookup("DataExtensionName", "zipcode", "SubscriberKey", _subscriberkey) SET @link = Concat("http://example.com?zip= ", @zipcode) ]%% Click Here

Salesforce AMPscript Lookup Function

Salesforce AMPscript RedirectTo Function

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 identify all subscribers who are unsubscribed from a specific Business Unit, the correct Data View to query is ListSubscribers (A). This Data View contains information about the subscription status of subscribers at the list level, including unsubscribe status for specific Business Units.

When preparing data to be used in Contact Builder, the following factors should be taken into consideration:

Assigning data relationships and primary keys across all channels (A) - This ensures that data is linked properly and can be utilized across different marketing channels.

Verifying data address marketing needs (B) - Ensuring that the data aligns with the marketing goals and requirements.

Normalizing data to reduce redundancy (E) - Organizing the data to eliminate duplicate entries and improve efficiency.

Regarding Populations in Contact Builder:

Populations need to be added to an Attribute Group (B) - This is necessary to define the relationship between the population and the associated data extensions and attributes.

No more than three Populations should be created (C) - Creating more than three populations can lead to performance issues and complexity in managing contacts.

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

In Salesforce Marketing Cloud, landing pages can use the Core Library and the Platform Library of Server-Side JavaScript (SSJS). The Core Library provides fundamental functions, while the Platform Library provides additional functionality to interact with Marketing Cloud-specific features.

Core Library: Provides basic SSJS functionality.

Platform Library: Extends SSJS functionality with additional methods specific to Marketing Cloud.

Salesforce SSJS Documentation

To aggregate monthly energy usage data stored in variables for each month, you should use the ADD function in AMPscript to sum up the values. The ADD function can be nested to handle multiple values.

AMPscript Example:

%%[ SET @total = ADD(@jan, ADD(@feb, ADD(@mar, @apr))) ]%%

Salesforce AMPscript Functions - ADD

To reference SSJS (Server-Side JavaScript) variables for content personalization in Salesforce Marketing Cloud, you use the tag. This tag evaluates the SSJS variable and inserts its value into the content. The correct usage is:

variableName

This syntax allows you to dynamically insert the value of variableName into the email content.

To add and verify From Addresses in Marketing Cloud, you can use the following routes:

POST /messaging/v1/domainverification: This endpoint is used to verify a single domain.

POST /messaging/v1/domainverification/bulk/insert: This endpoint is used to verify multiple domains in bulk.

Salesforce Domain Verification API

QUESTIONNO: 111

Northern Trail Outfitters sends a weekly email with dynamic content, and they want to record custom data inside a send log on each send to record what content was displayed and correlation flags.

What is the maximum number of custom data points recommended by Salesforce to ensure sends speeds are not affected when inserting into the built-in send log?

A. 20 fields or less

B. 10 fields or less

C. No limit

D. 5 fields or less

Answer: C

To create a JavaScript Web Token (JWT) using a key from Key Management in Salesforce Marketing Cloud, the GetJWTByKeyName function should be used. This function generates a JWT using the specified key from Key Management.

Salesforce JWT Documentation

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

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")

To ensure that an installed package can access data from a child business unit, verify that the package has been granted access to the specific child business unit. This is configured during the package setup and permissions assignment.

Salesforce Installed Packages and Business Unit Access

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

To dynamically populate the physical address of a company's locations using the variable @address and ensure the fastest possible performance for millions of subscribers, the recommended AMPscript solution is:

%%[ SET @address = Lookup("Building_Locations", "Address", "Id", @Id) ]%%

This solution uses the Lookup function, which retrieves a specific field value from a data extension based on the given criteria. It is efficient and performs well for high-volume sends.

To export send data to their SFTP, the following automations can be used:

Tracking Extract > File Transfer (B) - This automation extracts tracking data and then transfers the file to an SFTP location.

Query (Data Views) > Data Extension Extract > File Transfer (C) - This automation queries the data views to gather the necessary data, extracts the data from the data extension, and then transfers the file to an SFTP location.

The "Overwrite" import operation is used when you want to completely replace the contents of a Data Extension with the contents of the import file. This operation adds new records from the file and removes any records that are not present in the file.

Overwrite Operation: This will ensure that the Data Extension contains only the records present in the CSV file. Any existing records in the Data Extension that are not in the file will be deleted.

Salesforce Marketing Cloud Import Activity

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:

Salesforce Server-Side JavaScript (SSJS) Guide

To select a unique list of subscribers who have made multiple purchases, the developer should use the following SQL statement:

SELECT SubscriberKey FROM Orders GROUP BY SubscriberKey HAVING COUNT(*) > 1

This query groups the records by SubscriberKey and selects only those groups where the count of records is greater than one, indicating multiple purchases.

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.