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

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

To retrieve the value of the AMPscript variable named subKey in Server-Side JavaScript (SSJS), the following statement should be used:

Var.Get("subKey");

This statement retrieves the value of the specified AMPscript variable within SSJS.

The SubscriberKey is the appropriate parameter to use when appending data to links via the Web Analytics Connector. This parameter uniquely identifies subscribers across all sends and ensures accurate tracking of subscriber behavior.

Subscriber Key: A unique identifier for a subscriber that remains consistent across all data extensions and sends.

Salesforce Web Analytics Connector

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 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.

To validate an email address prior to form submission, the REST API endpoint /address/v1/validateEmail can be used. This endpoint allows you to check if the email address is formatted correctly and potentially validate it against known email address patterns.

Salesforce REST API for Email Validation

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

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 track the performance of dynamically created content via AMPscript in an email, the following steps should be performed:

Request the Impression Tracking feature be enabled on the account: This feature must be enabled to track impressions of dynamic content.

Include the functions BeginImpressionRegion and EndImpressionRegion: These functions are used within the AMPscript code to mark the beginning and end of the content region that needs to be tracked.

Example:

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%%[BeginImpressionRegion('DynamicContent')]%%

%%=v(@DynamicContent)=%%

Salesforce AMPscript Functions for Tracking

To inject a contact into a journey using the API, you use the POST /interaction/v1/events route. This endpoint allows you to inject events into Journey Builder, effectively adding contacts to the journey based on the event definition.

Salesforce Journey Builder API

The JobID parameter is required for the LogUnsubEvent request to be tied to the appropriate send. The JobID uniquely identifies the email job that was sent, allowing the system to accurately log the unsubscribe event for that specific send.

JobID: This parameter ensures that the unsubscribe event is correctly associated with the email send job.

Salesforce LogUnsubEvent Documentation

To execute daily reports on all subscriber activity without impacting send performance, the best practice is to copy new Send Log records to an Archive data extension, then run reports from the Archive data extension (C). This approach ensures that the reporting activity does not interfere with the performance of ongoing send operations.

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.

In an Enterprise 2.0 account, when querying shared data extensions from a child business unit, the data extension name should be prefixed with 'ENT.' to indicate it resides in the shared data extensions folder.

Correct Query:

SELECT * FROM ENT.MemberData WHERE State = 'NY' AND US = 1

Salesforce Shared Data Extensions

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 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 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 automate the process of importing encrypted files from an external CRM, the following actions should be included:

File drop to the SFTP Import directory: Place the encrypted files in the SFTP Import directory to trigger the automation.

File transfer activity to the Safehouse for decryption: Move the encrypted files to the Safehouse for decryption, ensuring the data is securely handled.

Import definition to the necessary data extension: After decryption, import the data into the relevant Data Extension for use in marketing sends.

Salesforce File Drop Automations

Salesforce File Transfer Activity

Salesforce Import Activity

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

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

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

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 convert a string payload in JSON format to a JavaScript object on a CloudPage, the developer should use the ParseJSON (B) function in Marketing Cloud Server-Side JavaScript (SSJS). This function parses a JSON string and returns a corresponding JavaScript object.

Example:

var jsonString = '{"key1":"value1", "key2":"value2"}'; var jsonObject = Platform.Function.ParseJSON(jsonString);

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 manage the data model programmatically and access the Attribute Group schema, the REST API should be used. The REST API provides endpoints to interact with and retrieve information about Attribute Groups and their schemas.

Salesforce REST API

To control the rendering of unique and default content based on the presence of subscriber data in a related data extension, the best practice is to use the RowCount function and an IF statement:

%%[ VAR @rowCount SET @rowCount = RowCount(LookupRows("RelatedDataExtension", "SubscriberKey", _subscriberKey)) IF @rowCount > 0 THEN /* Render unique content */ ELSE /* Render default content */ ENDIF ]%%

This approach checks if there are any rows in the related data extension for the subscriber and conditionally renders the appropriate content.

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.

The tracking data views in Salesforce Marketing Cloud, such as _Sent, _Open, and _Click, store data for a limited period.

Data Retention Period: Salesforce Marketing Cloud retains tracking data for up to six months in the data views. This means that developers can query up to six months of tracking data using these views.

Salesforce Marketing Cloud Data Views

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

Before importing zipped files into a Data Extension, a File Transfer activity is needed to unzip the files on the Marketing Cloud Enhanced FTP server. This activity moves and decompresses the files to make them available for import.

File Transfer Activity: This activity is used to move files from one location to another and to unzip compressed files.

Salesforce File Transfer Activity

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

For a weekly promotional send, the marketer can use:

Sendable Data Extension: These are standard data extensions that are configured for sending and contain the necessary fields like Email Address and Subscriber Key.

Salesforce Data Extension: These are data extensions that are synchronized with Salesforce objects and can be used for sending emails.

Salesforce Data Extensions

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

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.

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 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 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.

A Query Activity in an Automation can fail for several reasons, including:

The query takes more than 60 minutes to run (A) - Long-running queries are subject to timeouts, which can cause the query to fail.

The query results in duplicate rows not allowed by the primary key (C) - If the query attempts to insert duplicate rows into a data extension that has a primary key constraint, it will fail.

The query is inserting a value that is larger than the size of a field (E) - If the query attempts to insert data that exceeds the field size limits, it will result in an error.

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 error stating that the application cannot insert a duplicate value for the primary key in the data extension occurs because the InsertDE function cannot be used at send time. The InsertDE function is designed to insert records into a data extension, but it cannot handle the transactional nature of email sends where records might be added simultaneously.