In Digital Response, we have experts certified in some of the industry’s most important email marketing platforms. In fact, Alejandra, Gabriela, and Fran have already, in previous posts, talked about their experiences obtaining Salesforce, Oracle Eloqua, and Oracle Responsys certifications.
In my case, I will explain how I got the Adobe Campaign Classic Business Practitioner certification (ADO-E300) and how the process works.
Adobe Campaign Classic is a very comprehensive and complex Email and Marketing Automation platform that allows the use of customer data to create, coordinate and send dynamic campaigns via email, mobile devices, and offline channels, amongst others.
To acquire a more in-depth knowledge of the platform and demonstrate that proficiency, there are certifications that verify marketing professionals who show a great command of it. According to Adobe, “To be an Adobe Certified Expert is to demonstrate expertise in helping clients realize value in an Adobe solution.”
Specifically, I will focus on the Adobe Campaign Classic Business Practitioner certification. Unlike the Oracle and Salesforce certifications obtained by my colleagues, in this instance, it isn’t compulsory to take any kind of course to sit the exam. However, for those not accustomed to daily usage of the platform and without a deep grip on its functioning, it is advisable to take the training to obtain the necessary knowledge and skills to pass the exam successfully.
In my case, I did not take Adobe’s course, but I did take part in a 4-day-long Merkle one. At the time, we were working with Adobe Campaign Classic 6, and the latest version of the platform was AC7, the same version the exam focused on. Merkle’s training gave us the necessary tools to see what changes the platform had undergone and refresh our knowledge.
For those interested in participating in Adobe’s training course, there are different modalities:
- On-demand Training
- Virtual Instructor-Led Training
- In-Persona Instructor-Led Training
- On-site Training in-person
Here you can find more information on each of these modalities.
Once you have successfully finished the course or feel prepared for it, it is time to take the exam. It consists of a total of 54 multiple-answer questions to be answered within 85 minutes. To pass, you need to at least answer correctly 70% of the questions. The exam can be taken online or in-person. If you take it online, as I did, you must be alone in a room, in silence, with the webcam and computer microphone on and screen-sharing.
When it comes to the content, it revolves around the following key points (which you will need to master to perfection):
- Campaign Management: knowing how to create and set up campaigns and determining the correct campaign template.
- Workflow Management: knowing how to interpret campaign requisites and configuration approvals, solve workflow errors and determine the right design for it. Being able to create technical workflows and knowing how to execute them.
- Data Management: Data importing, exporting, and research, as well as lists creation and configuration of predefined filters.
- Delivery Management: Knowing how to create and set up deployments, correct approval tests, and interpret audits.
- Reporting: Identifying the necessary steps to generate deliverability reports, determining the appropriate reports to generate, and interpret campaign reports.
- Administration: Knowing how to manage users and folder structures.
If you are considering getting this certification, my advice is:
- If you don’t have a deep understanding of the platform, I recommend taking Adobe’s course to acquire the necessary knowledge to optimize usage and successfully pass the exam.
- Keep in mind that practice makes perfect, and this isn’t something you can just study theoretically. Try to do practical exercises and real case studies. Remember that Adobe recommends having at least 2 years of experience on the platform under your belt to increase your chances of passing the exam.
In Digital Response, we considered having such a certification an excellent way to verify my skills with the platform and prove that we can work it without any problems. It has also helped me refresh different aspects of the platform’s features, bringing me even more confidence in its management and allowing me to work faster.
