7 Super Marketing Cloud Email Specialist Certification Tips and Tricks

Discover practical strategies for taking the Salesforce Marketing Cloud Email Specialist Certification via resources that cover different learning styles, including self-led on Trailhead, on-demand from Trailhead Live, expert-led classes, and more.

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If one of your goals is to obtain your Marketing Cloud Email Specialist Certification this year, then this blog is for you! Marketing continues to become one of the most treasured skills in the marketplace, and there’s a growing trend for CEOs to come from the marketing side of the house.

Hi there! My name is Brian Richardson and I’ve been part of the Salesforce Marketing Cloud for more than 11 years.

My primary focus has been to help new students learn how to use the Marketing Cloud, and that has included employees and customers.

I have Marketing Cloud Email Specialist, Marketing Cloud Administrator, Marketing Cloud Consultant, Pardot Email Specialist, Administrator, and Advanced Administrator Certifications.

My experiences as a teacher, mentor, and student give me some keen insight on how to prepare for the Marketing Cloud Email Specialist Certification exam, in addition to providing some practical test-taking strategies for any Salesforce Certification exam.

How do you obtain these sought-after skills?

If you ever have the pleasure to visit London, you’ll be met with the common phrase “Mind the gap” when you travel on the Tube. Before I share these tips, I want you to do the same.

Are you a marketing newbie? A digital pro but new to the Salesforce Marketing Cloud? Or are you a seasoned pro looking to prove it by obtaining this credential? No plan is one-size-fits-all. So, make sure you mind any gaps you have as part of your plan.

Now, let’s dive in.

1. Read the exam guide

You wouldn’t start a journey (pun intended) without a map, would you? Exam guides are so helpful for knowing the topics of consideration, but they also lay out the percentages that will be covered. You want to major in the majors, not the minors.

Also, many of our customers use the Marketing Cloud in very unique ways. Even if you’ve mastered part of the landscape that’s covered, maybe there are areas you have yet to traverse. The Salesforce Certified Marketing Cloud Email Specialist Exam Guide will give you an idea of where to go next.

2. Hit the trails

You don’t want to trail behind, do you? Prepare for your Marketing Cloud Email Specialist Credential is a great trail that covers key information you need to know.

But don’t stop here! If you haven’t noticed, there’s been a real increase in Marketing Cloud content over the last year, and that’s a trend that continues.

Simply go to the search bar, type in the topic you want to know more about, and pick the trail that best suits you. Some of my favorites are Email Deliverability Concepts and Quick Start: Create and Send a Message in Journey Builder.

3. Go live

One of the coolest things to happen in the last couple of years is Trailhead Live, where you have the opportunity to see our pros dig into particular topics of interest.

Think of Trailhead Live’s content as bite-sized training snacks inspired by the full meal of a training course. It’s the perfect place to go if you want to review course concepts that may be a bit fuzzy. You can find some content that I’ve posted, in addition to some great content from my colleagues.

Some sessions that I think will be particularly helpful include:

• Marketing Cloud — Roles and Permissions
• Preparing for your Marketing Cloud Consultant Certification — Data Designer and Attribute Groups.

Don’t let that last title throw you off — the concept of Contact Builder and attribute groups is relevant for the Marketing Cloud Email Specialist Certification, too.

4. Take a webinar

Salesforce also offers many webinars to help extend your learning of the Marketing Cloud. Be sure to check in to see what current topics are being offered, many of which are on-demand.

The Preparing for your Marketing Cloud Email Marketing Specialist Certification webinar is a great way to cover the basics you need to know for the exam.

Also, look out for our Certification Days. What are Certification Days, you ask? These are 1-day sessions focused on the topics you need to master to take a certification exam.

Now, we can’t take you from 0 to 100 in one day. We also can’t cover every topic on the exam in detail. But what we can do is break down the topics and share some tips or tricks to learn a concept — and instructors can offer their advice, too.

Think of passing a certification like having all the numbers for a combination lock. I’ve had students send me messages saying that Certification Days helped them with the last push they needed to pass.

5. Learn from the experts

One of the most important pieces of advice I can offer is this: If you have the opportunity, take the Build and Analyze Customer Journeys using Marketing Cloud (MKT101) course.

This course launched in 2020 and is 5 days of awesomeness! You’ll get an opportunity to go over the foundations of data, administration, segmentation, email creation, automation, and so much more.

6. Take the practice test

The Email Specialist Practice exam will give you a chance to see where you feel confident as well as what areas need more attention before you take the test head-on. Even if you’re an expert in the Marketing Cloud, maybe there are parts that you don’t often use.

When you take a certification exam, you have to apply your knowledge in such a way as to know the pros and cons of each option available. Certification exams require us to think a bit differently than we do in our day-to-day missions, and the practice test can really help you zero in on that skill.

7. Read on for more information

Seriously… read! There are so many free resources available to you, and you can find many of them right here at Email Marketing Best Practices.

From email blogs on psychology to a podcast offering unique content every month, there’s something for you here. And long after you’ve obtained your Marketing Cloud Email Specialist certification, there’s still great information to help you grow in your career.

Did someone say rap?

That’s a wrap! And as the rapping instructor, I’d be remiss not to share my Marketing Cloud rap with you…

🌟 Pro tip: Check out the Trailhead Academy Instructor Tips to Make Salesforce Concepts Stick blog for memory tricks (and to see my rap on Automation Studio!)

And hey, if you want to learn about some Sales Cloud concepts like Record Types or Record Access, you’ll find links to those videos on the blog, too. Or maybe you just want to watch some bad rapping… Either way, there are some fun things to check out!

Good luck in getting your Marketing Cloud Email Specialist credential, and give me a shout on social (bonus points if it’s in the form of a rap).