Here is a fact:
Passing the 310-101: Facebook™ Advertising Core Competencies Blueprint Exams can be frustrating
And overwhelming
You don’t know where to start. There are over +120 courses on the Facebook™ Blueprint Course Catalog.
And it gets worse
Just take a look at some comments in our Facebook™ Group
Got 690. So close!
I’ve failed twice…
So you’re probably wondering:
“How do I pass the Facebook™ Blueprint Certification Exam then?”
In this post, I’m going to show you everything you should do and know to pass your next exam.
(Please keep in mind that this guideline is for the 310-101: Facebook Advertising Core Competencies; not for the 321-101: Facebook™ Certified Buying Professional nor the 322-101: Facebook Certified Planning Professional.)
Enough said.
Let’s dive right in!
Wait, Is This Test Actually Hard?
The test is not easy.
The first thing you should take into account is your level of expertise in digital marketing.
More importantly, running Facebook campaigns.
Honestly, how long you’ve worked in the industry and actually implemented campaigns is probably the number one factor in determining how difficult the exam will be for you.
The bottom line is this:
It’s very difficult to assess someone’s skill-set in social media.
However, after training several people and talking with some of you in the community, I would separate “experience” in three levels:
Level #1 Beginner
Less than 6 months of experience or no experience at all in digital marketing
If you are new to Facebook Advertising and want to pass the exam, I would suggest spending an hour or two per day, for at least 4-6 weeks.
Go through most of the Facebook Blueprint Courses as suggested in the exams, understand lexicon, and play around with Facebook Tools.
Materiales you should go over:
- Download our free study guide
- Go through the courses Facebook suggest
- Go through Facebook troubleshooting pages
- Go over the Facebook Ads Guide
- Know how Facebook Marketing Partners works
- Go through Facebook TPR buying and understand buying options
- Understand the difference between branding and direct marketing
- Read our blog 🙂
Tools you should know how to use:
- Facebook Business
- Facebook Ads Manager + Power Editor
- Facebook Audiences
- Audience Insights
- Facebook Fan Page
- Instagram Ads
- Facebook Pixel (basics)
- Facebook SDK (basics)
- Ads Reporting
- Facebook Brand Lift
Exercises you should go over and make sure you know how to do without any help:
- Create multiple audiences (saved, custom, and lookalike)
- Create multiple ads within the Ads Manager
- Create multiple ads with different layers within Power Editor
- Understand how to launch ads within Facebook tools for Instagram
- Know how to troubleshoot campaigns within Facebook
- Migrate Fan Pages and Ad Accounts into Facebook Business
- Add multiple users to Facebook Business with different levels of access
- Use Audience Insights to analyze custom audiences, fan pages, and research new audiences
- Know how to analyze campaigns in your Ads Reporting tool
To be honest, if you are just starting out…
and haven’t even set up your Fan Page
Just be patient.
Wait 4-6 months and get some experience running ads. Trust me it will make a huge difference.
The exam is more practical and will require that you have at least some months of experience behind you.
Level #2 Intermediate:
6-18 months of experience actively working in digital marketing
Actively is key here.
I’ve talked with several people who have +12 months of experience in digital marketing or social media strategy but haven’t once launched an ad.
Keep in mind that the exams are more practical than theoretical. So if you haven’t launched ads or managed Facebook tools for a while, make sure you go over basics and play around with Facebook tools.
If you are an active user and manage various Facebook accounts, you should probably spend 1-2 hours a day for two weeks going over materials and topics that you are not familiar with.
You should also play around with Facebook for 1-2 days and you should be good to go!
(I am assuming you are able to do all of the things listed in Level #1)
Materials you should go over:
- Download our free study guide
- DON’T waste your time going over the Blueprint Courses
- Go through Facebook troubleshooting guide
- Spend your time going over Facebook webinar recording on topics you are not super-familiar with
- Go over the Facebook Ads Guide. Just play around with it and go over each ad type once the day before the test.
- Check out our 10 Facebook Certification Exam Questions to familiarize yourself with the structure of the exam
Tools you should know how to use:
- Go over how Facebook SDK works. A lot of people have never used this tool before
- Honestly, you should know how to use most of Facebook tools by now!
Exercises you should go over and make sure you know how to do without any help:
- Use power editor if you haven’t launched ads recently
- Go basic tasks in Facebook Business
To be honest, if you have been actively launching campaigns and using Facebook at work, you should just go over theory and a quick run-through the content.
Level #3 Expert:
+18 months of experience actively working in digital marketing
If you have extensive experience with Facebook, I would suggest to just go over our study guide and you should be good to go.
To be completely honest, the exam is not difficult if you’ve been working for a while in social media and digital marketing.
If you are constantly launching new campaigns for different clients, reading Facebook updates on its blog and staying up to date with new digital trends, you shouldn’t have an issue passing the exam.
What To Know (Like, Really Well)
Regardless of your level of expertise, there are things you should definitely know how to do before taking your next 310-101: Facebook Advertising Core Competencies Blueprint Exams.
Understand Facebook’s campaign structure
- How to troubleshoot campaigns
- What is changed at the campaign, ad set and ad level
- How to optimize your Facebook ads
- Creative best practices.
Fan Page vs. Business Manager vs. Ad Account
Know the difference between a Fan Page, Business Manager, Ad Account and Facebook core tools.
Branding vs. Direct Marketing
Definitely, understand how branding is different than direct marketing within Facebook. Know what Facebook means with each.
Different Type of Ads
Know all the different type of ads you can launch within Facebook and how to launch one from the Ads Manager or Power Editor. Also, understand the limitations, call to actions and differences between all.
Jargon + Lexicon
Know basic jargon terminology: CPC, CPM, oCPM, CPV, CTR, and so on. Facebook tends to use them a lot during the exam and will assume you know what each means.
10 Tips For Your Facebook Blueprint Test Day
Here is a list of 10 tips to guide you through test day:
- Pick a time of the day that suits your needs. I am a morning person, so I scheduled my exams at 8:30 AM in the morning. Some people prefer later in the day. Just make sure you leave 2 hours of time so that you don’t have to rush through your exam.
- Don’t go through materials the day of the test. To be honest, if you don’t know it 1-2 hours before your test, chances are you won’t. Just rest, relax and prepare your mind and body.
- Remember to bring a government-issued ID.
- Go to the bathroom before your test. You won’t be able to take a break once you start the exam.
- During your exam, whatever the test throughs at you, stay optimistic. It is very difficult (impossible I would say) to gauge your performance during the test itself.
- Stay calm. If you have NO idea for a question, pick a random one and spend time on other questions.
- Just like any multiple-choice test, if you don’t know the answer, try to dwindle down your options to 2 and just pick one. You have a 50/50 chance of getting the right answer.
- Pace yourself! Yes, it’s easier said than done. You have a perfectly viable time to finalize the exam.
- Enjoy it! It’s just a test. If you fail, you have 30 days to prepare yourself again.
- Download the software 1 hour beforehand and do a test run.
How To Prepare Your Room Before Test
On my first exam, it took me +20 minutes to get everything ready.
I was anxious and just wanted to start my test.
However, since I was taking the exam online and not in a test center, I had to move things around.
Following these steps will help you start your exam quicker:
- Turn of monitors or external monitors from your laptop
- Clear your desk! No pens, paper… anything
- Don’t have food on your table
- Make sure there are no recording cameras in the room
- Clear everything underneath your desk
- Close the door. If someone walks into the room, they will cancel your exam
- Put a post-it on your door during test saying “In Exam. Don’t interrupt.”
- You will have to scan your room with your webcam
Other Readings From This Blog That Can Help
- 10 Facebook Certification Exam Answers and Questions With Explanations
- Facebook Campaign Structure: Difference Between Auction vs. Reach and Frequency
- A Dead-Simple Facebook Blueprint Certification Guide: Costs, Tips & Tricks for Facebook Certification
- 8 Tips to quickly prepare for your Facebook Certification Exams
- How does the Facebook ad auction and delivery work?
- Who should take the Facebook Blueprint Certification exams?
- Join our Facebook Group
Best of luck on your next exam! When you pass it, make sure you let us know 🙂
If you have other tips, makes sure you comment below and share with the community.