Email Sending and Journeys22% of the exam

Journey entry settings, validation and activation

What a journey needs before it can go live: an entry source with a filter and schedule, Journey Settings for contact entry and the default email address, validation and testing, and why a running journey changes only through a new version.

Official exam objective
Outline the necessary configurations to activate a journey and configure entry criteria for a successful activation.

~6 min read · 8 practice questions ·

What the exam expects

  • Configure an entry source so that only the intended contacts enter, and choose how often it admits them.
  • Pick the contact entry mode that matches a business rule, and know where the mode can't be set.
  • Choose the default email address for a journey and predict what happens when the entry data holds more than one email field.
  • Explain what validation checks, when it runs and what it can't catch, and why testing follows it.
  • Change a running journey with a new version.
  • Key terms: entry source (where contacts entering a journey come from); contact entry mode (when a contact may enter again); default email address (which stored address receives journey email); validation (the check that the journey's components are configured correctly); journey version (a separate copy of the journey you edit and activate).

Key facts

Entry source
Detail
Every journey must include one
Data extension entry
Detail
Sendable data extension; filter or admit all
Entry schedules
Detail
Run Once, Recurring, Automation
Uniqueness for entry mode
Detail
Checked by contact key
No re-entry
Detail
All versions; can't change after activation
Two EmailAddress columns
Detail
Journey Builder prompts you to pick one
Validation runs
Detail
On Validate, on save and on activate
Messaging activity
Detail
At least one is required
Test mode
Detail
Sends nothing; ignores waits and entry settings
Single Send journeys
Detail
No contact entry setting, no testing, no versions
Sources for this section (8)
  • When must you save, validate and test a journey again?
  • Why does a journey test finish quickly even when the journey has multi-day waits?
  • Which value does Journey Builder use to decide whether an entering contact is the same contact?

The questions are free to read. Answers with their sources and self-grading are included with the pack.

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