A little knowledge is a dangerous thing!

[Gerard_Donnell4]

This is more of a tip for new people starting out on their Marketo journey.

I have been using Marketo for just over three years and part of this community most days for the last two years.  In that time I have grown to level 6 in the community and become a "Marketo Certified Expert" (kind of).  I say "kind of" as I am far from a real Marketo expert.  Every day that I come on here, I learn something new.  My tip for anyone reading this; log on as often as possible, read every question, every reply and try to replicate or understand what is being discussed.  I have learned more doing this than I have reading the documentation over and over. 

There is also a bunch of super helpful people who regularly contribute and provide expert insights, tips and tricks and lots more.  I would mention names but there is too many and I'm afraid of missing someone out.  This is information that you will not find anywhere else or from more experienced people.  In just the last week I have learned numerous things about topics I already thought I knew about.

I called this post "A little knowledge is a dangerous thing!" because you might be an MCE on paper but you still have a long way to go to become a true expert, something which I hope to achieve someday.

Thanks to everyone who helps me to keep learning.

To anyone new reading this, do yourself a favour and follow what I'm doing as it will only make you better.

[Darrell_Alfons2]

Good points!

I had the same thought before, about how MCE is really a baseline of knowledge, rather than an expert status.

Marketo should consider creating multiple levels of the exam. Or maybe open up certified solutions architect to non-partners.

[Anonymous]

Hi Gerard,

Completely agree. Achieving the MCE is just the first step. Most of the knowledge I have is due to constant use of MKTO and specially through the Community.

To Darrell Alfonso​ point, it would be very useful to have different levels of MCE. I guess MCSA is the ultimate certification goal in which you do have to show you know the platform inside out from a consultant perspective, but as he mentioned not everyone has access to it.

I found the Specializations to be quite useful, as they are much more granular than in the MCE.

Thanks.

[ChristinaZuniga]

+100, you have it right on!

At a user group meeting a few weeks ago someone asked how long I'd been using Marketo and when I said 3 years they were surprised that I was a Champion already since they had been using Marketo for a similar number of years. MCE and/or Champion don't mean you know everything.

This is a great reminder that we're all learning every day and have so much to teach each other, regardless of what certs or badges you have. Our Community is unique because of how many people are willing to not only jump in with advice, but take the time to actively troubleshoot an issue.

[Trinity_Levens3]

How do you find time with all the workload?!  

kidding aside, this is spot on, I learn so much in the community.  After reading some threads I realize there's more to learn and I love learning from everyone here.   What's also obvious is that the number next to you that indicates level also doesn't mean you don't know as much because it's not higher, I just haven't had the time to be in and out of the community contributing as much as I'd like, that's on me of course, but hey...it's that workload thing ya know!   

[Grégoire_Miche2]

Hi Trinity,

In fact, I personally learn a lot in contributing, because it forces me to revisit my knowledge, run tests and formalize my knowledge, then confront suggestions with other contributors. Whether it's answering questions, digging in ideas to check whether something is really not possible (often when it's not possible, someone wrote an idea), contributing is learning.

-Greg

[Grace_Brebner3]

So true, Gerard Donnelly. Certification isn't the be-all-and-end-all, as an MCSA I'm more than willing to admit that there is far more that I don't know than there is that I do - and 80% of the new things I learn I discover from others who use Marketo. There are some things that you only really learn through experience, and being able to call on people with such a range of experiences is so enormously valuable.

That's not to say certification isn't also valuable, of course I would also love to see Marketo open up the MCSA to non-partners. I fortunately got mine completed shortly before I moved back in-house, but I don't think there's always a huge difference between being in-house and Partner side... In my current role I often feel like I'm still playing the Marketo Partner role to multiple businesses, it just so happens that those businesses are owned by the one that employs me.

[Brooke_Bartos1]

Gerard, you absolutely nailed it. There is so much to learn from your peers -- everyone I know and speak with in detail is using features of Marketo in different ways. There isn't just one way to use the system, especially with all the variation in industries, marketing teams, and resources. Learning and sharing will make all of us better.