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How To Pass The AdWords Fundamentals Exam

By Julie Molloy, Head of Marketing 9 May, 2014

If you’re reading this blog, you’re probably considering taking the Google AdWords Fundamentals Exam. Relax, this blog has everything you need so keep reading and enjoy!

The Basics

  • 120 Minutes
  • 90 multiple choice questions
  • Open-book exam
  • 85% pass rate
  • Valid for 2 years

Once you answer the question, and go on to the next question then that’s it – you can’t go back to change your answer. But on the plus side, it’s an open exam, so you can refer back to online notes, have the AdWords interface open or if in doubt, Google.

If you fail? No bother, you can resit the exam in 7 days time once you’ve crammed some more revision in.

Our Top Tips

  1. Read the AdWords Study Guide. Then read it again – you would be a fool not to. Written by Google, it contains everything you need to know for the exam. This should definitely be your first port of call for study materials
  2. Use AdWords; I know this sounds obvious, but it makes life easier if you do. Look around the interface, find out what goes where, set up some campaigns, explore match types, and become confident that you can find information easily. After all, this exam is all about AdWords.
  3. Know your definitions.

Other Resources

Gyani Akash has particularly useful exam practice tests with answers – so do this when you’re feeling confident and you can see how much you really know.

AdWords for Dummies has a useful glossary, useful to brush up what makes a Quality Score or what eCPC is.

For Audio Visual learners, there is a good YouTutube overview by Agency Training. Although a bit outdated, it tells you a little bit about everything.

Remember, when reading help tips on the internet, be a bit sceptical. If they say that they’re not sure about the answer then the chances are they are guessing and you might be learning false information.

On The Day

The AdWords exam open book, so be smart and take advantage of this. Have the following things to hand and ready to consult:

  1. AdWords – pretty explanatory, after all it is what the exam is on.
  2. AdWords Editor – just in case a question comes up about it
  3. The AdWords Study Guide

Remember, once you click start then that’s it – you can’t pause or come back to it later.

Good luck!

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