As part of AACN’s regular quality assurance process, we survey all newly certified customers. This enables us to explore the personal and professional reasons nurses pursue specialty certification, how long they prepared for the exam, and which resources they used to help them succeed. Survey results consistently show that practice questions are the most sought-after resource.

Prior to offering a digital practice exam solution, we were offering printed practice question booklets with a limited number of questions, but we knew there had to be a more modern and flexible solution to support our customers. We began looking for a vendor who could help us provide a digital resource that would be easy for us to set up and even easier for our customers to use. What happened next, no one could have anticipated: Addressing this need became an incredibly impactful and financially rewarding decision.

The Wake-Up Call

In 2019, our survey results painted a clear picture: Our candidates expected sophisticated exam preparation tools that mirror the actual testing experience. When they didn’t get that from us, they turned to third-party providers that may or may not have accurately represented our test plan and in most cases provided questions that were not written in the same style as our exams.

This revelation prompted us to explore comprehensive exam prep solutions that would:

• Improve candidate satisfaction and confidence
• Provide a resource written in the same style as our exams
• Minimize the burden on our already stretched staff
• Support ongoing additions and edits to content
• Offer a flexible online tool allowing candidates to practice on the go

The Solution

After evaluating several options, we selected an integrated exam prep solution called Test Run.

With Test Run, our candidates can seamlessly access our subscription-based practice exam products through their AACN customer dashboard via single sign-on (SSO). The platform lets them automatically generate unlimited practice exams from our bank of proprietary practice questions. Each practice exam mirrors the actual certification exam's content distribution while never repeating the same practice exam twice. Candidates receive detailed results with rationales for correct answers and score breakdowns for each content area, as well as ongoing visual feedback and progress reports, to help them identify their strengths and weaknesses as they progress in their preparation.

With a robust item bank already developed and used in previous printed booklets, our entire solution was implemented in less than three weeks at absolutely no cost to our organization. In addition, the new platform significantly improved the processes for our staff by streamlining recurring updates and revisions. While the item writing and review processes remained the same, shifting to a digital platform has allowed us to expand volunteer participation in practice exam development and increase the number of questions available to our nursing community. Overall, the change has improved efficiency and flexibility for our team.

Candidate Impacts: In Their Own Words Nearly 50% of candidates who responded to our survey identified “practice questions” as the most beneficial resource in their exam prep (twice as many responses as any other resource identified). Here are just a few of more than 1,000 comments that indicate the importance and usefulness of AACN’s practice exams:

• “The AACN review questions were the most helpful to me in passing the CCRN exam.”
• “The AACN practice questions provided me with the best practice, because it also offered rationales to the questions.”
• “I spent a good deal of time answering practice questions and I think this allowed me to identify gaps in my knowledge and get a sense of how to answer the questions.”

Unexpected Revenue Opportunity

Implementing this solution helped us accomplish what we initially set out to achieve for our candidates, and that would have been enough. But what we didn’t anticipate was the revenue potential.

Candidate use of AACN’s exam prep products has grown by more than 40%. And because this solution allows us to retain a generous share of subscription revenue, our annual exam prep revenue has soared by a staggering 1,500% since launching in January 2020.

The subscription tiers we decided to offer are as follows:

• A one-time, free, 7-day trial with access to 30 questions
• A Basic subscription with 30-day access to 150 questions
• A Premium subscription with 180-day access to the full practice question library, including ongoing content additions

Lessons for Other Credentialing Organizations

If you're considering upgrading your exam preparation resources, here are the key factors that made this initiative successful for us:

• Maintain content control: Offer resources aligned with the style of your certification exams.
• Provide performance analytics and rationales: Candidates value detailed feedback that helps them understand their strengths and weaknesses.
• Consider alternative pricing models: We offer a tiered subscription-based model that allows prospective certificants to choose the option that best suits their needs and finances.
• Prioritize simple implementation: Choose a solution that minimizes demands on your staff.
• Enhance your bottom line: Create a revenue stream rather than a cost center by finding a solution that offers a generous revenue earning model.

Key Takeaways

What surprised me most about this journey was how quickly we transformed the customer experience and recognized a significant revenue stream.

For credentialing organizations facing similar challenges, I'm happy to share more details about our experience. After all, elevating the standards of our industry benefits everyone involved.