The writing was on the wall in the digital marketing industry as the pandemic spread, lockdowns struck, and the economy took a turn. I wrote on LinkedIn in those early days that marketers needed to turn off Netflix and prepare themselves for the coming challenges. Some people did… but, unfortunately most didn’t. The layoffs are continuing to rip through marketing departments across the country.
Digital marketing is a fascinating career where you can find two different marketers that have substantially different skillsets. One might be a branding expert with an ability to craft a creative visual experience and communicate the products or services of the company effectively. Another might be a technology expert who understands analytics and is able to develop digital marketing campaigns that drive the company’s marketing efforts. The intersection of skills and the average workday of each of these may not overlap at all… yet they’re still proficient at their occupations.
If you want to increase your value to your current organization or prepare yourself for your next digital marketing position, I’d highly recommend getting yourself into some professional training.
What Is A Digital Marketer?
In my opinion, the most talented digital marketers I’ve ever worked with have a deep understanding of some key channels and mediums, but fully understand how to leverage others they may not have expertise in. Personally, I believe my expertise in branding, content, search, and social marketing have made me a successful digital marketer over the years.
One area that I don’t pretend to have expertise in is advertising and advertising technology. I understand the complexities but recognize that the learning curve to build my expertise is just too difficult at this stage in my career. So, when I need advertising resources, I connect with partners that are working day in and day out in these strategies every day.
That said… I still need to understand how and when to utilize advertising as part of an overall digital marketing strategy. And that does require digital marketing training. It may be surprising to many of you, but I am constantly taking courses, attending webinars, and consuming content to try to stay ahead. This industry moves fast and you’ve got to dedicate time to stay on top.
How to Become a Digital Marketer
With Udacity’s nanodegree program, attendees can get a base overview of everything needed to become a successful digital marketer. They’ll learn to create marketing content, use social media to amplify your message, make content discoverable in search, run ad campaigns and advertise on Facebook. Additionally, learn how display and video ads work and how to market with email, and measure and optimize with Google Analytics.
Digital Marketer Training from Udacity
The course takes about 3 months if you dedicate 10 hours a week and includes:
- Marketing Fundamentals – In this course, we give you a framework to help you organize and plan your marketing approach. We also introduce you to three companies that are featured throughout the Digital Marketing Nanodegree program as examples of how to apply what you learn in both B2C and B2B contexts.
- Content Marketing Strategy – Content is at the core of all marketing activity. In this course, you learn how to plan your content marketing, how to develop content that works well for your target audience, and how to measure its impact.
- Social Media Marketing – Social media is a powerful channel for marketers. In this course, you learn more about the main social media platforms, how to manage your social media presence, and how to create effective content for each platform.
- Social Media Advertising – Cutting through the noise in social media can be challenging, and often, marketers must use paid social media marketing strategies to amplify their message. In this course, you learn about the opportunities for targeted advertising in social media and how to execute advertising campaigns that resonate with your audience.
- Search Engine Optimization (SEO) – Search engines are an essential part of the online experience. Learn how to optimize your search engine presence through on-site and off-site activities, including how to develop your target keyword list, optimize your website UX and design, and execute a link-building campaign.
- Search Engine Marketing with Google Ads – Optimizing visibility in search engine results is an essential part of digital marketing. Reinforcing findability through Search Engine Marketing (SEM) is an effective tactic to achieve your marketing objectives. In this course, you learn how to create, execute, and optimize an effective ad campaign using Google Ads.
- Display Advertising – Display advertising is a powerful marketing tool, strengthened by new platforms like mobile, new video opportunities, and enhanced targeting. In this course, you learn how display advertising works, how it is bought and sold (including in a programmatic environment), and how to set up a display advertising campaign using Google Ads.
- Email Marketing – Email is an effective marketing channel, especially at the conversion and retention stage of the customer journey. In this course, you learn how to create an email marketing strategy, create and execute email campaigns, and measure the results.
- Measure and Optimize with Google Analytics – Actions online can be tracked, and so can the effect of your digital marketing efforts. In this course, you learn how to use Google Analytics to evaluate your audience, measure the success of your acquisition and engagement efforts, evaluate your user’s conversions to your goals, and use those insights to plan and optimize your marketing budgets.
Udacity’s digital marketer course incorporates real-world projects from industry experts and immersive content built in partnership with top tier companies.
Their knowledgeable mentors guide your learning and are focused on answering your questions, motivating you, and keeping you on track. You’ll also have access to resume support, Github portfolio review, and LinkedIn profile optimization to help you advance your career and land a high-paying role.
Build a flexible custom learning plan tailored to fit your busy life. Learn at your own pace and reach your personal goals on the schedule that works best for you.
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