Do you think digital marketing is the right career choice for you? If you want an exciting job in a high-growth area, then you should consider digital marketing! If you’re looking to transition or build a career in digital marketing, there are enormous opportunities right now. You’ll find them across a variety of industries. Many careers exist in this field, and each is quite varied in terms of the skills required, ability, and natural abilities.

Some are better suited for beginners, while others are more technical. Some are great for those with a creative streak, while others prefer to be more analytical. While there are many opportunities out there, it’s difficult to know what you should do next.

Your Creativity gives you Wing to Fly!

A digital marketing job is a field of experimentation, where you have an opportunity to try out different methods and learn what works and what doesn’t. When you’re entering the land of digital marketing, you’re being given the gift of creativity to come up with ideas for the latest marketing campaigns, products, and services that the company should offer. Digital Marketing is the new frontier for companies as they continue to develop new ways to create and distribute information. If you’re an aspiring content creator, a brand manager, or an email marketer, then you’ll have to think up new ways to bring the message to your target audience.

What is digital marketing?

Digital marketing includes all the strategies that a business uses to connect with its customers through digital platforms. It is the process of promoting products and services through digital platforms like websites, mobile applications, and social media channels. It includes SEO, SMM, email marketing, website design and development, content marketing, digital PR, and online advertising. 

Let me ask you! 

Did you see a “Sponsored ad” when you scrolled your post on Instagram or Facebook? Or, what about when you type “Sundar Pichai” on the internet?

Did you see Levis dominate that specific “keyword”? That’s what businesses are doing. They put their product or service in front of people who are interested in buying it.

That’s What Digital Marketing is!

What skills do you need to become a digital marketer?

We’ve already covered the basic skills that make up a great digital marketer, but what exactly are the most important things to master in order to get to the next level? If you’re serious about becoming a digital marketer, it’s vital that you think about the skills you need to gain.

A digital marketer is someone who uses digital media to promote or sell products and services. So, to be a digital marketer, you need to have:

Foundational skills in digital marketing

Below are the skills you can use to make a good foundation for a digital marketing career.

1. SEO (Search Engine Optimization)

SEO or Search Engine Optimization is a method to get your business listed on the top of search results when someone hits keywords related to your business. It is not rocket science, but it is a very complex science that takes a lot of time and effort. There are many tools available that help you in optimizing your website for better rankings. 

Search engine optimization is about giving Google and other search engines (Bing, Yahoo) good information so that they can use it to index and display your website and pages on their search. Marketing professionals always try to rank a certain word or keyword relevant to the business so that potential customers could find them. This is known as organic traffic. It’s important to know SEO if you want to become a successful digital marketer.

Most Popular SEO Job Roles: SEO Analyst, SEO Specialist, Content Writer, Link Builder, SEO Consultant, etc.

2. PPC (Pay Per Click)

PPC is a type of paid search advertising, also known as pay-per-click advertising, in which advertisers pay for each time their ad is clicked. As with other forms of advertising, the goal of PPC advertising is to increase sales. Advantages of PPC advertising include:

• Low cost per click.
• Ability to reach highly targeted audiences.
• Flexibility to target specific keywords, phrases, and locations.

Let’s Search for “Jeans on sale”

You might find a paid search sponsored ad with jeans on sale from companies like HM, Levis, and Wrogn. Marketers pay to have their products or services show up on top when their potential customers search for what they offer. The marketer uses platforms like Google, AdRoll, or Bing to reach their potential customers.

Or,

You might spot a sponsored ad on social media, YouTube, or on a random website. This is an example of a paid ad.

Most Popular PPC Job Roles: PPC Analyst, PPC Specialist, Google Ads Specialist, Social Media Marketer, SEM Manager, etc.

3. Social media marketing

Social media marketing is a powerful channel for brands to connect with customers and prospects alike. The process can be challenging–it’s a lot like managing a direct sales business without all the perks! 

When you use Instagram, what is the first thing you do? You scroll down and maybe “like” a post or comment on it.

Hmm… that sounds interesting!

So, you check them all out and see what the buzz is all about! That’s Social Media Marketing. Using social media, you can introduce your brand and can drive traffic to your website, and convert users into a customer.

Most Popular SMM Job Roles: Content Writer, Social Media Specialist, Social Media Analyst, Brand Manager, Content Marketer, Social Media Manager.

4. Email marketing

Email marketing is the most powerful form of online advertising that can help you increase sales and attract more customers. It is also a proven way to improve your brand image and reputation. With email marketing, you can create targeted messages, set up autoresponders, create multiple campaigns, and track results easily and effectively. It is a great way to stay in touch with your customers and generate more leads. 

When you signed up to receive updates, you most likely did it to get the latest promotions, deals, coupons, and so on through email. That’s one kind of email marketing. This is a great way to build customer relationships and acquire sales.

Popular Email marketing Job Roles: Email Marketing Specialist, Email Marketing Manager, and Email Marketing Coordinator.

Technical skills in Digital Marketing

If you are planning to work in the field of digital marketing, then make sure you are aware of the following important technical skills.

1. Video creation/video marketing

Video Marketing is one of the most important things you can do to improve your business. It’s a proven fact that video is one of the most effective ways to communicate with your target audience. The average person watches more than 50 hours of video a month and almost half of that time is spent on social media.

To increase your website’s traffic, get more likes, and boost your rankings on the search engines, you need to know how to create, edit, and promote videos.

2. Design

Both UI and UX are essential for any digital marketing campaign. UI deals with the look and feel of a website and how it is organized and presented to users. Whereas UX deals with the actual functionality of a website.

Knowledge of the user interface and the design of the website is essential for a digital marketing campaign. User interface and user experience are terms used to describe it. You can build a successful career in digital marketing if you have a basic understanding of design thinking.

3. Content management systems

(CMS) are software applications that store and organize content. CMS systems can be used to manage a variety of content, such as articles, documents, web pages, multimedia files, and other types of data. Content managed by a CMS ‌is often organized in one or more databases, with each database being organized into one or more “sites.” A site typically includes a collection of documents stored in a particular directory.

Learning about code and content management systems will give you a huge advantage when working on websites. You’ll need to understand HTML and CSS before then you can work in these fields. There are many CMS platforms that are popular, including WordPress, Magento, and Shopify.

4. Marketing automation

Marketing automation is the process of automating marketing processes to improve efficiency and reduce cost. Its tools can be used by inbound marketers, outbound marketers, or a combination of both. They are used to automate marketing tasks like email campaigns, website visitor segmentation, social media management, lead nurturing and scoring, content creation, lead generation, etc. 

A majority of businesses today rely on marketing automation tools. Whether you’re starting out or are looking for new ways to get your message out, understanding popular marketing automation tools will save a lot of time.

5. Data analytics

Data analytics is the process of using the information to analyze data and generate insights for business and other purposes. It is also used to describe data management tools and methods, including database management systems, data mining, predictive analytics, statistical analysis, and visualization. 

Data Analytics is an integral part of modern business. It’s the key to understanding consumer behavior, predicting trends, and finding the most effective strategies for achieving growth and success.

Soft skills in digital marketing

Here is a list of soft skills that will make you stand out in a digital marketing career.

1. Social 

It’s important to communicate well with others in order to get the best results for you and your company. It will be a disaster if there is a lack of communication. Communications have a tremendous impact on launching campaigns, finding prospects, and boosting sales in digital marketing. So, it’s important to have excellent communication skills!

2. Persuasive

The first step as a digital marketer is being persuasive. You start by presenting your ideas in a way that people want to engage with them. You can’t make money without persuading people. That’s why the first thing you need to do is persuade yourself to take it. Yes, you ‌have to be persuasive in selling your products and services.

Don’t expect to succeed without trying. Of course, everything you do is an experiment. You won’t get it right the first time.

3. Analytical 

Let’s take an example!

If you tell someone that you have a secret talent, such as a skill in a particular sport, or you are great at something they are struggling with, it is more likely to succeed. Same way, if you understand how numbers work and how they can benefit the company, you will be a great marketer.

Marketing analysts spend a lot of time analyzing marketing campaigns, so you should be able to expect them to be analytical. Critical thinking skills are so important for the role of a sales rep! The best salespeople have a pattern-seeking mind, which compels them to look for trends in campaigns. These trends can be turned into insights and used to create better campaigns.

4. Adaptive

Technology will change soon. It would be best if you keep yourself updated with all the latest news. Or else, you will be left behind if that is not the case. The strategies that marketers used in the past wouldn’t perform as well today because of the changes that were made to the search engine’s algorithm. 

5. Multitasker

If you want to run an effective team, you should have to grasp all the things that managers have to know. They have a lot to do. If you start a project without knowing the end goal in mind, you’ll never be able to create real value. Organizing your tasks is important. It’s not enough to simply know what needs to be done. They’re always busy. Their team works on too many projects. 

6. Good Listener

A person who really listens is the most valuable person to have in any room. People who listen are fully engaged and fully present. They don’t need to be told what to do.

It’s important to listen to your customers and clients. Understanding their perspective and concerns, and finding a better solution for them.

7. Passionate/Curious

That is very important! Be in love with what you are doing. Digital marketing is evolving, and if you don’t like it, this is not the career for you. It would be great if you enjoyed learning every day.

You must be very enthusiastic and passionate about your work. A lot of companies want to know that you can make a difference in the lives of their customers. They want to know that you are going to do things that no one has ever done before. They want to see that you can adapt and change and learn new things. You will need to be more creative and innovative to be successful in digital marketing. Also, you need to think quickly and be able to come up with new ideas!

Conclusion

If you have been looking for a digital marketing career, you can achieve brilliant success by building an eCommerce website, making great sales pages, and creating interesting content. There are a lot of options in this area and in SEO, AdWords, etc. I believe we all have a lot to learn about marketing. From digital to social media, email to SEO, it can be a tough industry to break into. But, if you are willing to learn and put in the work, I promise you can succeed in this industry.