Begin learning about Digital Marketing with Alberto

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Hello there!

In this post, we will talk about what is Digital Marketing and the different job options for those who learn about it. 

We will define what is a Digital Marketer and the main questions to keep into consideration before you take your first steps in the digital marketing world as well as the hard and soft skills you should have as a digital marketer.

What is Digital Marketing?

According to Hubspot, Digital marketing encompasses all marketing efforts that use an electronic device or the internet. Businesses leverage digital channels... to connect with current and prospective customers.

In order to understand this concept, we need at least the next two definitions:

1. What is Marketing?

Marketing has multiple definitions since it is a broad field of study. One of the best definitions is by Business Dictionary. Marketing is the management process through which goods and services move from concept to the customer. It includes the coordination of four elements called the 4 P's of marketing: (1) identification, selection and development of a product, (2) determination of its price, (3) selection of a distribution channel to reach the customer's place, and (4) development and implementation of a promotional strategy.

2. What is a Digital Channel?

A digital channel is a communication path through digital technologies which helps marketers target the right audience and attract them towards the product or service being marketed.

Another good definition is the one provided by the official Chartered Institute of Marketing (CIM); "The methods used by a company to communicate and interact with its customers".

For those who'd like to learn about digital marketing, there are many job alternatives depending on the area of digital marketing that you prefer the most. Following are 5 Digital Marketing jobs as posted in Udacity School of business' blog:

1. Digital Marketing Manager, 2. Content Strategist, 3. Virtual Reality Developer, 4. SEO and SEM Specialist, 5. User Experience Designer. Note: to see more job titles and its definitions, please follow the link provided.

What is a Digital Marketer?

According to the Digital Marketing Institute, a digital marketer is responsible for using digital channels to generate leads and build brand awareness.

This (general specialist) is responsible for driving relevant consumers with the goal of improving brand recognition [and] trust and ultimately drive purchase intent - Justin Emig, VP of Marketing & Innovation, Web Talent Marketing.

What to keep into consideration before you take your first steps in Digital Marketing?

Like anything else in life, keep in mind your current knowledge, past experiences, personal and current circumstances, and set up to write down your personal goals. A SWOT analysis is a great tool to understand the status of your current skills, knowledge and circumstances.

Write down the reasons why you should learn and become a digital marketer. Why does it make sense for you?

If you conclude that Digital Marketing should be your next life project, then keep always into consideration the following questions:

a) What do I need to learn?

b)Who do I need to connect with?

c) What skills do I need to master?

d) What actions do I need to take?

e) What fear do I need to overcome?

Justing Emig said for the Digital Marketing Institute, in digital marketing, you can choose to be a jack-of-all-trades or focus on one or two skills to set you apart. Digital marketing is a field where experience or a good internship speaks volumes. “Certifications are the new degree,” continues Justin Emig. There are many online certifications you can get to add to your credibility, not to mention building your own online presence and social media pages with plenty of followers. That is often the best way to draw attention to yourself if you want a career in digital marketing.

This blog, "Learning Digital Marketing with Alberto" is also a great resource for those digital marketing beginners. Please explore our archive for useful and interesting articles about Digital Marketing.

The skillset of a competent and successful Digital Marketer

According to the Dictionary of Cambridge, a skillset is the range of things that someone is good at, especially things that are useful in a particular job.

For Digital Marketing we would like two divide the skills into two categories; Hard skills and soft skills.

Soft Skills

According to The Balance Careers, Soft skills are the personal attributes, personality traits, inherent social cues, and communication abilities needed for success on the job. Soft skills characterize how a person interacts in his or her relationships with others.

For Digital Marketing, here are some skills that you should have or work on:

• Objective thinking.
• Creative thinking.
• Analytical thinking.
• Learn Quickly.
• Likeable personality.
• Communication Skills.
• Listening Skills.
• Self Promotion Savvy.
• Agile and on top of new features and tools

Hard Skills

According to The Balance Careers, Hard skills are part of the skill set that is required for a job. They include the expertise necessary for an individual to successfully do the job. They are job-specific and are typically listed in job postings and job descriptions.  Hard skills are acquired through formal education and training programs, including college, apprenticeships, short-term training classes, online courses, and certification programs, as well as on-the-job training.

Following are some of the main hard skills that you should have for a digital marketing job:

1. Digital marketing channels.
2. SEO Search Engine Optimization.
3. SEM (Search Engine Marketing: Paid Social media ads / Paid google ads).
4. Drip marketing campaigns (Execute and analyze).
5. Content Creation (Copywriting and storytelling abilities).
6. CMS (Content Management System).
7. Digital Marketing Tools like:
1.  IN-Page tracking.
2. G. Analytics.
3. Photo editing.
4. Video Editing.
5. Image Compressors.
6. Mention .com.
7. Grammarly.
8. Office (Excel /G. Sheets /etc) 
8. HTML -CSS. 
9. Email marketing. 
10. Mobile Marketing.

If you want to find out more information about these topics or perhaps to get useful links to online courses, please follow us and explore the different topics in our archive page of this blog.

Please comment down below. Every opinion on how to improve the copywriting style, the sources of information, and the theory and practice itself will allow me to make adjustments on the go with the objective of providing better and more accurate information for you and for myself.

Best,

Alberto Salas