A Complete Guide on Starting a Career in Digital Marketing

Big thanks to the pandemic and technology revolution, everything is becoming digital now. People get everything on their doorsteps by just tapping on a few clicks. Even the consumers are becoming picky all around the world. They like to be part of the community that has greater visibility and this is the reason even the trend of marketing is changing.

To continue, the trend of big billboards and door-to-door marketing is long gone and marketing is becoming synonymous with marketing nowadays. With the trend of digital marketing becoming widely popular, there is also a golden opportunity for many individuals to build a successful career in this thriving field. 

• Scope of the field

As more and more businesses are hoping for the trend of marketing their products online, the demand for digital marketers is growing.  With the rapid growth of internet usage and the enhancing popularity of social media and mobile devices, digital marketing has become one of the most crucial components in many companies’ overall marketing strategies. To validate, let’s have a look at some of the statistics that prove that digital marketing is one of the rapidly growing fields around the world. 

• The global digital advertising and marketing market was reported at $350 billion in 2020 and by the end of 2026, it is projected to reach $786.2 billion. 
• 81% of purchasers conduct online research before making a purchase. 
• An average user spends 6 hours and 58 minutes using the internet every single day which gives ample opportunity for businesses to target their audience through different channels online. 
• The average salary of a digital marketer in the United Kingdom lies around $43,384 and in Australia, the average digital marketer earns up to $58,374. 

These statistics demonstrate the vast potential of digital marketing to reach and engage audiences around the world. Alongside, these statistics also validate that digital marketing is a field whose growth is not stopping anytime soon. 

• Different types of digital marketing

In the digital world, there are various types of digital marketing in which individuals can build their careers and some of the most popular forms of digital marketing are mentioned below. 

1. Search Engine Optimization: Also known as SEO, this type of digital marketing involves optimizing a website’s content in order to rank the website higher in search engine results pages (SERPs) for relevant and high-volume keywords.

2. Pay-Per-Click Advertising (PPC): This is a form of advertising where a business pays each time someone clicks on their ad. Ads can be placed on search engine results pages, social media platforms, and other websites.

3. Social Media Marketing: This involves businesses using different social media platforms to create brand awareness, engage with audiences, and promote different products or services of businesses.

4. Content Marketing: This type of digital marketing consists of creating valuable and relevant content that will assist in attracting and engaging the target audience of a business.

5. Email Marketing: This type of digital marketing involves using email to communicate with your audience, promote your products or services, and build relationships with consumers at different levels.

6. Affiliate Marketing: If you opt for this type of marketing then you will be promoting someone else’s products or services in exchange for a commission of the product after every cell.

7. Influencer Marketing: This type of digital marketing involves partnering with different  influencers that have a large social media following in order to promote different products or services.

8. Mobile Marketing: This involves targeting consumers on their mobile devices through different mobile apps, SMS messaging, or mobile web ads.

9. Video Marketing: This involves creating and sharing video content to promote your products or services. Video marketing is becoming the new hit because people are getting really fond of making videos on social media platforms like Tik Tok, Instagram reels and so on. 

10. Display Advertising: This involves placing banner ads on websites or other digital platforms to promote your products or services

• Skills required to master the field

Hard skills

1. Effective knowledge of digital marketing mediums – This involves knowledge of different digital marketing channels and techniques like SEO, PPC advertising, social media marketing, email marketing etc. 
2. Data Analysis – This includes the ability to collect and analyze data from various sources, such as Google Analytics, social media insights, and other marketing tools to measure the performance of campaigns and make data-driven decisions to improve the micro environment of the company.
3. Technological efficiency – Today digital markers have an ample number of technological advancements such as AI and machine learning to increase the efficiency of their digital marketing. Hence, it is important for today’s digital marketers to work on gaining these hard skills.  

Soft Skills 

1. Communication Skills – effective communication with team members, clients, and customers is an essential skill required in digital marketing. Having clear and concise communications with different stakeholders can lead to successful collaboration and effective campaigns.
2. Creativity – The ability to think creatively and come up with different innovative ideas for multiple campaigns that will run on different digital platforms can set a digital marketer apart from others in the field.
3. Adaptability – There is no denying the fact that the digital marketing industry is constantly evolving, and it is essential for budding digital marketers to have the ability to adapt to changes in technology and trends happening in the industry.
4. Problem-Solving Skills – The ability to identify problems and find solutions is a key skill for digital marketers because there might come different times when there comes certain problems due to changing trends on different social channels. Hence, when digital marketers will have problem skills, they will be able to manage the problems efficiently. 

• Learnings options for digital marketers

People may learn a lot about digital marketing by using the numerous resources that are available online and offline. Some of the places where digital marketing can be learned are mentioned below. 

1. Online courses : Digital marketing skills can be learned online through a variety of resources, including Udemy, Coursera, LinkedIn Learning, and Hubspot Academy. These courses focus on teaching many topics, including email marketing, social media marketing, and PPC advertising and many more

2. Industry Blogs and Websites: Industry blogs and websites are a great resource for staying up-to-date on the latest trends of the digital marketing world. Some popular examples of websites that provide the best blog under the digital marketing niche include Moz, Search Engine Journal, Neil Patel, and Social Media Examiner.

3. Self-education: Self-Education: Individuals can also learn digital marketing skills through self-education, such as reading books and blogs, watching webinars and tutorials, and experimenting with different marketing channels and techniques on their own. This can be a great way to develop skills and gain experience in the field.

4. Conferences and Events: Attending digital marketing conferences and events is a great way to network with other professionals and learn about the latest trends and technologies. Some popular conferences include Social Media Marketing World, MozCon, and Inbound.

• Work options for digital marketers 

1. In-house departments of companies: This is the most common job option where digital marketers work within the marketing team of a small or big company to help them develop and execute digital marketing strategies to meet the company’s objectives.
2. Freelance or consulting work: Digital marketers can work as freelancers or consultants that are responsible for providing digital marketing services to clients on a project-by-project commissioned basis.
3. E-commerce or online businesses: Many businesses that operate solely online require digital marketing professionals to help drive traffic and sales to their websites or digital platforms.

To conclude, we believe that we have covered every single aspect of digital marketing that will definitely help budding or aspiring digital marketing professionals to build a thriving career in the world of digital marketing. The demand for digital marketing is increasing all over the globe, hence, if you are thinking of building a career in digital marketing, it is definitely a great choice.