Whilst we might be somewhat biased, we have no hesitation in saying that choosing to follow a career in digital marketing is one of the best life decisions any individual can make. One of many reasons we say that is quite simple is that being a digital marketer can help others, particularly business owners, fulfil their ambitions to have a profitable and successful business thanks to creating a digital marketing campaign that generates vast ROIs.

Of course, there are many other reasons a digital marketing career is gratifying, but before you can get to that point, you must embark on that career. When considering pursuing any career, getting professional advice from career coaches is a great way to get a head start. This brings us to the first question that many will have: ‘ How do I get started in digital marketing?’.

Starting A Digital Marketing Career

Unlike many other worthwhile professions, digital marketing has more than one route to entry, all of which are valid. Going to college or university to gain marketing and communication qualifications up to and including a degree is the route many follow. From this, they may apply to a marketing agency for a trainee position, which could include an internship. This would provide valuable experience, especially in dealing with clients.

A second way to enter digital marketing is by pivoting from another career and educating themselves via courses, tutorials, and mentorships. This often leads to them creating their own business where they offer their digital marketing skills as a service or use digital marketing to promote their business.

Specialist Or Generalist

A critical decision for anyone following a digital marketing career is to become a specialist in one distinct digital marketing area or operate across several specialities. An example is a person choosing to become an expert in PPC advertising versus someone else who might have sufficient knowledge about PPC, social media, SEO, content marketing and others but are not a specialist in any of them.

Critical Skills Required To Be Successful In Digital Marketing

Regardless of whether you choose to be a specialist, a generalist, work for a digital marketing agency, or become a self-employed digital marketer, there are some essential skills that you will require, as follows:

Combination Skills: The ability to communicate well with co-workers is essential, but your ability to communicate with clients is even more critical. It is crucial to understand their needs and goals and then communicate with them back and forth to ensure the campaign you create is optimised. This will also cover the ability to explain and discuss your campaign with clients in a language they will understand versus overwhelming them with jargon.

Analytical Skills: One of the primary ways digital marketers become successful is their ability to analyse campaigns, and the individual components of those campaigns, to measure their success. Then, having the knowledge and experience to take that data, make adjustments,  and optimise the campaigns turns average results into outstanding results and failing drives into successful ones.

Technical Skills: This is knowing the nuts and bolts of digital marketing. Optimising a website for onsite SEO, setting up  PPC ads on platforms such as Facebook or Google, creating videos for YouTube, and identifying keywords using one or more keyword research tools, are just a few examples.