Is Digital Marketing a Good Career?

Hafiz M. Ali

Hafiz M. Ali

Is Digital Marketing a Good Career

We live in a time where people use the Internet for everything. Whether it is paying bills online, buying groceries for the week, shopping for a gift, planning a vacation, or just about anything else, people are logging into their laptops, smartphones, tablets, and home computers to conduct their business online each day.

The ever-growing popularity of the Internet has created an enormous opportunity for companies to expand their business influence into the world of cyber-space. The traditional brick-and-mortar store has transitioned into the online storefront, where anything can be purchased with a convenient click of a mouse button.

The traditional brick-and-mortar store has transitioned into the online storefront, where anything can be purchased with a convenient click of a mouse button.

What is a Digital Marketing Professional?

The rising trend of digitizing businesses has created the need for a new kind of professionals: ones well-versed in the business and art of digital marketing. These people possess the knowledge and the skills necessary to harness the power of the Internet for the purpose of creating effective email advertising campaigns, community blogs, web pages, social media postings and more, all aimed at successfully connecting with today’s internet-savvy consumers. The demand for knowledgeable digital marketing professionals is growing exponentially.

The digital marketing career field encompasses many niche jobs. Digital marketing includes, but is not limited to, the following positions:

  • Online Content Developer
  • Social Media Marketing
  • Search Engine Optimization Specialist
  • Business Analytics Specialist
  • Brand Management
  • Mobile Marketing Specialist
  • Web Designer
  • Professional Blogger
  • Search Expert
  • Email Marketer

What is the Purpose of Digital Marketing?

A successful digital marketer will possess a broad range of skills designed to connect with, and have a strong positive influence on, customers wanting to know more about a given product or service. The ultimate goal is increased sales for business, and digital marketing is the most efficient manner for reaching this aim.

Desireable Digital Marketing Skills:

To have a rewarding career in digital marketing, it is important to master the following skills:

  • Inbound Marketing – possess the ability to utilize inbound marketing to generate new leads.
  • Flexibility – Able to change what is not working to move you towards your project goals.
  • Strong Organizational Skills – Able to manage several different campaign aspects at the same time.
  • Sales Experience – Must have hands-on sales knowledge and expertise. Digital marketing requires being able to understand and anticipate changes in sales trends.
  • Branding Experience- Must possess the ability to create an effective branding strategy.
  • Able to craft great landing pages for websites
  • Knowledge of Content Writing Platforms, such as Word Press.
  • Strong Social Media Skills – Must be able to create effectively, potentially ‘viral,’ social media posts aimed at increasing brand or product exposure. These types of posts are highly shareable among social media users.
  • A familiarity with, and understanding of, how Digital Analysis Tools work.
  • Ability to recognize and reconfigure under-performing content for the purpose of increasing brand exposure and customer interaction.
  • HTML Knowledge – Capable of using HTML to create eye-catching sub-headers and other visually appealing content.
  • Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Experience – Having a solid understanding how SEO works is critical to increasing search engine rankings. The higher a company ranks, the more likely people will click on that company’s website in the search engine query results.
  • Strong ability to utilize Advertising Platforms, such as Google AdWords, to create effective ads.

What Type of Person is Best-Suited for a Career in Digital Marketing?

Digital marketing is a rapidly growing and evolving career path. As more channels of communication become available, the need for people qualified to keep pace with the demands grows as well. The type of person best-suited to excel in a digital marketing career is someone that possess certain personality qualities.

  • Passionate – This person has an innate curiosity and desire to create.
  • Innovative – This person can think outside-of-the-box to come up with new and exciting ways of reaching new customers.
  • Patient – Someone just starting out in digital marketing must understand that it is sometimes a trial-by-error process. They must be able to exercise patience with themselves and with the process.
  • Possesses a degree of finesse when interacting with customers.
  • Strong Listening Skills – Successful digital marketers understand the importance of listening to what their customers say and what they don’t say, for the purpose of creating trusting relationships and loyalty. Customers “speak” through their buying habits. It is relatively easy to understand what a customer is saying when they like a given product or service, as it is reflected in their purchases. If they are not responding well to digital marketing efforts, it is important to be able to figure out why this is so.
  • Goal-Oriented – to succeed in digital marketing, it is important to set goals, both short term ones and long term ones, and diligently work towards fulfilling those goals.
  • Possess a Social Personality – Digital marketing requires someone to be a social creature by nature. The types of people that best succeed in this career field are outgoing and extroverted when interacting with clients.
  • Intuitive – Those that make a rewarding career in digital marketing tend to instinctively understand, over time, what it is that their customers want and they strive to deliver it to them consistently.

What is the Typical Median Pay for Entry-Level Positions in Digital Marketing?

Digital Marketing is a consistently expanding, lucrative career field choice. As such, digital marketing can be broken down into several different generalized levels of responsibility and annual financial compensation. The website payscale.com lists the median entry-level pay for each of these digital marketing positions in the Untied States as follows:

1. Direct Marketing Associate – A DM Associate typically has less than ten years of direct marketing experience and averages a salary of $ 43,900 annually.

2. Direct Marketing Specialist – Average annual entry-level pay for a DM Specialist is $48,500.

3. Digital Marketing Manager – Entry-level DM Managers can expect a median annual salary of $62,100.

4. Digital Marketing Director – DM Directors average roughly almost double the annual salary of an entry-level DM Associate. $80,900 per year for an entry-level DM Director position is the national yearly average.

*It is important to note that annual salaries will differ according to different locations across the country and are dependent on the particular company one works for. For example, a Raycom Digital Marketing Manager averages $53,751 per year while a Digital Marketing Manager for Estee Lauder Companies averages $ 90,214 annually.

Is Direct Marketing a Good Career Choice?

Direct marketing is a good and rewarding career choice for anyone that:

  • Is creative
  • Likes solving problems
  • Likes writing
  • Enjoys helping people find workable solutions
  • Is analytical
  • Enjoys conducting digital research
  • Has a social personality
  • Thrives in a fast-paced work environment
  • Enjoys challenges
  • Is an objective thinker

How to Get Started in Digital Marketing

Digital marketing is a fast-paced, constantly changing career field. The single biggest challenge most people face in choosing to make digital marketing their career of choice is the fact that the information available on the best way to get started in digital marketing is changing at a breakneck rate.

There are currently several different ways to get started in digital marketing. Austin Paley, the current Director of Corporate Marketing at Blue Fountain Media, suggests that anyone interested in getting started in a career in digital marketing should take a standardized test, such as the Google Analytics I.Q. Exam, as a way to demonstrate to potential employers that they have a solid understanding of the industry.

Digital marketing training can be had by taking an e-course online or by hands-on training working under the direction of another person who has demonstrated successful digital marketing experience. There are web seminars and courses available online. Other methods can include:

1. Following several established digital marketing sites on different social media platforms. Pat particular attention to any changes in their advertising platforms.

2. Building a network of experienced, successful industry experts. Take the time to develop solid relationships with these people for the purpose of learning how to master existing skills and acquire new ones.

3. Creating and promoting your brand as a way to showcase your digital marketing ability to prospective employers.

4. Becoming certified by taking a popular digital marketing course. Many are available online. As digital marketing recruiters are becoming more selective of potential digital marketing employment candidates, something as simple as being a certified specialist can mean the difference between winning the job position or being left out in the cold.

What Does the Future Hold for Digital Marketing as a Career Choice?

The economy in the digital sector is expanding at a rate of roughly 10X more than in the more traditional economy. This rate of phenomenal growth and change means that the demand for experienced, knowledgeable digital marketing professionals is outstripping the current supply. Whenever the demand exceeds the supply, there is a certain measure of job security.

There is no going back to the old days and old ways of doing business. A digital revolution is upon us. Technology continues to improve, advance, and evolve at a mind-numbing pace.

As more businesses clamor to stay relevant and competitive in the digital marketplace, the higher the demand will be for qualified and experienced digital marketing professionals. Digital marketing is a good career choice for anyone that wants to work on the cutting edge of this technical revolution.

 

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