Digital Marketing is an emerging field that will only grow as society’s use of the Internet grows. Upon graduation, the digital marketing major itself will not be what gets you your first job. The skills gained throughout the program are what will really be your competitive advantage over your peers. Skills such as learning how to build backlinks, creating engaging content centered around high-traffic keywords, and onsite SEO (just to name a few) are what will really earn you your money. However, even those will not be enough. What you really want to be able to do is mix all the different skills together, and use them to drive interaction and engagement with whatever it is you are marketing. There is no one-size-fits all solution. Different digital tools will work better in some industries than others. Being able to determine which strategies will bring the most profit and help you best achieve your business goals is a level of insight that you will only obtain through experience. This experience is what you can get through a digital marketing degree. Through it, you can learn when and how to apply skills and the mastery of different tools. So what are some of these skills and tools?

Canva

Canva is an extremely useful digital tool that allows you to create digital content such as posters, graphics, banners, and other visual materials. As you go through the digital marketing program, you will see that being able to convey your message in graphics and images is of utmost importance. You’ve heard the phrase, "A picture is worth a thousand words", and while graphics from Canva may include words, they are certainly a more effective method of informing your audience of whatever it is you would like them to know. Graphics are more engaging and interesting than a simple paragraph, especially when made appropriately. Different formats and fonts fit different situations, and deciding which fits best can be difficult, but Canva offers several pre-made templates for various general situations, (such as "Instagram Story"), which you can customize for your exact need. What you create with Canva can be implemented into broader marketing efforts, which you can create with Google Ads or Facebook Ads. Once you master Canva, you become immensely valuable to anyone who wants to be able to spread their message digitally ( which is everyone). For these reasons, you definitely want to master Canva.

To get started on Canva, check out this video by Jerry Potter:

Google Ads

Google Ads is Google’s own advertising platform that stretches to Google searches, videos, display ads, and more. Formerly known as Google Adwords, Ads has proven to be one of the most effective ways to advertise online. According to https://www.powertraffick.com/, businesses who utilize Google Ads convert 50% better than those who rely simply on SEO and organic traffic. Learning how to use Google Ads is an essential skill for any digital marketer in 2020. This can be done easily, by completing their free modules at https://skillshop.exceedlms.com/student/catalog. Once you complete the modules, you can take which certification exam you wish, either for Search ads, Display ads, Shopping ads or Video ads. Once you have passed at least two of the exams you will obtain a Google Ads certification, and be considered a Google Ads partner. The tactics learned throughout the certification process will allow you to create ad campaigns for any kind of business or event. That skill is invaluable to a digital marketer and is definitely one you need in your toolkit.

Facebook Ads

This advertising platform provides many of the same strategies that Google Ads can, however Facebook Ads is considered better at helping people find you and remain interested in your services, as it targets Facebook users with demonstrated interests similar to your business. Like Google Ads, there are different objectives you can choose to pursue for your business, as well as other similarities. For a full list of similarities and differences between Facebook Ads and Google Ads, watch this video by Neil Patel.