Finding an entry-level digital marketing job could be difficult if you don’t have professional expertise.
When browsing online, many complain about inexperienced applicants having a hard time in the highly competitive job market.
“You can’t get a job without experience and you can’t get experience without a job.” That’s not the reality. There are many people who are working in top companies, with only a little “official” experience.
What’s exciting concerning the online marketing sector is the speed at which it can change. Brand new companies, SaaS companies, and digital marketing agencies are popping up each day, altering how we conduct business and challenging traditional career pathways (and the requirement for advanced degrees from colleges).
The gap in digital marketing expertise is real.
In 2020, there will be 150,000 digital jobs, but not enough qualified professionals to fill them.
There’s a second secret: You can master these digital marketing techniques without needing an expensive degree from a college.
Consider it.
Are colleges covering topics such as Search Engine Optimization (SEO)? Advertising programmatically? How do you create effective advertising campaigns for search? Optimization of conversion rates? Making use of influencer marketing?
There’s no way to tell however, a job within one of the fields could provide a six-figure salary only with a couple of years of work experience.
How can you get a foot in the door with no formal education?
What can you do to prepare yourself to be able to get an entry-level job in digital marketing in order to start ascending up the corporate ladder? In 2013, I accomplished exactly that, and have outlined the steps below to help you do the same.
“85 percent of the success you have in your business is because of your personality and the ability to negotiate, communicate, and take charge. Surprisingly, only 15% of your success is because of technical expertise. “
— Carnegie Institute of Technology
Here are seven strategies to get your first digital marketing job, even if you have no formal education.
This post contains the affiliate links to Flexjobs. The company pays me a tiny commission when you join their service for free. However, I would highly endorse them as the best freelance website to gain actual experience.
1. Get Confident in Your Digital Marketing Skills
As you begin your career as a professional You may glance around and look at your colleagues – those with more experience with better grades as well as more internships and connections. You may feel depressed.
Avoid falling into this trap. Begin by having an abundance mindset and realize that there are a myriad of opportunities available for grabs. The first step is to become comfortable.
Experience, professional experience, college marks, and fancy internships can’t be compared to the power that your personal character and skills in communication.
Yes, businesses look for hard skills and skills acquired through training, however, soft skills are just as crucial.
In reality, the top seven attributes that make a person successful at Google are all soft skills, including being a skilled coach; listening and communicating well; gaining insights from the perspectives of others (including people with differing opinions and values) being compassionate, and being supportive of colleagues and being a sharp problem-solver and critical thinker and capable of connecting difficult concepts.
After talking to a variety and recruiters from the digital market over the course of time I’ve come to an unifying conclusion about the two most important things hiring managers must be aware of before sending an offer of employment:
- You’re a decent person.
- You are able to do the job.
It’s that easy.
If you’re able to be persuasive, establish a rapport with the interviewers, and possess an average resume, you’ll find any entry-level job that you’d like.
Plus, there’s no limit on the number of interviews you’ll be able to. You can test to try, then go back to the beginning The most important factor to success is confidence.
2. Choose your Digital Marketing Career Path
You’ve made the decision to pursue a career in the field of digital marketing. Before you embark on this path it is important to determine exactly what you’d like to achieve in the course of your professional career. You can do this with a set of questions:
- What am I interested in doing?
- What am I actually proficient in?
- Are I more productive working by myself or with others?
- What strengths and skills do I have currently?
- Do I have more imagination or am I more critical?
There are many different disciplines of digital marketing with each having its individual career track.
While you shouldn’t make a mistake when you apply to your very first position, a match of your interests and strengths to a discipline of digital marketing that you enjoy will yield the greatest rewards.
A typical entry-level job in digital marketing is as a Digital Marketing Specialist. This is someone who assists in the optimization of search engines (SEO) as well as paid search, marketing content conversion rate optimization as well as social media marketing, and many more.
The roles in these are multifaceted and require you to have a knowledge base in several fields to be successful. This is a great opportunity to begin your career. It can accelerate your learning experience and help you advance your career.
While the job is multifaceted, you should concentrate on three highly specialized fields to create a compelling story for your resume. This will increase the potential of your earnings.
Below, I’ve listed the most sought-after digital marketing techniques as well as the tools that you need to learn to master them.
Google each subject in depth, and choose which three choices are most appealing to you.
- Content Marketing – WordPress, Yoast SEO plug-in,
- Digital Analytics – Google Analytics, Adobe Analytics, Optimizely
- Search Engine Optimization (SEO) – Moz, Ahrefs, SEM Rush, Google Search Console
- Search Engine Marketing (SEM) – Google AdWords, Bing Ads
- Conversion Rate Optimization (CRO) – Optimizely, Google Tag Manager, Craft
- Social Media Marketing – Facebook Ads, Twitter Ads, LinkedIn Ads, Hootsuite
- Affiliate Marketing – CJ by Conversant, Impact Radius
- Marketing Automation – Marketo, Pardot, Bronto,
- Email Marketing – Mailchimp, Constant Contact, AWeber
- Web Development – WordPress, Magento, Joomla, Drupal
- Project Management – JIRA, Basecamp, Timeforce, Trello
To add to the above list of tools, do not overlook traditional Microsoft Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint, and Word. These are still essential to any digital marketing project and are utilized daily.
3. Make it easy for yourself to master the basics using Digital Marketing Courses
Once you’ve picked some skills you’d like that you can add to your list of skills, you’re ready to get started!
The best aspect of Digital Marketing is you are able to enroll in a myriad of online courses for certification that are free and are great for your resume. In addition to the courses that are free to take There are more than 55,000+ marketing classes on Udemy as well as 2,000+ on Coursera and 6,200+ courses on LinkedIn Learning alone.
Below, I’ve included my personal favorite courses you should consider taking to increase your digital marketing abilities (updated October 2018). Be aware that I’ve completed each of these courses I highly recommend them and a lot of them have helped me land my first job in digital marketing.
Google Academy for Ads (free certificate). This is the top course that helped me get my first job in 2013. Taking Google’s training for free it teaches you everything about the Pay-Per-Click ads in AdWords’ Search, Display, and Shopping networks.
In addition, you will receive an official certificate to add to your LinkedIn page and resume. Be aware that many beginning digital marketing positions will require this certificate.
Google Analytics Academy (free certification). You shouldn’t even consider applying for a job in digital marketing without having a solid grasp of the basics of Google Analytics. This free course teaches novices and veterans alike how to improve their online presence with smart web analytics and data tracking tools.
Data analysis is the underlying principle of digital marketing. You are unable to make informed choices without knowing how users behave. This course must be watched.
HubSpot Inbound Marketing (free certification). This free course teaches the fundamentals of inbound marketing, including getting customers to sign up by attracting leads, designing captivating landing pages, composing powerful calls-to-action, and growing the reach of your audience.
This course is a must for all digital marketers.
Bing Accreditation of Ads (free certificate). This often-forgotten (but crucial) search engine offers an online certification course for free.
Like Google AdWords in its user interface and design, Bing Ads is a fantastic tool to get familiar with. It will make you make yourself stand out when you are applying for positions in search engine marketing.
Facebook Blueprint (free for you to enroll but a fee for certification). This course will help you master the art of advertising with Facebook as well as Instagram Ads.
It’s essential if you’re trying to learn about social media marketing, to learn Power Editor, and grow companies by using Facebook as well as Instagram.
Hootsuite Academy (free certification). With Hootsuite, you can obtain industry-recognized certifications in social media that can help you stand out when you apply for marketing jobs using social media.
You’ll be taught how to connect with an audience on social media automate postings, collaborate with content creators, and increase the online presence of your business.
This is a partial list However, if you take the time to study these classes, you’ll be able to get six digital marketing certifications from a professional to add to your resume and impress the next manager you interview.
The primary reason I was chosen for my entry-level job in digital marketing was not due to my prior experience in the field, but rather because I was a certified expert as a certified professional in Google AdWords, Google Analytics, Bing Ads, Hubspot as well as Facebook ads.
4. Start Digital Marketing as a Freelancer
Before you apply for your first digital marketing professional job it’s best to test your knowledge and get started with some hands-on projects.
As you’re only starting out it’s not a good idea to focus on earning money, but rather on helping others grow their online presence and gain invaluable experience to help create your portfolio.
Have you got any small-business owners who you could assist? The majority of small businesses aren’t knowledgeable in the field of digital marketing, and would greatly benefit from the new skills you’ve acquired.
Perhaps an old acquaintance owns a local eatery and does not have an online presence on social networks. Make them aware of Facebook ads.
Perhaps someone in the family has a barbershop that cannot be found on Google. Make use of your newly acquired SEO skills to aid them. You may be able to get a free meal or even a haircut with the deal.
If you’re tracking ROI, and using solid strategies, you’re helping local businesses, constructing your portfolio of digital marketing, and gaining valuable knowledge.
After a certain amount of time has passed you’ve got every person on the block, and their mom wants to know more about your help and you’re ready to begin receiving a fee for your services.
Go to freelance sites and set up your own freelancer account.
The first step is to fill out your new profile with your portfolio of the work you’ve impressively completed for free. This will increase your credibility and create more people interested in your work. The second step is to determine your rates for freelance work to be competitive with other freelancers in the market.
Be sure to highlight the platforms you’re proficient with such as Google AdWords or Analytics.
Also, work on the image of your brand. establish connections with other freelancers and contact people who need digital marketing support by introducing yourself. After you’ve secured a few contracts, you’ll be able to do more work to build your portfolio.
Be sure to join with strong brands and businesses that you can incorporate into your resume. It’s not an “official” professional experience, however, it’s essentially equally good. This is the beauty of digital marketing – if you are able to prove results, your background does not matter a bit.
Once you’ve got some years of experience in freelance work, You can add the fantastic businesses you worked for to your resume, portfolio, and LinkedIn profile. Okay, you’re ready.
Now you’re equipped with the experience to get that initial “official” digital marketing job.
Of course, there are other methods to landing hands-on experience to increase your chances of successful job acquisition.
Perhaps enlisting Wade Marketing to help gain the experience you need to land your first digital marketing job is more your speed.
So, how can Wade Marketing help?
We turn novice digital marketers into experts by providing 1-1 weekly mentorship sessions, competitive internship opportunities, and the top training to accelerate your knowledge and equip you with the skills needed to land your first digital marketing position.
If you’re interested in learning more about our Digital Marketing Mentorship Program check it out here.
6. Make sure you are prepared to be ready for the First Digital Marketing Interview
After completing your online marketing courses and helping your contacts build their online reputation, as well as obtaining established as a freelancer you’re now ready to join the world of.
It’s time to get ready for your first interview in the field of digital marketing.
Ben Franklin said, “If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.”
Interviewing is about making plans for the future. The more at ease you are about yourself your background and your current digital marketing abilities, the greater your chance of getting that job.
Here are some helpful tips to help you succeed in your first interview for a job in digital marketing:
Explore the depths of the business. You must be aware of the history of the company, the executives and the CEO, the company’s core values, and the current financial position to prove you’ve done your research.
Additional points if you look at their strategy for digital marketing and discover strategies you can implement on the first day.
Your resume should be matched to the position. Your resume must be seen as a living document. Your bullet points and experiences should be modified to increase the impact of your resume for the job you’re submitting your application to.
This isn’t a lie It’s simply adding certain truths that make you stand out.
Make sure you are prepared with questions that can be used in a situation. They are the standard “tell me about a time when” and “what would you do if” questions.
Write the questions down and practice as they’re intended to be challenging. They’re a common mistake made by many people and you’ll be noticed if you can nail the answers. It is possible to use the STAR technique to explain to the hiring manager the Task, Situation of the day, Action, and the outcome that took place to show your worth and that you are quick to think.
Take a look at these 20 interview questions and learn how to respond to them for additional help.
Prepare yourself for the digital marketing assessment. My initial digital marketing entry-level job required me to complete an assessment that was interactive.
Instructions were in PDF format. I had to create a PPC campaign using the correct advertising group and keyword structure and modify HTML as well as CSS on the website, then set up several accounts with Google Webmaster Tools (now Google Search Console).
They’re fairly standard and the best part about them is that you’re given the opportunity to finish the tests by yourself (usually between 2 and 7 days) If you’re unable to find something then you can just search it (like in real life).
7. Negotiating your Entry-Level Salary
Let’s say that you win the interview, and the company responds with a job offer for a full-time, salaried job and 401k with a paid time of the entire nine yards.
Your eyes glisten with excitement when you realize that you’ve been offered the first position in the field of digital marketing. Your hopes are becoming a reality! You’re already thinking about what images to include on your desk, eating food with your manager, figuring out the directions to your office, and what you’ll wear on your first day.
Just a second.
The most costly mistake you could make is to accept that initial offer to take on that entry-level job.
It’s great to be approached by a business and this could be the first time you’ve received an offer in writing however, you must let the excitement fade and concentrate on your business.
The first offer is not the best deal. Remind me of this The first offer isn’t always the best deal.
For my first job in digital marketing, I took an initial offer of $42,000. I could have easily gotten $52,000.
After a few new firms over time, I am now earning more than twice the amount however, looking back at the beginning of my career I would have been able to accelerate my career faster with simple negotiation.
The process of getting your foot in the door and getting experience is the first priority and your first pay will set the stage for many years in the future, therefore be sure you understand your worth.
Make use of a salary calculator tool such as LinkedIn Salary to see what companies are offering jobs similar to yours in the current location.
According to salary calculators, the Digital Marketing Professional working in the United States should be making an average of $50,000 annually Don’t take anything less than that. Use these tips to negotiate your salary and you’ll earn more money from the beginning of your career in digital marketing.
8. It’s Time to Put in the Digital Marketing Work
If you took these steps, you’ve accomplished it! You have landed your first digital marketing job and are at a point to shape your own path.
To summarize: With no prior experience, you did a bit of digital marketing yourself. You began by taking no-cost online classes to become certified, later you gained experience by working with personal connections.
Then, you can leverage your work as a freelancer to land your first full-time position.
