Promoting and selling products or services on the Internet through various digital platforms is known as digital marketing. Using various online marketing strategies such as search engines, social media platforms, and email to reach your intended audience is what is referred to as leveraging.
By utilizing digital marketing, it is possible to identify people who have a potential interest in what your company has to offer, engage with them, and establish a relationship of trust with your brand.
Digital marketing encompasses a variety of methods, the most significant of which are website marketing, SEO, content creation, PPC, social media, email, video, and affiliate marketing.
How Digital Marketing Works
The way digital marketing works is simple.
Before anything else, it is essential to determine the objectives of your digital marketing campaign, or what you hope to accomplish. Examples of common objectives include raising recognition of a brand, generating more sales, or expanding one’s following.
You must figure out which marketing outlets can assist you in achieving your objectives. If you want to increase your sales, then a good way to begin is by running ads on Google and Facebook.
You can streamline the entire endeavor by drawing up a plan that outlines how much capital will be used, who your target demographic is, the performance criteria that will be used, as well as any other relevant details that will assist you in managing the process.
What is a digital marketing strategy?
A comprehensive plan on how to use the various digital marketing tactics to reach your company’s objectives is a digital marketing strategy.
When constructing a digital marketing plan, it is necessary to determine which platforms to implement, allocate the necessary personnel, time, and money to each one, and anticipate the outcomes.
Many digital marketing managers or small business owners make the error of attempting to do all things simultaneously and ultimately end up not achieving anything.
Either due to a lack of knowledge regarding how to operate digital marketing activities or because the funds are wasted on channels that are not applicable to their company.
Example of a Digital Marketing Strategy
Each digital marketing tactic is individualized and tailored to fit the needs and objectives of a business. To assist in understanding how each channel can work together to achieve a shared purpose, a sample is provided below.
An example of a digital marketing plan for a business offering digital products (such as online courses and ebooks)
The initial action to take is to construct a website that runs quickly and is compatible with mobile devices. The website should have multiple entry points (or pages devoted to selling) to showcase the business and its wares.
The second step is to do an SEO review and find out which components need to be improved for search engine optimization. Prioritizing Technical SEO should be the first step, followed by On-Page SEO, and finally Off-Page SEO.
Step 3: Content Marketing – Based on the results of thorough keyword research and findings of the SEO Audit, you should create a content marketing plan that will include:
- What kind of content to create for the website (text and videos)
- When to publish it (publishing calendar)
- How to promote it (can include social media channels, email, and PPC campaigns).
Fourth Step: Social Media Advertising – Utilize all social media advertising strategies to increase recognition of the brand and increase sales. Figure out which social media sites are most applicable for marketing your business according to customer profiling, and plan out a timeline for how often you will post content on those sites.
Simultaneously, form a roster of influencers and other individuals who are likely to have a vested interest in your products or who will distribute your content on social media.
Fifth step: Utilize email marketing in order to assemble an email list by incorporating Call To Action elements on your website and social media accounts.
The first step is to encourage people to join your mailing list, get downloads of free materials, or register for a free trial.
Making multiple email marketing sequences to move your subscribers from the recognition step to the purchasing step.
Sixth, start a pay-per-click advertising campaign. At the same time as the activities listed above, create an AdWords Campaign to target those who are looking for product-related terms on Google, and set up a remarketing campaign on Facebook to pursue those who visited your website but did not purchase anything.
In step 3, determine which topics and keywords you can create videos about. Distribute your videos on a private YouTube channel, in addition to Facebook, Instagram, and any other sites you are aiming for in your promotions.
Create a blog post on your website for each video, including the video and accompanying text.
Think about developing a mobile app that can be downloaded from the App Stores, which includes new information and ways to access your courses.
Make sure that you have the proper Google Analytics setup and that you can accurately measure the success of the campaigns outlined above.
Construct an Excel spreadsheet and incorporate pertinent particulars concerning the cost, visits, conversions, targeted population, and so on for every campaign.
This is simply an overview of what should be included in your digital marketing plan. If you are a small company that lacks the necessary resources, it is understandable that you will not be able to implement the entire plan right away.
You ought to take a systematic approach beginning with your website, search engine optimization, and content promotion.
Once you have these strategies in place for a few months, you will begin to notice a rise in visitors and income, then you can start integrating other resources.
What’s the Best Social Media Marketing Course Online?
- Digital Marketing Program (CareerFoundry)
Price: $6900 (additional payment and discount options available)
The program can be completed in as little as four months if studied full-time, or up to seven months if studied part-time.
Level: Beginner
Certification: Yes
Social media plays an essential role in digital marketing, but it is not the only ability necessary for success in the business. You can become a professional in digital marketing in just four months when you enroll in CareerFoundry’s Digital Marketing Program. This course provides a thorough introduction to all the necessary elements of the field.
This course is not suitable if you want a simplified instruction on the fundamentals of social media marketing. Achievement 3 of CareerFoundry’s Digital Marketing Immersion Program focuses on social media marketing and branding.
In this course, you will become versed in social media marketing tactics, content design, and management of online communities, culminating in a tutor-evaluated capstone project that can be showcased in your social media portfolio. Moreover, you will gain a variety of other digital marketing competencies during the process, such as content creation, search engine optimization, and marketing data analysis.
- Social Media Quickstarter (Constant Contact)
Price: Free
Duration: N/A
Level: Beginner
Certification: No
Before committing to an extensive online course, you may want to make sure that social media marketing is something that you are interested in. In the end, while a lot of us apply social media in our individual lives, its applications in digital marketing can be quite distinctive. We advise utilizing Constant Contact’s Social Media Quickstarter as a speedy and effortless beginning.
This web-based platform, which is free to access, mostly consists of written content and not interactive elements, however it offers thorough information on the fundamentals of Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Google Business. This book serves as a helpful reference guide if you would like to get a quick answer to a question or gain an overall understanding of the features of each platform.
This is for those just starting out, such as how to establish a profile and do the basics of social media. What ways can you use Facebook to increase the size of your email list? What are Lists on Twitter and how do you make them? What is the most effective way to increase positive reviews on Google? Despite this, it is a great free option if you don’t want to immediately spend money on a paid social media marketing course online.
- Social Media Marketing – Complete Certificate Course (Udemy)
Price: $24.99 for a Udemy subscription
Duration: 2.5 hours of video content
Level: Beginner
Certification: Certificate of completion
A great and inexpensive introduction is the full certification in Social Media Marketing that is offered by Udemy. This course provides a visually appealing introduction for those who prefer to learn by watching rather than reading. This package offers two and a half hours of video lessons, related articles, and supplementary materials to assist those who are utilizing social media for business purposes. Gain a basic understanding of social media, assess the current state of your social media accounts, and take that knowledge to plan, develop, and put into action a plan.
This class examines the fundamentals of blogging, as well as popular platforms such as YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. The content of this is quite advanced, but its main benefit is that it explains the overall concept of social media, the possible issues it could cause and how content marketing is related to social media planning.
- Social Media Marketing Specialization (Coursera)
Price: $49 per month (subscription-based content)
Duration: 7 months, studying 2 hours per week
Level: Beginner
Certification: Yes
When you’re ready to really get into the details, Coursera’s Social Media Marketing Specialization is a great choice and a good value. This course is thorough and extensive, taking up 7 months of study with two hours of instruction per week.
This course was jointly developed by Northwestern University, and it covers the basics of social media. Begin by discussing social media as a whole prior to moving on to the specific analytics instruments necessary for one to become a social media manager. As you progress through the six courses of this program, you will gain greater understanding and access the tools needed to create your own social media marketing plan.
At the conclusion of the course, there is a culminating project and you will be awarded a certification that you can display in your credentials. If you would rather not pay for the courses, you can still get access to all the material without charge by auditing, which is the term Coursera uses.
- Social Media Marketing Certification Course (Hootsuite Academy)
Price: $299
Duration: 6 hours
Level: Beginner / Intermediate
Certification: Yes
What better way to learn about social media marketing than to take a course from an expert? Hootsuite, a provider of one of the most sought-after social media tools, offers instruction through its exclusive Hootsuite Academy. This Social Media Marketing Certification Course is developed in collaboration with experts in the field of social media strategy, so you can rest assured that the information is current.
Throughout the duration of this class, you will gain knowledge on how to make the most of your social media outlets (across different platforms) before continuing to the next level of content. This involves developing a plan for using social media, connecting with influential people, forming virtual groups, and developing content promotion approaches on various platforms. You will also be taught how to leverage social ads on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Google.
- Social Media Marketing Course (HubSpot Academy)
Price: Free
Duration: 4 hours
Level: Beginner
Certification: Yes
A different course, similar to Hootsuite, that is available at no cost is offered through the HubSpot Academy. HubSpot provides a well-known social media management tool, similar to what Hootsuite offers. This Social Media Marketing Course is designed for those who want to learn more about digital marketing, and it features four hours of video tutorials, as well as quizzes. This will aid in the formation of a captivating and efficient social media plan for your enterprise, such as the creation of an inbound approach that meets clients’ needs while simultaneously aiding in the growth of your own earnings.
This is one of the better choices if you are looking for a free course. It skips over the fundamentals of social media, jumping right into strategic planning. It also covers the ideas of monitoring social media, developing a content plan for marketing, and figuring out the return on investment. By the end of the course, you should have an overview of the various components of social media advertising, and the included quizzes will help to keep the material interesting.
- Professional Diploma in Digital Marketing (Digital Marketing Institute)
Price: $1368
Duration: up to 24 weeks to complete
Level: Intermediate
Certification: Yes
With a regularly-updated social media marketing module, in this course, students learn the key social platforms for digital marketing, how to grow and engage an audience, data-driven insights, how to set up a social experience for a business, and how to create and optimize social media campaigns: all crucial skills for any aspiring social media marketer. This diploma is focused on the same overall topic as the CareerFoundry program, which is digital marketing.
A Professional Diploma in Digital Marketing, a program provided by the Digital Marketing Institute, is a comprehensive digital marketing course that is popular among recent graduates, entrepreneurs, and small business owners who are interested in mastering applicable digital marketing techniques for their own campaigns. This course is designed to give students the knowledge and proficiency they need to remain up to date in the field.
- Introduction to Social Media Strategy (LinkedIn)
Price: $26.99 per month (subscription-based content)
Duration: 1.5 hours
Level: Beginner
Certification: No
Once you have a general familiarity of social media marketing, it could be beneficial to explore certain areas further, like social media strategy. Anke Audenaert, a Silicon Valley marketer, offers a comprehensive tutorial on social media strategy with LinkedIn Learning’s Introduction to Social Media Strategy. This tutorial will provide you with all the information necessary to build your social media presence from the beginning.
Learning the best way to take part on various platforms and, more importantly, how to create a successful content plan are both included. This course provides lots of useful advice, like how to handle conversations with customers, and when, why, and how to benefit from paid social media advertisements.
At 1.5 hours, this is still an introductory course. Nevertheless, it concentrates particularly on strategy, suggesting you will know exactly what fields you would like to enhance your knowledge in. By subscribing to LinkedIn, you will receive full access to their collection of classes, including strategy for TikTok and Instagram reels and sophisticated advertising on Facebook.
