You may be considering a career in online marketing, but without previous experience, how can you know what to expect? Is getting a job in this field easy or are you going to have to work hard to prove yourself? If you’re looking to get into the field and don’t have the funds to pay for classes, how can you expect to succeed?
Fortunately, there are many ways to learn about online marketing without having to incur huge student loans. Here are some of the best, free resources available to anyone who wants to get started in this field.
Classes Online
If you have a decent amount of computer knowledge, you can take advantage of the many free online classes in marketing from accredited universities. With a little bit of research, you can find a class that suits your needs and schedule it to fulfill your academic requirements.
For example, the University of Phoenix offers several accredited degrees in marketing, including a bachelor’s in marketing, a bachelor’s in advertising, and a master’s in marketing. These classes are offered online, so you don’t need to be in campus to take them. You can find out more and register here.
Blogs
If you enjoy writing, you can start a blog to gain experience. Blogging is a great way to get your name out there and gain some credibility in the industry. However, keep in mind that blogging isn’t a quick fix. It takes time to build up a following and establish yourself as an expert in your field.
You can use your blog to promote your university courses as well as your professional career. For example, you can use your personal blog to talk about your experience as a student and the benefits of a university education.
Certifications
Getting a certification doesn’t necessarily mean you need to pay for training. You can find many marketing certifications that you can complete online. These certifications don’t cost a lot and give you a leg up in the industry. Some of the most popular certifications in marketing are the Google Analytics certified professional, the SEO specialist a certification, and the digital marketing specialist certification. To get these certifications, you need to pass a certification exam at the end.
Lectures
Another great way to get in touch with professional standards is to attend professional lectures and seminars. You can find many accredited universities that offer a series of lectures on different marketing topics. You won’t necessarily need to check these lectures off your schedule, but you can find details about them online. For example, the marketing lecture series at Drake University is a great choice. You can find out more and register here.
Read Journals
Reading scientific journals isn’t just good for your industry knowledge – it’s also an excellent way to stay ahead of the curve when it comes to new marketing theories and concepts. When you do your research, you’ll often find that academic journals don’t publish everything at once. Instead, they will often publish a few articles related to a certain subject area and then leave it for a few months before publishing the next batch. This makes it easy for you to stay ahead of the curve.
Take Advantage Of MOOCs (Massive Open Online Courses)
MOOCs are short for Massive Open Online Courses. These are large open course platforms that allow anyone with a computer or smartphone to enroll in a course and receive lectures from top professors and educators around the world. While these courses aren’t free, they are usually offered at such a low price that even a college student can afford them.
The best part about MOOCs is that you don’t necessarily need a degree to take them. All you need is a free email account and a reliable Internet connection. You can use these courses to get a head start in your industry, gain experience, or even just for fun. Just remember that these courses won’t necessarily make you a great marketer – they just give you a leg up on the competition.
Watch YouTube Videos
YouTube is a fantastic resource for marketers. Not only does it have a massive audience, but it also provides a treasure trove of videos on almost any topic imaginable. Since YouTube videos can be shared through links, it makes them great for SEO. Because Google values content quality over quantity, sharing relevant YouTube videos can boost your SEO and help your website gain credibility and trust.
To get started, just search for the topic you’re interested in or keywords related to your industry. You’ll then see a list of trending videos on that topic. From there, you can just select one and click to watch. You can also find similar videos from creators you follow on social media.
Look At Case Studies
Sometimes, companies will post case studies that document their experience with certain marketing techniques or products. For example, HubSpot publishes case studies about products they’ve launched and how those products have performed – including reviews of competitors’ products.
These case studies can help you get a sense of what kind of work is needed to get started in the field. You can also find similar case studies about your own industry and how others are performing in your area.
Join Online Communities
There are many communities of marketers and entrepreneurs that you can join in order to get advice and tips from experts in the field. These communities can be found both on social media and in forums like blogs and Reddit.
For example, if you’re interested in SEO, then you can find a community of digital marketers on Twitter. You can ask them questions about SEO and get advice on how to improve your own strategies. You can also reach out to other community members and ask for help getting your website ranked higher in search engine results.
Take Advantage Of Local Coffee Shops
Coffee shops generally have high WiFi speeds and inviting atmospheres, perfect for getting work done. If you want to get a head start in your industry, you can take advantage of these local coffee shops to do some research while having a coffee with a friend.
You can find a local coffee shop that suits your needs and has a fast WiFi connection. You can then use that connection to get online and do your research. Once you’ve found some information that you think might be helpful, you can use a paper and pen to make a note of some good points to bring up during the next coffee with a professional.
These coffee shops are generally a safe space for budding professionals to gather and connect. If you want to get a head start in your industry, you can find a coffee shop near your home or near the office to help you get motivated and inspired.
Take Advantage Of Meetups
Meetups are groups of people who come together for a common interest. For example, there’s a WordPress meetup group that meets up every month to talk about different aspects of WordPress and its adoption.
These groups might not always have something useful to offer, but they’re a great way to get a head start in your industry. You can find many meetups for marketers, copywriters, and bloggers near you. To find a WordPress meetup, simply search for “WordPress” plus your city or region. You’ll then see a list of relevant meetups – from which you can choose one to join.
Forums are another great resource for marketers. Although they can be tricky to navigate and require a lot of patience, you can often find some very helpful discussions about your industry. Just remember to look for and join relevant forums instead of just browsing through the forums to see what content is available. By participating in these discussions, you can often gain a good deal of knowledge that will help you succeed in your industry.
Start A Blog
Blogs aren’t just for fun these days. Many businesses, especially those in the marketing industry, start a blog to engage with potential customers and gain credibility. The first step in this case is to choose a niche, identify the target audience, and then write some engaging content that will appeal to that audience. To choose a niche, you’ll want to find a topic you’re passionate about. Ideally, you’ll then want to find a way to help your chosen niche by creating content that is both useful and authoritative. Once you’ve done that, you can start a blog to document your experience and hopefully become an authority in your industry.
Keep Your Social Media Accounts Fresh
One of the best ways to get started in marketing is to keep your social media accounts fresh and up-to-date. This means creating relevant content regularly and engaging with your audience through various channels.