LinkedIn recently reported, via their Economic Graph, that a digital marketing specialist is currently one of the top ten in-demand jobs. A top “In-demand” job not only has the most job listings, but also accounts for the career growth over the past few years, the salary of the position, and how easily the skillset can be taught.

We are living in a digital world and have been for some time now. Nearly everything we see and do involves digital media in one way or another. While traditional marketing and digital marketing both have their pros and cons, digital marketing is currently dominating the industry as more advertisers migrate to the digital world. Based off of the way data is gathered, digital advertising can now target more qualified leads and customers compared to traditional ways of advertising.

What are the necessary skills for a job in the digital marketing world? Social media, search engine optimization (SEO), Google Ads & Analytics, and content all fall under the umbrella of digital marketing. Social media is comprised of two parts – organic and paid. Organic social media refers to anything a company or brand puts directly on its channels. This allows the company a chance to convey their brand image and how they want users to perceive them. Paid social media refers to the advertisements you see when you are scrolling through Facebook and Instagram. SEO, Google Ads, and Google Analytics all work hand in hand. SEO is the ability for your business to appear earlier and higher up on a search engine. When keywords are typed into the search bar, Google (or any other search engine) uses an algorithm to display what it feels is most necessary. SEO can be optimized to appear earlier in searches by using keywords and having specific content on a webpage.

Google Ads work in a similar way, but with dollars behind them. Paid Search allows those first few links to be sponsored ads and appear before any other links are displayed. Depending on your budget and the way the ads are set up, companies can dominate search results. Lastly, Google Analytics allows digital marketers to track user behavior and ad performance. This allows marketers to review ad performance and make changes based on what is and isn’t performing.

Are you thinking about stepping into the marketing world? Digital marketing may be the career path for you. Marketing and advertising will always be necessary for businesses, and in the digital world we live in, digital marketing is the most effective way for a business to advertise. Many of the skills required for a job in digital marketing can be self-taught by watching videos and reading articles online. As mentioned earlier, digital marketing specialists are in high demand as many marketing departments and advertising agencies move towards digital advertising and away from traditional advertising.