Digital marketing careers continue to soar — and so does the demand for digital-savvy marketers. As a recent marketing grad, that’s great news.
Unfortunately, the digital marketing skills gap is also widening, meaning fewer marketers possess the skills required to do the job.
Whether you’re in the application process or just want to be proactive with your career, take these steps to look more attractive to inbound marketing agencies:
Seek Out Relevant Internship Experience
Internships give you hands-on experience in the field — something employers are eager to see in potential new hires fresh out of college. If you’re set on a career in digital marketing, don’t choose just any internship. Pick up relevant skill at a digital marketing agency or seek out a position within an internal marketing department. It doesn’t matter whether you intern for a startup or big-name agency as long as your experience relates to digial marketing.
Ask for LinkedIn Recommendations
When entering the "real world," meaningful recommendations are hard to come by. But these types of endorsements will separate you from the pack. Did you have a strong relationship with your manager during a marketing internship? Or did you do well in a marketing course? Ask your former boss or professor for a LinkedIn recommendation to give employers more confidence in your skills and work ethic. The simple act of seeking out recommendations shows you're serious about your career.
Become Fluent in Digital Marketing
Employers at inbound marketing agencies understand you’re new to the industry. Obviously, you won’t have experience in every area of digital marketing, and that’s OK. But at the very least, you should know how to talk the talk.
When applying to an inbound marketing agency, research the services they provide, and come prepared to the interview with intelligent questions. Take an hour or so to read company blogs, and take notes on the industry language they use. Being comfortabe talking about SEO, content marketing and other core components of inbound will impress potential employers.
Build Your Network and Stay Active on Social
Your professional network might not seem too important starting out, but your connections can give you a leg up. Inbound agencies want social savvy employees who know how to use these mediums effectively. Having a large (and engaged) network is a huge value add in the eyes of an agency. Obviously, you can’t fake authority on social media. Simply connecting with a thousand random people on LinkedIn isn’t enough. You should actively engage and post to show you’re participating in the industry conversation.
Optimze Your Résumé and LinkedIn profile
Potential employers look at your résumé and LinkedIn profile for an overview of your experience. If your LinkedIn profile is bare, random or inconsistent with your résumé, they will quickly move on to the next applicant. If you only have a handful of internships under your belt, beef up these explanations with more specifics about your role, and make sure to include a summary that reflects your experience and ambitions in digital marketing.
Including skills in your LinkedIn profile and résumé will also help you stand out — but only if these relate to the field and position you’re applying to. For instance, proficient in Microsoft Word and PowerPoint will not have an employer itching to bring you in. Every applicant should have experience using these products; it’s a given. Remove them from your physical and online résumés. Instead, focus only on software and platforms that relate to digital marketing and will differentiate you from other industry newcomers.
Lastly, make a concerted effort to include industry-specific keywords throughout your profile. As potential employers search for these skills on LinkedIn, your name will be more likely to show up. (Read more ways to optimize your profile for LinkedIn SEO.)
Become Familiar With Digital Marketing Platforms
There are thousands of digital marketing platforms and automation tools. You don’t need to master them all, but you should play around with the more popular ones or at least know what they do.
Are you applying to an inbound marketing agency that’s also a HubSpot partner? Research this inbound marketing platform and methodology, and understand its capabilities and value to customers. Take it one step further, and get Inbound Certified through HubSpot. An Inbound Certification will be a requirement for most inbound marketing agencies, so be proactive and get certified before even applying to show you're eager and willing to learn.
Google Analytics is another popular tool every marketer will eventually work with to track critical website metrics. Take a few hours to get Google Analytics certified or at least research what it is, what metrics it shows and what companies can learn from these numbers.
WordPress is also one of the most widely used content management platforms that every digital marketing agency works with in some capacity. Create a personal blog on WordPress to get acclimated with the platform, and add it as a proficiency across your professional résumés.
Hone Your Writing Skills!
Marketing is communicating — whether you’re crafting a content offer, drafting an email or explaining an idea to a co-worker. Strong writing skills are absolutely critical in digital marketing because you use them every day. Agencies want to see you’re able to write clearly and with impact. Whether you struggle in this area or ace every college essay, always work to improve your writing through daily reading and blogging.
You might be a strong writer, but an employer can’t glean that from a dry résumé. Start a blog to show off your writing skills or include a writing sample in your LinkedIn profile to give employers an opportunity to read your writing. If they like what they see, they’ll be much more likely to request an interview with you over a candidate that didn't supply writing samples.
Inbound marketing is the new frontier of digital marketing. To catapult your career, it's important to put in the work to stand out. I hope you found these tips valuable in your career search. Happy job hunting!
Looking for a career at a fast-growing inbound marketing agency? Check out our open positions here!
