Where are all the digital marketers?

If you are struggling to find good digital marketing talent, you are not alone. Whether you need a digital marketing generalist who can drive multi-channel strategies and tactics, or skilled practitioners of tools such as Google Analytics, Marketo, and Salesforce, the demand for experienced digital marketers far outweighs supply.

Why does it matter? Marketing departments need skilled digital marketers to reach prospective and existing customers in a way that is engaging, measurable and automated. But many are coming up short.

Products of outdated university curriculum and lacking real-world experience, recent college graduates are not the answer. On the flip side, more experienced marketers do not possess the technical skills in marketing automation software and analytics, which limits a company’s ability to plan, execute, measure, and improve a digital campaign.

If this is your context, you have two choices: Outsource marketing automation, social media programs, SEO, content, and other digital marketing strategies to agencies or freelancers or develop the skills of your existing team. 

While outsourcing may be a “quick fix,” it may not deliver the best ROI. Here’s why upskilling your existing team is a smarter investment:

• It costs far less to train a member or members of your team to perform a range of digital marketing functions than it does to pay hefty agency fees
• Quality standards can be monitored more closely when a digital marketing function is performed in-house
• Campaign flexibility and maneuverability, so critical to today’s digital outreach, is more easily achieved in-house
• Empowering your employees to be active and contributing campaign participants leads to job satisfaction and retention

In the past, upskilling options for digital marketers were limited to online-only courses or in-person classes, both of which focused on the theoretical rather than high-value experiential learning and disrupted billable hours at work. 

Today, the training landscape has changed for the better. When researching a digital marketing training partner, be sure to look for programs that offer:

• Curriculum precisely targeted to match the high-demand skills your marketing department needs now, including access to the most current digital marketing strategies, tactics, and technologies
• Opportunities for students to quickly adapt to rapidly changing industry requirements
• In-depth subject matter proficiency and relevant industry certifications, such as Marketo and Google Analytics
• Limited workplace interruption
• Real-world experience creating, designing and implementing a digital marketing campaign for a real-world company
• Curriculum developed and taught by trend-setting industry experts

Does your marketing department lack the expertise to drive best-in-class digital marketing campaigns? Learn more about today’s digital marketing talent shortage and what you can do to quickly bridge the gap.

Paula Sansburn, COO