Digital Marketing and E-commerce Guide PDF

What is digital marketing? Digital marketing is the practice of [reaching consumers online] through digital channels with the aim of turning them into customers. What digital channels do both digital marketers and e-commerce specialists use? Select all that apply. Digital marketers and e-commerce...

What is digital marketing? Digital marketing is the practice of [reaching consumers online] through digital channels with the aim of turning them into customers. What digital channels do both digital marketers and e-commerce specialists use? Select all that apply. Digital marketers and e-commerce specialists both use the same digital channels: [social media, email, and ads.] Which transferable skills will set a learner up for suc;cess in digital marketing and e-commerce? Select all that apply. Transferable skills that will set up a learner for success in digital marketing and e-commerce are: curiosity, an analytical mindset, and storytelling. **Core skills of digital marketing and e-commerce specialists** The skills you will gain from completing the Google Digital Marketing and E-commerce certificate are used in many entry-level digital marketing and e-commerce roles. This reading provides an overview of the topics in the certificate program and matches them to sample job requirements.  **Comparison of core skills in different roles** Similar skills are required for roles in digital marketing and e-commerce. However, these skills are often applied in different ways. The following table gives you an idea of how job responsibilities might differ slightly between entry-level roles in digital marketing and e-commerce.  **Areas of focus** **Digital Marketing Coordinator responsibilities** **E-commerce Analyst responsibilities** -------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------------------- **Business objectives** Identify campaign business objectives  Ensure customer interactions align with business objectives **Search engine optimization (SEO**) Follow SEO best practices Use SEO to maximize traffic to website **Social media marketing** Draft social media copy and obtain approvals Ensure social media ads increase traffic to website **Email marketing** Execute and monitor email campaigns Ensure email ads generate desired results on website **Marketing analytics** Analyze data from marketing campaigns Analyze data from website or mobile app **Content design and copywriting** Assign content development and track progress Edit content on website **Loyalty programs** Monitor activities of returning customers Execute and monitor loyalty programs Fill in the blank: A learner can shape their public persona as a digital marketing or e-commerce specialist by building their **[personal brand.]** A learner can accomplish this by demonstrating their knowledge and skills through their social media accounts or personal website. Deciding on a specialization will not shape a learner's public persona. What are the advantages of an in-house digital marketing role? As an in-house digital marketer, some benefits include: deep knowledge and expertise in a specific industry and getting to know one company and its products. Roles and responsibilities in digital marketing and e-commerce ============================================================== In another reading, you were introduced to examples of job responsibilities in digital marketing coordinator and e-commerce analyst roles. This reading summarizes other associate or entry-level roles and responsibilities in digital marketing and e-commerce. At the end of the reading, you'll find advice on how you can potentially progress from a starting role to roles with further growth opportunities. Associate-level roles in digital marketing ------------------------------------------ Below are some examples of responsibilities for associate-level roles in digital marketing. These lists aren\'t comprehensive but are intended to showcase a variety of responsibilities in each role. - **Digital marketing coordinator\*** - Coordinate marketing activities and initiatives  - Identify target audiences through research - Run campaigns - Monitor metrics to evaluate trends ***\*** Also described in another video and reading* - **Marketing associate** - Prepare reports on marketing and sales metrics - Collect and analyze customer behavior metrics, such as web traffic and search rankings  - Coordinate with marketing teams to generate digital advertising materials - Assist with ongoing marketing campaigns - **Search Engine Optimization (SEO) specialist** - Develop optimization strategies to improve search rankings - Implement keywords for SEO  - Monitor metrics to understand SEO performance - Update links for optimization of search rankings - **Search Engine Marketing (SEM) specialist** - Identify customer personas to enable marketing to identified audiences - Perform research on keywords for SEO and Pay Per Click (PPC) ads - Monitor metrics to optimize paid search performance - Identify and monitor key performance indicators (KPIs) for SEM - **Social media specialist** - Develop, implement, and manage a social media marketing strategy - Collaborate with sales and marketing teams on social media campaigns - Create content to build customer connections and increase brand awareness  - Monitor metrics in social media campaigns for customer engagement and content optimization insights - **Email marketing specialist** - Create email marketing campaigns to promote products or services - Create an archive of emails for lead generation - Purge non-deliverable and unsubscribed email addresses - Use metrics to monitor the performance of email campaigns  Associate-level roles in e-commerce ----------------------------------- Below are some examples of responsibilities for associate-level roles in e-commerce. These lists aren\'t comprehensive but are intended to showcase a variety of responsibilities in each role. - **E-commerce analyst\*** - Implement e-commerce strategies to support business goals - Set e-commerce goals and key performance indicators (KPIs) for key attributes like audience, acquisition, behavior, and conversions - Monitor and analyze e-commerce metrics  - Leverage e-commerce data for operational insights ***\*** Also described in another reading* - **E-commerce specialist** - Develop and run campaigns to increase digital sales as part of an overall digital marketing strategy - Optimize paid advertising campaigns using SEO and other tools - Manage an online marketing presence, including social media platforms - Monitor metrics for spikes in website traffic or sales Advance to roles that further your growth ----------------------------------------- Starting an entry-level role in marketing or e-commerce is exciting, but after you gain practical experience and hands-on work using tools in that role, you might be eager to advance your career.   If you're ready for a new role, below are a few possibilities and a sampling of responsibilities for each. - **Digital marketing manager** - Plan and execute digital marketing, including SEO/SEM, email, social media, and display advertising campaigns - Measure and report performance and return on investment (ROI) for digital marketing  - Plan, execute, and evaluate A/B tests and experiments - Evaluate and improve the end-to-end customer experience across multiple channels and customer touchpoints - **Social media strategist** - Manage and oversee social media content - Measure the success of social media campaigns - Monitor and analyze metrics to recommend effective content optimization solutions - Network with industry professionals and influencers using social media - **Account manager** - Build and maintain client relationships - Ensure the timely and successful delivery of advertising solutions based on customer needs and objectives - Clearly communicate the progress of initiatives to internal and external stakeholders - Forecast and monitor key account metrics - **E-commerce product manager** - Conduct market research - Develop a product strategy for an e-commerce business based on analytics  - Define website and mobile app functionality, and deliver an optimal user experience for both - Understand business objectives and coordinate efforts to increase sales Key takeaways ------------- Career progression is very individualized. Sometimes it can take less than a year to be ready to advance to the next level; often it can take a few years. Here are three signs that you could be ready to progress to the next level.  1. You consistently meet or exceed job-related performance goals. 2. You're assigned tasks associated with a higher-level role. 3. You recently asked for more work while performing your job. Keep in mind that your career can advance at a speed that is right for you. Always be ready and open to new opportunities by demonstrating a positive attitude and a growth mindset in whatever role you're in! E-commerce, ecommerce, or eCommerce? ==================================== Which is the correct term: e-commerce, ecommerce, eCommerce, or just ecomm for short? The name and spelling of **e-commerce** has evolved over the last 30 years, and so have the technologies and job skills required to work in this field. This reading provides a summary of e-commerce\'s evolution by describing the history of the term and by laying out the four distinct models within e-commerce that have emerged over the years. Like most everything on the internet, e-commerce --- although it hasn\'t been around that long --- has evolved and changed a lot. What started as electronic commerce, quickly progressed into e-commerce, ecommerce, or eCommerce. But how can you know which one to use? In this course, you\'ll see e-commerce used. That\'s, in part, because Google Trends --- a website that analyzes popularity of top search queries in Google Search --- shows most people prefer using **e-commerce**, as opposed to **ecommerce** or **eCommerce**. Since the word is a combination of two words, the use of the hyphen makes that more clear. Now, let\'s talk about the four distinct models within e-commerce: - Business-to-consumer (B2C) - Consumer-to-consumer (C2C) - Business-to-business (B2B) - Consumer-to-business (C2B) **Note:** When a government entity does business online, substituting *business* with *administration* results in additional e-commerce models like business-to-administration (B2A) and consumer-to-administration (C2A). An example of B2A is a company selling software solutions for a government entity that does permitting. An example of C2A is a company that allows consumers to interact directly with a government service, such as paying their utility bills. Business-to-consumer (B2C) e-commerce ------------------------------------- Business-to-consumer (B2C) is the most common form of e-commerce. This is the online process of businesses selling products or services directly to consumers. Some credit the U.S. company Pizza Hut for the first e-commerce transaction (selling a pizza online). However, historians also recognize that before that pizza sale, Dan Kohn sold a CD album to a friend in Philadelphia on August 11, 1994. That friend sent his credit card information to pay for the album and shipping costs using encryption technology. Others couldn't steal his credit card information because it was encrypted! Today, B2C e-commerce generates billions of dollars in revenue annually, with encrypted transactions as everyday occurrences. With B2C marketing, you have opportunities to apply your digital marketing skills in very specific ways. For example, you can become a specialist in experiential marketing or social media marketing, or even a subset of social media marketing called influencer marketing. - **Experiential marketing**, also known as engagement marketing, encourages consumers to not only purchase a brand or product but to *experience* it. Experiential marketing campaigns draw out emotional responses from their audiences. - **Social media marketing** creates content for different social media platforms to drive engagement and promote a business or product. - **Influencer marketing** enlists influential people to endorse or mention a brand or product to their followers on social media. Consumer-to-consumer (C2C) e-commerce ------------------------------------- With consumer-to-consumer (C2C) e-commerce, individuals sell products or services to other individuals. In other words, consumers buy items from each other. Boston Computer Exchange created the first platform for C2C e-commerce in 1982. An online community of people used this platform to sell their used computers to other users. However, the best-known early C2C e-commerce platform is eBay, founded in 1995. Today, C2C e-commerce still occurs on platforms like eBay and Etsy. Business-to-consumer platforms like Amazon also host C2C sales. Social media platforms like Facebook also entered C2C e-commerce with Facebook Marketplace. Digital marketing for a C2C business prioritizes skills in search engine optimization (SEO), content creation, and social media since most C2C consumers find each other through blogs and social media posts. Their shared interests lead to C2C transactions to buy and sell items. Business-to-business (B2B) e-commerce ------------------------------------- Business-to-business (B2B) e-commerce enables businesses to sell products and services to other businesses. The rise of services, particularly software services, accelerated B2B e-commerce. This type of service is known as Software-as-a-Service (SaaS). One example of a SaaS company is Salesforce, founded in 1999. SaaS companies, like Salesforce, provide other companies subscription access to business-critical services over the internet. For example, Salesforce provides customer relationship management (CRM) software that unifies sales, marketing, and services for a personalized customer journey. Today, digital marketers for B2B companies use many of the same skills as digital marketers for B2C companies. However, B2B marketing campaigns require more precise identification of their target audiences. Selling to businesses requires a focus on communicating an immediate value to potential customers. Therefore, digital marketing for B2B companies tends to be more strategic. There may be fewer opportunities to specialize in one type of marketing, like social media marketing, and a greater emphasis on marketing analytics and data. Consumer-to-business (C2B) e-commerce ------------------------------------- The popularity of small business ownership helped establish another model for e-commerce, C2B. With C2B e-commerce, consumers sell their products or services to businesses. Specialized platforms also fill a need for these online transactions. For example, Upwork, founded in 2015, connects freelancers to businesses that may need their skills and services. Consumers who are influencers may also fall into this category of e-commerce because they may sell their services to promote a company's products. With social media continuing to expand its influence on consumer decisions, the C2B e-commerce model will likely grow as well. Key takeaway ------------ This exploration of e-commerce models demonstrates that e-commerce has evolved and will continue to change rapidly. Knowing how to apply and gain new digital marketing skills is vital in advancing your career in this industry. Glossary terms from module 1 ============================ **Terms and definitions from Course 1, Module 1** ------------------------------------------------- **Agency:** An outside partner that fulfills a company's digital marketing and advertising needs **Business-to-business (B2B):** Refers to when businesses sell products or services to other businesses (when businesses purchase from each other) **Business-to-consumer (B2C):** Refers to when businesses sell products or services to consumers (when consumers purchase from businesses) **Consumer-to-business (C2B):** Refers to when individuals (consumers) sell products or services to businesses (when businesses purchase from consumers) **Consumer-to-consumer (C2C):** Refers to when individuals (consumers) sell products or services to other consumers (when consumers purchase from each other) **Digital channel:** Any communication method or platform a business can use to reach their target audience online **Digital marketing:** The practice of reaching consumers online through digital channels with the aim of turning them into customers **E-commerce:** The buying and selling of goods or services using the internet **Engagement marketing:** (refer to **experiential marketing**) **Experiential marketing:** The process of encouraging consumers to not only purchase a brand or product, but to experience it **Influencer marketing:** The process of enlisting influential people to endorse or mention a brand or product to their followers on social media **In-house:** Within a single company **Social media marketing:** The process of creating content for different social media platforms to drive engagement and promote a business or product **Transferable skills:** Skills from other areas that can help someone progress a career in marketing