Hi and a huge welcome to our Guide to kickstarting your career in Digital Marketing.
Digital marketing skills are massively in demand, as a great many brands now need help with things
like SEO, Facebook Ads, Instagram Ads, copywriting, and content marketing.
With the marketing knowledge you’ll gain on this course, you’ll be in a great position to go out and
start getting your very first clients. All you need now is a good strategy for obtaining that illusive
initial success as a digital marketer.
In this video, we’ve outlined the most effective actions you can take to secure your first paid digital
marketing assignment if you want to work as an SEO consultant, Facebook or Instagram Ads
Consultant, content creator, copywriter, or in other related roles.
Whether you’re seeking your first SEO gig, want to carve out a successful career as a Facebook Ads
Consultant, or need to get your foot in the door in media, if you follow our advice, you will quickly
achieve RAPID success in the lucrative field of Digital Marketing.
Your first Digital Marketing Job
Digital marketing is a highly competitive sector, but don’t let this discourage you, marketing newbies
land their first jobs in the industry every single day.
It helps to have a specialism if you’re looking to get hired for the first time by a marketing company
or agency. To find your niche, try focusing on your passion, what do you enjoy doing and what do
you do well?
You could enjoy…
Crafting authentic brands for independent health and wellness companies
Helping tech start-ups grow
Creating content marketing strategies for e-commerce fashion stores
Or almost anything else you can think of, providing its niche enough so you can clearly position
yourself as an expert.
One other way to niche down is to upskill in a role. Do you hold specific skills in technical SEO,
Facebook advertising, or email marketing? If not, can you obtain them? Focusing on a specialism
enables you to offer more than most Digital Marketers hunting for their first job, so you’ll be in
greater demand from employers.
To get your first marketing gig, you may have to utilise the connections you’ve already made.
Marketing is all about trust, but when you don’t have any experience, often the only people who are
willing to take a chance on you are the people you already know. Reach out to your family, friends,
and anyone else you know and ask them if they need your skills.
Cultivating professional relationships is incredibly important if you want to get ahead in marketing as
they can lead to lucrative future opportunities. As well as making use of immediate circle, you
should be reaching out continuously to try and expand your network too.
To win people’s trust and therefore increase your marketing opportunities you first need to build
credibility. To do this you need to start showing up publicly, in as many places as you can.
A great way to do this is by starting a blog about your industry niche or a specific topic related to
your skillset. If you can provide smart analysis, explainers, or hot takes on a specific topic, your blog
can act as a magnet for potential employers and customers, as it will give them a way to review what
you can offer.
Another way of being visible publicly is to create a regular podcast or video series covering your
niche. If you’re a copywriter, you could also consider getting an article to rank highly on Google, so
it appears first in search results. You could also do this with video or audio by optimising your
YouTube or other platform’s meta data and promoting your content on Facebook or Twitter or
getting it mention on a site with many visitors.
Lastly, don’t forget, you will have to be proactive to break through in Digital Marketing. In fact, your
ideal marketing job may not even exist until you create it. It sounds strange, but by taking the
initiative and contacting companies to offer your skillset, you could land your first position without
ever having had to respond to a job ad.
If you want to make speculative applications, do your research on the company, hunt down the right
person to reach out to, then pitch your skills by telling them what you can do for their brand.
Maximise your media career
If you aspire to breaking into the media, there are many diverse roles you can take, depending on
your skillset, passion, and whether you want to work for yourself, or for a company. From journalism
to photography, blogging, and videography your options are plentiful, though it is best to pick one
area to focus on, so you can find a niche that will help you stand out.
Networking and reputation are everything when it comes to carving out a successful media career.
It’s true what they say, in media, you really are nothing without your audience. But how do you
obtain a large following, receive many views for your viral videos, or get your work published in
prestigious publications?
If you want to go down the traditional route, you could consider applying for one of the many media
internships advertised each year on sites like LinkedIn, www.internships.com or www.gap360.com.
Though you likely won’t get paid, an internship at a prestigious publication or brand can be an
invaluable way of making the contacts you need and gaining valuable experience that will look
impressive on your resume. Internship lengths can range from 6 weeks to a year or more, so you
don’t necessarily have to commit for an extensive period.
Can you offer something extra, like social media savvy or digital marketing skills? If so, you should
mention this on your internship application, as it’s much more likely you’ll stand out from all the
other applicants.
Alternatively, you might prefer going it alone, trying to build a successful blog or YouTube channel,
develop your reputation as a motivational coach, or expand your portfolio as a photographer. If you
want to work for yourself in the media, there are many benefits, including being able to set your
own rates, choosing the assignments you want to take, and working when you want to. Remember
though, a freelance career in media can be lucrative in the end, but you will need to put in a lot of
work initially.
If you’re struggling for views or readers, consider guest posting on a popular blog, or asking a
YouTube channel in your niche if they’d like to interview you or have you do a segment on a subject
their audience is interested in. Pitch your idea in a brief email, clearly outlining the benefits for their
audience. Let them know exactly why they should host you and tell them what their readers or
viewers will learn. This way, you’re offering real value, rather than just piggybacking on the channel
or blog’s popularity by asking for free promotion for your book, course, or product.
If you want to break into media it helps to get your name out there, ideally mentioned on as many
high authority websites as possible. It can be hard to do this when you’re first starting out, so
making use of sites that connect journalists with sources can be an excellent way to get free
publicity.
Try signing up to sites like HARO www.helpareporterout.com and apply to relevant postings, where
you can pitch to reporters who post asking for expert input for an article or program. You could be
an expert on almost any subject, or even on multiple subjects, from SEO to fashion, travel, or tech,
as there are a broad range of assignments posted every day. HARO is great, as not only does it have
a huge user base of journalists, it gives you an opportunity to use some of the skills you already
possess while you’re building up your rep.
Cutting through as a Copywriter
Over the past decade there’s been a huge surge in demand for copywriters, as more and more
brands require well-written content to sell their products or services online. SEO is a huge factor
behind this increase, and writers who have strong skills in this area will have a competitive edge.
There are lots of different areas where copywriting skills are needed, from more traditional roles like
direct mail campaigns and scriptwriting to online content positions such as web editors, SEO
copywriters, and content managers. The online market is where the biggest demand in vacancies
lies and is where you should focus your efforts to start with, if you’re looking to build a copywriting
career.
Expect to work hard, especially at first. You need to build up your portfolio, clients, and reputation,
particularly if you want to thrive as a successful freelance copywriter. Working for content mill sites
such as Elance.com and People Per Hour can be a great way to do this, though at the beginning pay
won’t be great. Don’t forget blogging either, as you can use your blog to show off your skillset, but
remember to post regularly, as consistency is key.
When applying for copywriting vacancies, if you’re going in cold to ask if a company has any existing
roles, take time to find out some extra details first. This is important whether you’re applying for a
one-off freelance gig or a regular ongoing contract position.
Editors really appreciate the personal touch, and you can easily find out the editorial departments
contact details on the web from their site, including the head of department’s name. This is who
you should send your application to 99% of the time.
If you can’t find the information you need, pick up the phone and ask who to send a speculative
application to. It really will make a big difference when it comes to the company’s impression of
you. Always remember to include links to any published content you’ve worked on when you make
your application. Don’t overstuff, if you have a lot of links, select the most impressive sites your
copy has appeared on.
If you want to work for a company, as opposed to going freelance, research the brand first before
taking the plunge and applying. Follow them on social media, especially LinkedIn, Facebook, and
Twitter, and visit their website or blog, so you get a flavour of the content style and tone they prefer.
Twitter can be great for discovering new copywriting vacancies. Check out accounts like @writejob
and @problogger, as they post freelance and remote working contract opportunities regularly.
Succeeding as a freelance copywriter requires mastering some fundamentals. It goes without saying
that your spelling and grammar should be impeccable, though if you do need a little extra help,
software like Grammarly can be a writer’s best buddy.
Before you send off any job application or CV for a copywriting job, check and check again to make
sure that what you have written has been thoroughly proofread. If you skip this essential step, it’s
almost guaranteed your application won’t even make it past the first stage.
If you don’t have much prior published work, offer to write a free test piece, so the company can
preview your ability. You only need to do this while you’re building your reputation, portfolio, and
feedbacks and although you won’t get paid for it, it’s a great way to get your foot in the door.
Consider focusing on a niche to max your demand. Though you can be a jack of all trades, if you pick
a copywriting niche and build a reputation for producing great content within in, you’ll not only be
cutting out a lot of your competition, but you’ll also be able to command a higher fee. Your niche
can be a topic you’re passionate about like tech, a subject you know a lot about such as real estate,
something you are qualified in like law, or an area you have a lot of experience in, like marketing or
SEO.
Secure your first SEO job
A career in SEO is a great way to secure a well-paying job where your skillset will be continually in
demand, as the way we do business becomes more digitally focused.
Another good thing about working in the SEO sector is that you don’t need a degree for over 64% of
all vacancies advertised, as employers are frequently looking for hands on experience instead. If you
possess practical experience optimizing web sites in the real world, emphasize this on your CV.
So, what skills do recruiters look for when looking to hire for an SEO career? The most popular skills
sought are marketing, content creation, and search, as well as the ability to use SEO analytics, data,
and tools.
Over 63% of all SEO jobs advertised look for candidates with experience using specific tools. The
tools in highest demand are Google Analytics, SEMrush, Google Search Console, Moz, Ahrefs, and
Screaming Frog.
When you’re looking to get hired for an SEO position, you should be looking to develop at least some
of these skills and should try to gain experience working with the most popular SEO tools. If you
already have experience in these areas, make sure you highlight this when applying for a vacancy.
The industries where you are most likely to get hired for an SEO role are Advertising & Marketing,
Staffing & Outsourcing, Internet, IT, Publishing, and Enterprise Software, so it’s great idea to start
your job search in at least one of these sectors.
Do you know how to code?
If so, you could be in great demand within the SEO sector. Research has demonstrated that SEOs
who can code get paid more than those that can’t and enjoy an average salary that’s 7.3% higher.
The most in demand programming languages employers look for when looking to hire for an SEO
role are HTML, CSS, JavaScript, Go, SQL, and PHP.
Even if you don’t have technical skills, you can still find a role in the SEO industry as only 22.9% of all
SEO vacancies advertised are for a technical role like SEO analyst. Over 77% of employers looking to
fill an SEO vacancy are seeking applicants with strong non-technical abilities, such as SEO strategists,
managers, and content creators.
Another important thing to do when looking for an SEO-based role is to ensure your LinkedIn profile
is optimised. To do this, you should be using the terms SEO recruiters search for the most as this will
help potential employers find you. Prospective employers will also consider you a better fit for their
vacancy if your profile matches the job criteria they are looking for.
So, what terms do employers search for on LinkedIn when looking to hire?
According to backlinko.com, the top skills employers looking to fill an SEO vacancy search for are:
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Expert
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Make sure you include at least some of these terms when it comes to filling out your LinkedIn
profile, or your profile on other job search or networking sites.
Finding work as a Facebook Ads Consultant
If you know how to set up, optimise and manage Facebook Ads, and understand when and where to
use the different types of Facebook Ad campaigns, you can build a career as a Facebook Ads
consultant whether you want to work freelance, or for a company.
If you do well and can successfully generate leads, it’s not uncommon to start charging upwards of
$1000 a month per client.
So where should you start looking to land your first client?
Sites like Upwork.com and Guru.com are great places to look for vacancies or to advertise your
consultant services, especially when you are trying to land your first client and don’t have much
experience. You should also try offering your services to businesses in your local area. This is works
particularly well if you can build up a relationship first before you approach to ask if they need any
help with their online promotions.
Consider mining your existing personal relationships, is there anyone you know who has a business?
If so, ask them if they need help getting more custom. If they answer yes, offer to set up and run
their Facebook Ads marketing campaign for them and bingo, you’ve just landed your first client. It’s
a great idea to ask in your immediate circle when you first get going as this can really help with word
of mouth too, which is an invaluable way to build your brand reputation.
If you’re searching for work as a Facebook Ads Consultant, don’t forget LinkedIn and of course
Facebook, as companies use both these sites to find Facebook Ad Specialists who can help them
boost their profile. Make it clear that you have specific skills in the relevant types of Facebook Ads
you will be covering, such as Dynamic Ads, Reach Ads, Carousel Ads etc...
You should also set up a basic but professional looking website that clearly outlines the services you
offer, along with a well-written Bio and Contact Form. Ensure your SEO and metadata are optimised
and use tools like moz.com to find the keywords people use to search when they’re looking for
Facebook Ads Consultants.
Of course, if you have the time and want to drive more traffic to your Ads Consultant web site, you
could start a blog positioning yourself as a Facebook Ads expert. You can cross post your articles on
social media, using them as content to increase your profile and following there. This is a great way
to grow your network without having to spend double the amount of time creating new social posts.
If you have content creation skills, you can offer your Facebook Ad Consultancy services as an add
on, or the other way around, as the two go hand in hand. Many people need help finding more
customers and don’t know how to use Facebook Ads, but they often also need great content for
those Ads, as that is a big part of converting click throughs to customers.
Landing your first Instagram Ads client
If you’re trying to build a career as a freelance Instagram Ad consultant or secure your first contract,
the site itself is a great place to start your search. Recent research discovered that content on
Instagram generates 58 times more engagement per follower than Facebook, and 120 times more
engagement than Twitter.
Instagram isn’t the first platform people think of when it comes to networking, which means you
won’t be fighting off the competition, like on overstuffed sites such as LinkedIn.
Another bonus of using Instagram to reach out is that networking via the site comes off as more
natural than on other sites dedicated to networking. On LinkedIn people’s inboxes are flooded with
the same generic intro messages, but when you send a networking message on Insta, you
immediately stand out.
If you want to capitalize on your Instagram Ads knowledge on Instagram there are some things you
should do to ensure you land that first gig.
1. Polish up your profile - Before you reach out to anyone you need to ensure your Instagram
account looks professional. Ideally, it should also show that you’re a real person, with a real
life, and should display a little of your natural personality. When you connect with someone,
they will often look at your profile first so this step’s important. Your bio should give some
background info, including your current role, interests, and specialism. Keep most of your
posts highly relevant to your professional persona.
2. Hashtag EVERYTHING - Hashtag all your posts using multiple trending hashtags for your
niche. You can find what these are by using the Explore page to monitor trending content,
or use Filter Results from the drop-down menu to pull up the Keyword Tool that will display
the popularity of the hashtags you enter.
3. Follow the right people - To maximise your networking opportunities on Instagram and
therefore up your chances of getting a job, you need to be following influencers in your
niche. But you also should be following the types of people who might need your services,
such as solo start-ups and small businesses.
4. Stay up to date with industry news and trends - Follow industry leaders to find new people
to learn from and connect with. This will give you handy talking points when it comes to
conversing with clients or employers.
5. Get stuck In - Don’t be a lurker – to get ahead on Instagram you must get active and
involved. Engage with influencers, potential clients, and employers by liking, commenting,
and messaging. Give your take on a hot conversation happening in the comments section,
follow up on posts by sending relevant private messages, and swipe up and reply to an
Instagram story with snappy responses that make people take notice. If you do this
regularly, you’ll find your starting conversations with all the right people, which will help
massively when it comes to finding your first client.
As well as using Instagram to market yourself as an Instagram Ads Consultant, sites like Upwork.com
and Freelancer.com frequently post vacancies requiring Instagram marketers.
It’s worth creating an account at one or two of these types of freelancing sites, even if you are
looking for a more permanent role, as you can find many different types of positions advertised.
Have a look at what employers are seeking when they advertise for Instagram Ads Consultants, then
use these phrases on your profile to describe your relevant skillset.
Stand out on Freelance and Job search sites
Freelance sites like www.peopleperhour.com and www.fiverr.com can be a great way to get your
freelancing career off to a flying start, though at first the amount you earn may be limited.
Once you build up your experience and feedbacks though, you can easily start charging more as
you'll be able to prove your abilities. If you have an aptitude for your niche be it copywriting, SEO,
marketing with Facebook Ads, or anything else, it's relatively easy to work your way up the ladder if
you're willing to put in some work.
One of the plus points of using these types of freelance sites is that you can accept the jobs you
want, when you want, particularly when your options expand as you receive better ratings.
If you don't want to complete a job you don't have to agree to take the work on or can avoid
pitching for it in the first place.
When you create your account make sure you fully complete your profile, and display samples of
your prior published work in your portfolio space. Both fiverr and people per hour offer this space
to showcase your work in slightly different ways. People per hour has a defined portfolio section,
while fiverr offers you the chance to feature work when you post gigs.
If you don't have prior work samples to display, consider creating some that show off what you can
do. This is a little harder if you're not a copywriter or web or graphic designer, as if you're a
marketer or Facebook Ads Consultant, you'll want to show off successful campaigns you've already
worked on.
If you've already had any experience working with Facebook Ads, even for your own company, you
can take screenshots of your campaign statistics and display them here.
To land your first job on www.peopleperhour.com you will need to pitch to potential customers who
post jobs, so they know you exist and can consider using you to complete the job.
Use the search function to find available jobs in your niche, then apply, but read the employer's
listed specifications first, so you can tailor your pitch to suit.
People per hour also offers an hourly gig feature, which allows you to post tailor made packages of
work time that people can instantly purchase to use for certain jobs.
For instance, you could offer to complete a 500-word sales letter for £20. Or you could post an
hourly gig that offers logo design with 3 concepts and one revision for £25.
On fiverr things work slightly differently. Though clients looking for freelancers do post jobs which
you can pitch for, the bulk of your custom will come from people who purchase your posted gigs.
If you’re a fiverr seller it’s important to post as many different jobs as you can within your niche or
niches, so you appear more frequently in search results. You also need to ensure you make your gig
copy, graphics, and work samples as professional and attractive as possible.
You'll have a huge advantage on fiverr if you can show you have satisfied customers, so it's a good
idea to start your gig fee off low, to encourage more people to purchase and therefore leave you
feedback.
When you complete a job on people per hour or fiverr, if your customer is happy with what you've
done, always ask for feedback if they haven't left you a review.
Reviews and customer testimonials are the key to building your business and expanding your
earning power on sites like fiverr and people per hour.
If you want a more permanent role, or don’t want to go down the freelance route, Monster.com is a
CV search site that focuses on your skillset and experience.
You can find freelance jobs on Monster.com but the emphasis is on permanent, remote working or
temporary contract jobs rather than one-off gigs.
To stand out on job search websites such as Monster.com you need to ensure your CV and profile
are the best they can be. List your relevant skills on your profile as well as any qualifications and
experience you have gained in your industry.
Employers on Monster.com will post vacancies you can directly apply to, using a CV that you have
uploaded. To maximise your opportunity of finding work, plan to apply for suitable jobs regularly,
until you build up a rota of regular clients.
Employers also use sites like Monster to search out suitable candidates, and this is where keyword
research can give you a competitive edge. Use the search function to check out the types of jobs you
would like to land and analyse a good selection of ads to see what skills are in demand and what
words are used to describe them.
If you have these skills, you can feature them on your Monster profile and CV, using the terminology
employers use to find candidates in your niche.
Polish up your resume and LinkedIn Profile
Getting your CV right is super important when it comes to landing your first marketing job, because
as a marketer you are supposed to be able to sell yourself, so your resume must reflect this.
Because these days many resumes are scanned through an ATS (Applicant Tracking System, you
need to know how to pass this, so you don’t fall at the first obstacle.
The trick is to tailor your CV to each job you are applying for. This doesn’t mean you have to
extensively rewrite your resume every time you reach out to a potential employer. But you will
maximise your opportunities if you adjust your CV to reflect the precise skills that your employer is
searching for. In fact, a study found that 36% of employers said they would auto-reject a resume if
they didn’t feel it had been customised for the advertised position.
To tailor your CV to the vacancy you are applying for, first read the job ad thoroughly. Identify the
marketing skills, requirements, and experience the employer is looking for. If you possess these
abilities or have the relevant experience, take the keywords they used in the ad and incorporate
them into your resume.
Applicant Tracking Systems crawl resumes to check for the employer’s indicated search specifics, so
by adjusting your CV this way, you’ll be giving yourself a much better chance of making the cut.
To optimise your CV or LinkedIn profile, you should also check out LinkedIn profiles of people who
already hold similar roles, to see how they describe their skills, background, and experience. You
can then use this knowledge to help describe your own skillset, to make yourself more relevant and
attractive to the right people.
Use bullet points on your CV under each of your past positions, to demonstrate the different skills
you’ve used. If you can’t meet a certain requirement but you know the employer is looking for a
specific skill, mention the closest alternative ability you possess.
On a resume, optimise your content above the fold, as this is what employers will see first. Given
that recruiters typically only spend 6 seconds scanning the average resume, you need to hit them
hard from the off.
First always make sure your header is eye-catching and relevant to the role you are applying for.
Then create a short and snappy summary of your career and skillset. This is your elevator pitch
which will quickly tell employers what you can bring to the table.
Here’s an example of a good summary you could use on your LinkedIn profile or CV that would make
employers sit up and pay attention:
Digital marketer with over 3 years of experience in SEO content marketing. Boosted organic traffic
for BlahBlahBlah by an average of 200% and increased sales by 40% by overhauling their content
marketing strategy…
When you’re creating a resume go for a chronological format that tells employers how you worked
your way to where you are now. This is the format ATS systems favour the most and it’s also the
cleanest, clearest, and easiest to understand.
Use power words and action verbs on your CV and LinkedIn profile, not passive language. Employers
like words like boosted, reduced, won, and increased, not corporate waffle like oversaw or
managed.
Finally, make sure you thoroughly proofread your CV or profile for spelling and grammar, using
spellcheck. If you need a little assistance, writers’ tools like Grammarly can help.
Thanks for watching!
We hope you've enjoyed these tips on how to kickstart your digital marketing career. For maximum
success, it’s important that you immediately start applying our advice to land your first client.
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