College graduates are often disappointed when graduating as they quickly learn of the high standards and expectations set for an individual who is seeking positions deemed "entry-level".
I have had many friends encounter this and even have faced many challenges myself in my pursuit for meaningful work. With that said, there needs to be some awareness raised. This awareness lies within young marketers and it needs to happen now.
For marketing, it's a broken system and surprisingly, there's really no one to blame. Layered, bureaucratic universities, just like top firms, are slow to adaptation while the digital world is moving at the speed of light. Rare do you see a marketer graduate college and find himself equipped with the technical skills that set himself up to "add immediate value" at that company he has dreamed of.
While I respect institutions of higher education and find incredible value in them, I also respect my fellow marketers and this is why I peg my peers in the marketing community to always be self-educating.
Because, yes, even that Junior year internship you want so bad is looking for someone familiar with marketing tools and strategy.
What I am talking about is the creation of a campaign and a working knowledge of an entire user acquisition funnel. Companies look for people who know how to identify an opportunity, how to design a landing page, A/B test it and track it with tools like Google Analytics, or HotJar.
With just a degree, you are unequipped with these tools and other digital strategies such as SEO, social media or content marketing. While I commend the professors taking leaps of faith, the ones who have built classes tapping into these tools and strategies, there simply isn't enough top level buy-in.
This is why, you, as a marketer, need to equip yourself and you need to do it now. If you want the tools to be that "immediate value-add" at that dream firm or agency after you graduate, take time this next Saturday afternoon to invest into yourself.
As an advocate of teaching yourself the skills, I have created a concise and incredibly thorough guide to learning one of my favorite (and arguably most valuable) marketing strategies. It resides under the umbrella of content marketing and its called a keyword-driven content strategy.
My guide gives you the end to end breakdown of this marketing strategy. Within this 15-page guide, you will learn what content marketing is, how to identify market opportunities and how to capitalize on them. You will learn the tools, secret industry tricks and most importantly, find out where to learn more.
This guide will give you a working knowledge of what the big guys (and little guys) are all using right now. I have included over TWENTY (20) other resources within this guide that will link you up with ALL OF THE EXPERTS who taught me what I know.
These are the people like Neil Patel who consult for Google and tell them what to do.
And, I am making this guide FREE to YOU.
Marketing is one of the fastest moving industries in the game and it's time to invest into YOU. Start learning the tools you need, TODAY.
This guide could be the catalyst to the career you want. Find out what opportunity could be waiting for you, after all, it is free.