Internet marketing is becoming exponentially important to just about every business entity that exists in the modern day world. However, pursuing a career in internet marketing can be surprisingly difficult given the ever-growing prevalence of it. Many colleges offer a course, or perhaps a handful of courses , related to internet marketing, but is that enough to impress a potential employer, especially when most employers are also looking for experience in the field?
Unless you’re fortunate enough to be able to attend a school that offers an internet marketing degree, you’re likely on your own for educating yourself and you’re certainly on your own for creating your own experience in this field.
Internet Marketing Experience: How to Get It
Focus on what I just said: “creating your own experience”. For myself and many of my peers in the field of internet marketing, that’s exactly how we established our career tracks: by creating our own internet marketing experience. We self-studied from webinars, white papers, and e-books published by industry authorities such as Hubspot and MarketingProfs. We read the works of the social media greats, such as Chris Brogan, Seth Godin, and Scott Stratten. We internalized every word, and then hit the ground running – often without “permission” from anyone.
We created our own internet marketing strategies and initiatives, either for our existing employers or for our own personal causes, or both. We experimented with different internet marketing theories, seeing what worked and what didn’t. We made mistakes. Lots of mistakes. And learned A TON from them. Then we created our own theories, which sometimes turned into trends that got mimicked by others. (Side note: Imitation is the highest form of flattery, so if you’ve got someone copying your internet marketing ideas, don’t get angry…it means YOU’RE DOING IT RIGHT).
My Internet Marketing Career Path
My internet marketing career path wasn’t created for me by a degree program (although I do highly recommend getting an MBA in Marketing to set you apart from others in the field), and it wasn’t directly created for me by an employer either (although having an employer that allowed me to experiment certainly did help). My internet marketing career path was first and foremost created by me, plain and simple. I decided that I wanted it, and I was the one who put it in motion. I created websites for my personal causes, my employers, my friends…anyone who would let me. I obsessively self-taught and experimented until I was blue in the face. I made mistakes, and learned from them. And it paid off big time.
How To Pursue A Career in Internet Marketing
If you’re interested in a career in internet marketing, consider a B.S. or M.B.A. in traditional marketing, but focus just as hard on self-educating and learning internet marketing from the leaders in the industry. There is a plethora of free and highly educational internet marketing content out there if you’re willing to look for it.
Then, as Nike says, “Just Do It”. Start NOW. Create a website for a personal cause, or knock your bosses’ socks off by designing an internet marketing plan or campaign for them. Do both. Then make mistakes. Make lots of mistakes. Try different internet marketing theories. See what works, and see what crashes and burns. That’s what experience is comprised of: learning from your mistakes. Create your own experience, and you’ll be on course for a successful career in internet marketing.
Internet Marketers: Please Share Your Advice!
Do you work in internet marketing? If so, please share your valuable career advice in the comments below. With the lack of formal education in the field, it is important for those of us who work in internet marketing to act as mentors to those who show an interest in the career we love.
Learn Internet Marketing From Me
Check out my Learn Internet Marketing page to browse through the educational materials and opportunities that I’ve put together.
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My favorite quote:
” We internalized every word, and then hit the ground running – often without “permission” from anyone.”
That is precisely how I started our social media efforts here.
And you’ve done an absolutely amazing job with those efforts. Thanks for the comment…and keep up the “running”! 🙂
Thank you.
I totally agree with this quote! I had “permission” technically, but I hit the ground running without any guidance. I had to pick everything up on my own by watching what others were doing!
Another great post, Pam. We do have to remain flexible both toward our tactics and strategy, especially as the media we use seems to continuously evolve, often without our permission.
Indeed. Just look at how much our Facebook marketing concepts are about to change. We’re going to have to re-learn that medium all over again! Constant self-education is key. Thanks so much for your feedback.
Facebook is constantly changing. What used to work last week, is old news (landing pages).
…so then if you see my “blue” face, you understand why. 🙂 Great post, Yoda!
Haha, Ruby! It certainly does require a lot of effort, but it’s all worth it! Thanks so much for stopping by and commenting.
I like the post, Pam! Its a constantly moving and growing entity all on its own. Another tip might be to start using as many networks as you can. Become familiar with anything that might seem helpful to you! Don’t be afraid to make mistakes, because believe me! Mistakes are worth so much once you learn what to do!
Thanks, Roxanne. I completely agree. A network of peer for support is invaluable, as well as the lessons learned from mistakes. Thanks for your feedback!
What a fantastic post, Pam! Love all your advice. Someone once told me to become “like a sponge” in the beginning, and that has served me well. Soak up as much knowledge as possible from others. Thanks again, Pam. You’re an inspiration!
Thank you, Carol! You are certainly an inspiration yourself. Your positive attitude is infectious! That’s not something one comes across every day. Great advice about being a sponge. Thanks for your feedback!
A great share Pam, I don’t feel qualified to give advice, but I’ll say this much. Our approach has changed and changed again but we work to stay true to promoting our personnel, our company and finally our product. We certainly cross a line from time to time, but we try to remain consistent in the material we present to what is close to our industry. I certainly agree with Carol’s point, we try to learn from everyone, both the good and the bad. Thank you.
You most certainly are qualified, Kyle! Thank you very much for your valuable feedback.
Great post, Pam. I enjoyed learning how you came to be known as an internet marketer. You give good–and realistic–advice. Keep up the great work!
Thank you very much for your feedback!
Great post, Pam! I enjoyed reading a bit about how you came to be known as an internet marketer. You give some good–and realistic–advice. Always refreshing!
Great post Pam. It is funny because as I read through the comments there were a few people on here I have learned quite a bit from. A lot of great information here so thank you for sharing. I am just getting my feet wet in this field for the company I work for and it helps when I read blogs like this.
Hi Ryan! I’m so glad you enjoyed this, and thanks for your feedback. Learning from each other is priceless. You’re doing a great job. Keep up the good work!
This post reminds me of the Derek Sivers video, “Start Now: No Funding Needed.”
http://youtu.be/7KLnXjqKL5g
I agree with your post and will share it for sure.
Great video! I love it. Thanks for sharing!
Can’t agree more with Just Do It. If you’re just starting out, look for any opportunity to demonstrate measurable impact on a client’s, friend’s, or your own business. This may lead you to find someone you can help who has established a track record of slow to no growth in targeted traffic, goal conversions, leads, or sales. That’s even better (for your purposes) than someone who is starting a new web site from scratch. Because when you can make those trend lines change direction from “due East” to “North-Northeast,” you will have something many Internet marketing newbies lack: a case study of an Internet marketing problem being solved.
Excellent point! You’re right, there’s nothing like a good track record to help propel you forward. Thanks so much for for this valuable feedback.
Jumping in late in the game here, but I highly suggest networking, both online and off, with successful internet marketers. I joined The Third Tribe (Copyblogger) and am already learning SO much from everyone in that space.
My path from tech writer to internet (and offline still counts too!) marketer was completely self-directed. I poured myself into learning to design, code and write good copy (NOT the same as tech writing, but I did learn alot in that part of my life).
No one ever asked me if I wanted to do this and I never waited around for permission. I’ve been lucky to have both employers who support my goals and ideas as well as my own business to experiment and learn in.
Thanks for an awesome post, Pam!
Thanks for the awesome comment, Heather! I’m so glad that you shared your experience here. It really reiterates what I was trying to say about needing to “just do it”!
Thanks again!
Pam,
I’m so glad that I found this post!
I must admit I love your name and the little video too…
Anyway, I couldn’t agree more with creating your own experience…
I started my own experience just 8 months ago, and I’ve made a lot of mistakes along the way, but I’m learned from them and moved on…
I absolutely love what I’m doing, and will continue to use this site as reference as I continue to build out my site.
Thanks for sharing this post!
Tony Websmith
Hi Tony! So glad you liked the post, and thanks for the feedback on my branding and for sharing your experience. Congrats on your success so far, and best of luck to you in the rest of your career!
hot to get into online marketing??? is research analyst position a proper one to get into????
Hi Pam,
Awesome post….
I wanted to ask you something and require your valuable feedback…..
Currently, I’m working as a UI Developer or Front-End Developer & I got offer from one of the biggest giant company in Software and the role into email marketing. My Questions are:
1: Hows the Career Path or Future in Email Marketing.
2: Should I join this giant company and change my profile.
Your feedback really matters and this question is open for everyone. Please provide your valuable feedback.
Thanks & Regards,
Rakesh Pandey
Hi Rakesh,
It’s really hard to say what’s the best step to take in your case, but the field of email marketing is most certainly a thriving space. It’s not going away anytime soon.
Best of luck to you in your career.
Awesome post Pam, you put up it nicely here i ‘m starter in digital marketing
thanks
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is it necessary to know programming to become an internet marketing professional ?
Hi Anoop, No, not at all.
I know this post is from a while ago, but found it to be helpful…so I’m hoping you’re still monitoring it! 😉
Do you have any thoughts on how difficult it would be to make a career change from an unrelated field into internet marketing around the age of 40? I’m considering pursuing an MBA concentration in internet/social media marketing and wondering if the degree would be enough to get a start, without having much relate-able work experience on my resume.
Hey Laura, Thanks for the positive feedback! And so sorry for the slow reply – I just saw this now. I’m definitely not a career-change expert, but I would think that both a degree and work experience together would give you the best shot. Perhaps try freelancing (even pro bono – perhaps for a nonprofit) to build up that experience during the time in which you’re pursuing your degree.
Best of luck!