Skills for the future

With the advent of technological advancements and steep surge in online channels, digital marketing has become an inevitable aspect for the success of a business. Consumers and modern trade today have seized the rapidly changing pace of technology and emerging trends for their benefit and convenience and this has led to the unfolding of new-age courses like digital marketing.

Essentially, digital marketing involves promotion of products and services through digital platforms like emails, blogs, social media, professional sites and digital advertising. The process includes establishing a digital presence and selecting apt campaigns for the right target audience. This is one of the most efficient and swift ways of one-to-one marketing and captivating the target audience at a low cost.

Digital marketing encompasses a wide range of tactics such as Email Marketing, Search Engine Optimisation (SEO), Copywriting, Content Writing, Social Media Marketing, Digital Marketing, Search Engine Marketing (SEM), Pay-per-Click advertising (PPC). A prominent and upcoming trend is the application of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) to enhance targeting and personalisation. For customer care and support, AI-powered chatbots are becoming more and more popular, and ML algorithms may help organisations analyse data and optimise their efforts. Emergence of new technologies like Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR) are likely to become more prevalent in digital marketing, allowing businesses to create immersive experiences for their customers. The smart and young generation is the most apt user and target audience for exploring the space of digital marketing.

As per a recent report, the digital marketing market is expected to scale with a CAGR of 32.1% by 2028, with a value of $24.1 billion. There will be close to 6 billion internet users by 2027. The demand for skilled digital marketers will only increase in the coming years. According to LinkedIn, digital marketing is one of the top skills to learn in 2023, and the “digital marketing specialist” role is among the top 10 most in-demand jobs, with 860,000 job openings. The topmost colleges are offering digital marketing certification courses and learning enthusiasts can choose from a number of online courses from renowned universities. These trending courses will equip the younger generation to upskill themselves in the digital landscape and transform user experiences. Such courses enhance the industry readiness of the workforce and businesses today are eager to employ freshers who have mastered the emerging skills like digital marketing.

The author is dean and associate professor, IILM University, Gurugram