7 Top skills you need in 2021

1. Customer journey mapping

If you want to get to know your audience better, customer journey mapping is a great way to
dive deeper. Exploring every touch point along their path to purchase, journey mapping helps
you identify gaps and opportunities, and empowers you to create engaging and compelling
customer experiences.

Recommended courses: Customer Journey Mapping, Digital Marketing Certificate

2. Digital strategy
Digital marketing without strategy is like driving blindfolded. You know the fundamentals
(steer, hit the gas to go and the brake to slow), but if you can’t see the road, you’ll likely crash
before you arrive at your destination.

“Digital marketing starts with broad strategic thinking, which needs to turn into a clear set of
audience segmentation rules, a content plan, channel strategies and response rules based on
segment, behaviour and reaction,” Zeederberg says.

If you can develop a robust strategy – a roadmap for your business – you’re much more likely
to get to where you want to be.

Recommended courses: Digital Marketing Strategy Course, Digital Marketing Certificate

3. Channel planning
Digital channels, like social media have seen exponential growth this year. As new channels
also continue to emerge and gain popularity, marketers need to be able to plan and optimise
them for maximum impact. But first you need to understand the role of each channel and how it
fits into your overall strategy to be able to create engaging experiences.

Recommended courses: Digital Marketing Channels, Digital Marketing Certificate

4. Data literacy
Digital marketing relies heavily on data and insights, so developing skills in this area is crucial
to effectiveness.
“Marketers need to understand how to connect data streams, and more importantly, interpret
this data into insights that are actionable from a marketing perspective,” Zeederberg says.

Recommended courses: Analytics Certificate, Digital Analytics for Marketers,

Data-Driven Marketing Certificate, Digital Marketing Certificate

5. Social media
Social media has become an integral part of our lives – even more so since the onset of the
pandemic. It’s also become one of the most effective tools in a marketer’s arsenal. But, like other
aspects of digital marketing, social media is multi-faceted.

“There are three core areas within social media that are really important,” says Tim Hill, co-
founder and CEO of Social Status and instructor at ADMA IQ. “The first is content – creating
engaging posts that capture audience attention. Then there’s listening and data analytics –
pulling important insights that inform content creation. Finally, there’s community
management – providing front line customer service.

“Practitioners need to understand how these parts are all interconnected.”

Recommended courses: Social Media Marketing Strategy, Social Media Marketing

Essentials, Digital Marketing Certificate

6. Content
People are spending more time online than ever before, consuming more and more content
every day. Being able develop an effective content strategy and plan that focuses on customer
needs at each touchpoint of their journey is critical for engaging customers.

It’s also helpful to understand the role of content across each channel, be able to measure the
effectiveness of campaigns and know your way around words.

Recommended courses: Content Marketing Strategy, Content Marketing Essentials, Content

Marketing Certificate, Digital Marketing Certificate

7. Voice enabled devices and search

500 million people use Google Assistant every month. Voice enabled devices are gaining
ground fast and marketers need to prepare for the new way customers will use search.
“Marketers need to start imagining a world where their customers are connecting with them via
virtual assistants and voice search. With particular impact on your content strategy, customer
service solutions and your nudge marketing.”

Being able to develop a strategy for voice will allow you to set up a unique and optimised
customer experience across these devices.

Recommended courses: Digital Marketing Certificate

Want to know it all? ADMA IQ’s Digital Marketing Certificate will teach you these skills and
more – getting you ready for whatever the future looks like.