Digital marketing courses are powerful educational programs available online focused on essential branches of digital marketing, such as social media marketing, search engine optimization, copywriting, enhancing UX, etc. This kind of learning helps acquire digital marketing skills and expertise necessary for creating effective marketing campaigns that generate leads and conversions. Read on and discover the best digital marketing courses in 2024, which will help you become a digital marketing expert.
If you aren’t sure if you should take some digital marketing lessons, take into account that, according to Search Engine Optimization Services Global Market Report 2024 announced by the Business Research Company, the sole SEO industry increased its total value from $75.13 billion in 2023 to $88.91 billion in 2024! Add to this the values of other digital marketing sectors and feel the power of money behind it. Regardless of whether you lead local businesses or manage global companies, you can’t turn a blind eye to this, as it impacts – I’m sure – your industry and your individual activity too.
Key Takeaways:
- Digital marketing courses offer comprehensive training in essential areas such as SEO, social media, content marketing, and email campaigns, helping you acquire skills to create effective campaigns.
- Learning digital marketing involves understanding theory, engaging in hands-on practice, and staying updated with the latest trends and developments.
- The best online courses cover various scopes, from foundational skills in general digital marketing to niche specializations like social media strategy, technical SEO, and AI-driven marketing content creation.
- While digital marketing courses are valuable, their limitations include rapid platform changes, the absence of materials concerning the very new tools, and the lack of collaborative learning experiences typical of real-world marketing teams.
What is Digital Marketing Course?
A Digital Marketing Course is a program designed to teach individuals and businesses how to effectively promote products, services, or brands online. It covers strategies and techniques across various digital platforms, focusing on reaching and engaging audiences through the Internet. Topics typically include SEO, social media, email marketing, content creation, and paid advertising.
Essential elements of a Digital Marketing Course include professional insights, practical training, instructional videos, and often a certification upon completion. These components ensure learners receive both theoretical knowledge and hands-on experience to effectively apply digital marketing strategies.
How to Learn Digital Marketing?
Learning digital marketing comprises three stages: (1) understanding theory, (2) hands-on practice and skill development, and (3) knowledge updates and continuous trend tracking. Let’s explore the above-mentioned stages more closely to give you a detailed overview of what the learning path may look like.
1. Understanding Theory
To learn digital marketing effectively, start by familiarizing yourself with its fundamental concepts and strategies. A great way to begin is by exploring online courses, blogs, and YouTube tutorials that cover key topics such as social media marketing, search engine optimization (SEO), content marketing, email marketing, and pay-per-click advertising (PPC).
Platforms like Coursera, Udemy, HubSpot Academy, and Google Digital Garage offer comprehensive courses ranging from beginner to advanced levels, often with certifications that add credibility to your skillset.
2. Hands-on Practice
Once you grasp the basics, practice is crucial to deepen your understanding. Apply what you learn by creating your own website, blog, or social media channels to experiment with different techniques. Use free tools like Google Analytics, Canva, Landingi and MailChimp to develop skills in analyzing web traffic, creating visual content, building landing pages and performing email marketing campagins, respectively. Many platforms, like Facebook Ads Manager or Google Ads, offer free tools to create and test advertising campaigns, allowing hands-on experience in real-world scenarios.
3. Knowledge Updates and Continous Trend Tracking
Lastly, staying updated and networking with professionals in the industry are key to growing your expertise. Subscribe to leading digital marketing blogs such as Moz, Neil Patel, and Search Engine Journal to keep up with trends and algorithm changes.
Join online communities like LinkedIn groups, marketing forums, or attend webinars and workshops to exchange knowledge and best practices with peers. Regularly refining your skills and learning from industry experts will help you stay on top of digital marketing’s ever-evolving landscape.
You can go through the whole learning path by studying various materials like online courses, e-books, interactive workshops, webinars, blog articles, case studies, discussion forums and communities, exercises, newsletters, mentorship programs, and video tutorials.
Why You Should Start Digital Marketing Course?
Starting a digital marketing course is a vital step for acquiring skills and knowledge and staying up-to-date with industry best practices. The digital marketing landscape evolves rapidly, and yesterday’s “dos” are today’s “don’ts”. Success factors and strategies change all the time. Digital marketers benefit from learning new trends and how to manage their consequences effectively. Online courses are a great way to do this, as they are regularly updated.
The most significant gains can be achieved by marketers specialized in optimization for search engines, paid advertising and AI automation, as these domains are under ongoing evolution. The more you know (and can), the more outstanding the outcomes of your marketing efforts will be.
6 Top Digital Marketing Courses
Digital marketing involves learning through various courses, each one dedicated to a specific scope like marketing analytics, social media marketing, e-mail campaigns, content creation (and strategy), graphic design, and more. Explore the most prominent courses, which – if learned thoroughly one by one – can make you an expert in the digital marketing field. I selected courses, which can give you a big picture and field-specific knowledge for various digital marketing branches as well. Dive in and remember: learning is vital for digital marketing success.
1. Google Digital Marketing & E-commerce Professional Certificate by Coursera
The Google Digital Marketing & E-commerce Professional Certificate on Coursera is designed to provide practical skills and knowledge in digital marketing and e-commerce. Created by Google, this comprehensive course covers foundational marketing concepts and equips learners with practical experience in online marketing strategies, content creation, advertising, analytics, and building an e-commerce store.
What you’ll learn:
- how to design and manage digital marketing campaigns,
- implementing SEO and SEM strategies to improve online visibility,
- using email marketing to reach and engage customers,
- measuring and analyzing marketing performance with Google Analytics,
- building, launching, and optimizing e-commerce websites,
- understanding online customer behavior and trends.
Difficulty: 5/10
Certificate: Yes
Pricing: Free
2. Email Marketing Course by HubSpot Academy
The Email Marketing Course by HubSpot Academy is a comprehensive online program designed to help marketers, business owners, and digital enthusiasts master the art of email marketing. The course covers the essentials of creating effective email campaigns, growing subscriber lists, and engaging audiences. With a focus on both strategy and execution, it enables learners to develop email marketing skills that drive conversions and enhance customer relationships.
What you’ll learn:
- building and growing an engaged email subscriber list,
- crafting compelling email content that resonates with different audiences,
- designing effective email campaigns that drive conversions,
- understanding email analytics to measure and optimize performance,
- implementing best practices for email deliverability and compliance,
- personalization and segmentation techniques for targeted messaging,
- developing a sustainable email marketing strategy aligned with business goals.
Difficulty: 6/10
Certificate: Yes
Pricing: Free
3. Professional Diploma in Social Media Marketing by Digital Marketing Institute
The Professional Diploma in Social Media Marketing by the Digital Marketing Institute (DMI) is an in-depth online program designed to help learners master the fundamentals and advanced techniques of social media marketing. This course is aimed at marketing professionals, business owners, and individuals looking to develop their skills in social media strategy, content creation, and audience engagement. The course provides a blend of theoretical understanding and practical insights into the dynamic world of social media.
What you’ll learn:
- Developing and implementing a comprehensive social media marketing strategy
- Creating compelling social content tailored for different platforms
- Understanding and leveraging the power of social media advertising
- Analyzing and optimizing social media campaigns using analytics and data
- Managing community engagement and building brand loyalty through social channels
- Using storytelling and visual content to maximize reach and impact
- Developing social commerce tactics to drive business goals
Difficulty: 5/10
Certificate: Yes
Pricing: $1200-1500
4. Technical SEO Certification by Blue Array
The Technical SEO Certification by Blue Array Academy is a specialized online course designed to provide in-depth skills and knowledge in the area of technical search engine optimization (SEO). Created by experts at Blue Array, the course focuses on technical aspects of SEO to help learners improve website performance, search engine visibility, and the overall user experience. While you probably already know the basics of SEO or pick them up from other courses, this course will give you a really deep understanding of the subject and concrete skills.
What you’ll learn:
- understanding the fundamentals of technical SEO and how it impacts search engine rankings,
- crawling and indexing best practices to improve search engine accessibility,
- site structure, internal linking, and URL optimization for better search visibility,
- mobile SEO and site speed optimization for enhanced user experience,
- schema markup and structured data to improve search engine understanding,
- using technical SEO tools for auditing and monitoring website performance,
- identifying and fixing common technical SEO issues.
Difficulty: 8/10
Certificate: Yes
Pricing: Free
5. ChatGPT for Marketing: Content, Social Media, PR & Emails by Udemy
The “ChatGPT for Marketing: Content, Social Media, PR & Emails” course on Udemy is designed to help marketers, business owners, and content creators harness the power of AI for their marketing needs. The course teaches how to use ChatGPT, an advanced AI language model, to streamline content creation, social media strategies, PR, and email marketing. With practical examples and exercises, participants can learn how to effectively leverage AI for crafting compelling marketing messages.
What you’ll learn:
- using ChatGPT to generate and refine marketing content,
- creating social media posts and strategies that engage audiences,
- writing press releases and public relations materials using AI,
- Crafting personalized and effective email marketing campaigns
- understanding how to prompt ChatGPT for optimal results,
- applying AI-driven techniques to boost creativity and productivity in content creation.
Difficulty: 4/10
Certificate: Yes.
Pricing: $54.99.
6. Landing Page Academy by Landingi
The Landing Page Academy by Landingi is an online course aimed at teaching participants how to design, build, and optimize high-converting landing pages. It focuses on practical skills to help marketers, business owners, and digital enthusiasts enhance their landing page performance. The course provides expert insights, best practices, and real-world examples to ensure learners can create effective landing pages for their marketing needs.
What you’ll learn:
- designing landing pages that align with business goals,
- crafting compelling headlines, CTAs, and copy to boost conversions,
- applying design principles to enhance UX and visual appeal,
- A/B testing to identify the most effective variants,
- using lead generation techniques to capture more prospects,
- analyzing landing page data to optimize for better results.
Difficulty: 4/10
Certificate: Yes
Pricing: Free
What is the Best Digital Marketing Course with Certification?
The best digital marketing course with certification is “Post Graduate Program in Digital Marketing” by Purdue University due to its comprehensive curriculum, expert-led instruction, and focus on real-world application. The course takes 32 weeks and costs $3000, but it’s a real online alternative for at least postgraduate studies in digital marketing. Its crucial advantages are as follows:
- university background and industry recognition – it’s offered by Purdue University, one of the top-ranked educational institutions in United States, which adds credibility and value to the certification;
- comprehensive, hands-on learning – the course combines theoretical knowledge with practical exercises, allowing participants to work on live projects, case studies, and simulations that mirror real-world scenarios;
- expert-led instruction and mentorship – the program provides access to top industry practitioners and thought leaders, who bring their experience into the classroom through webinars, Q&A sessions, and mentorship;
- career-focused approach – with a strong focus on career growth, the course includes a capstone project, career guidance, and support in building a portfolio to showcase skills to potential employers;
- flexible learning with a structured bootcamp model – the course follows a flexible bootcamp model, allowing participants to learn at their own pace while ensuring they stay on track with a structured schedule;
- globally recognized certification – upon completion, learners earn a Digital Marketing Certification from Purdue University, which is recognized and respected globally, adding significant value to their resume and opening up career opportunities in digital marketing.
What is the Best Free Digital Marketing Course with Certification?
The best free digital marketing course with certification included is the “Free Digital Marketing Basics Course”. It is a top-rated course that covers critical elements like search engine optimization, social media strategies, and digital advertising basics. It is recommended by online education review sites like CourseDuck and Elearning Industry as one standing out for its easy-to-follow format and actionable advice, ideal for beginners who are exploring the fundamentals of digital marketing. The certification awarded upon completion provides an excellent boost for anyone wanting to showcase their newly acquired skills to potential employers.
What is the Best Cheap Digital Marketing Course with Certification?
The “Professional Certificate in Digital Marketing + Professional Certified Marketer from American Marketing Association” is the best cheap digital marketing course with certification because it combines a globally recognized digital marketing certification with a respected credential from the AMA, providing double value. The course covers a comprehensive range of digital marketing topics like SEO, content marketing, and social media, making it suitable for various career levels and skill sets. Additionally, its cost-effectiveness and structured curriculum offer an affordable way to gain both practical skills and an industry-recognized certification that can boost career opportunities.
The course costs $1250, which is about five times less than similar versatile courses offered by Harvard and Purdue universities.
What is the Best Paid Digital Marketing Course with Certification?
The best paid digital marketing course is the course entitled “Digital Marketing Strategy: Data-Driven Strategies for a Modern Marketing Era” offered by Harvard University, as – apart from notable teachers and institutional prestige – it comprehensively prepares students to work effectively in real digital marketing companies, from the strategy creation stage, through effective managing different marketing fields, tools and tactics, to measuring, reporting and optimizing with data-driven frameworks.
What is the Best Digital Marketing Course for Creating Landing Pages?
The best digital marketing course for creating Landing Pages is, once again, Landing Page Academy Course, which is prepared by experts and covers not only the theory but also the technical and marketing aspects of the issue. From this course you’ll learn:
- how to build professional and stunning landing pages,
- how to properly structure it,
- what elements they should consist of (and why),
- and how to make them a vital part of real digital marketing campaigns to collect leads and conversions.
Is Digital Marketing Hard to Learn?
Digital marketing is not necessarily hard to learn, but it can be challenging due to its broad scope and constantly evolving nature. Social media campaigns drastically differ from SEO campaigns, while the content strategies of the pre-ChatGPT era have nothing in common with the current content strategies dominating in the era of constantly expanding machine learning and artificial intelligence.
Additional difficulty is linked to the transition from theory to practice (besides, this is why the job postings for digital marketing specialists often determine the required experience level…). Testing campaigns, analyzing results, and iterating based on performance are critical for understanding how digital marketing works in real-world situations. This trial-and-error approach may be daunting for some, but it is necessary for mastering the skills.
What are the Limitations of Digital Marketing Course?
Limitations of digital marketing courses are related to the rapid evolution of marketing platforms, limited hands-on practice with new tools, and the lack of team access for collaborative learning experiences.
While digital marketing courses provide valuable knowledge, they often focus on broad concepts and may not provide in-depth practical experience with the newest tools that are constantly emerging (and widely used, as well) in the market.
Additionally, online courses can vary in quality and may not always include updated industry insights or emerging trends, meaning learners could potentially miss out on learning cutting-edge techniques. This makes it essential for marketers to supplement courses with real-world experience and continuous learning through other sources.
Last limitation is the lack of team access or collaborative learning. Many online courses are designed for individual learning and do not provide opportunities to practice teamwork skills, which are essential when working in marketing departments or agencies where strategies are developed collectively. Without feedback from a team or access to current industry scenarios, learners may miss out on understanding the practical challenges of implementing strategies.
Learn Digital Marketing with Landingi Courses and Blog
As you saw, digital marketing learning focuses on online strategies and technologies for effective managing fields like SEO, social media, paid advertising and so on.
Among these things are also landing pages, which are often the final point of user journeys, where conversion takes place. You can learn how to build outstanding pages and make them powerful conversion machines from our free Landing Page Academy Course. Complete it together with other courses indicated in this post and become a digital marketing expert in a few months (at the latest)!
In the meantime, you can always dive into details or grasp some of the newest digital marketing knowledge from our blog.
Finally, once you feel ready to start your own digital marketing journey or get serious about it, try out our digital marketing platform and take your first steps in practice – currently at no cost!
