Busy entrepreneurs have a lot on their plates. Whether they're just starting out or are part of a growing business, an entrepreneur faces the challenge of how to grow their business while simultaneously trying to master a variety of business disciplines.
Take for example a dentist. His expertise and lifetime training is in oral health. He is opening a new office and realizes he'd never taken a business class throughout his schooling. Now what?
This is a common problem for entrepreneurs. The realization that accounting, sales, marketing, HR, and facility management have fallen into their laps, along with their core competency, can be overwhelming.
Take a deep breath.
The good news? These tasks aren't as daunting as they may appear. Business owners can get up to speed quickly and confidently thanks to the arrival of robust, high-quality online training, particularly in marketing.
In the digital marketing world, things change FAST. It's important for entrepreneurs to stay on top of cutting-edge applications and tools to keep their businesses competitive.
Ready to Become a Marketing Master?
The following resources provide both free and paid courses, as well as educational material, to get up and running with the latest in marketing. Whether perusing a blog post, or taking a full on course, check out each site to understand more about today's marketing landscape.
HubSpot is the leading inbound marketing & customer relationship management (CRM) tool, and it freely provides a treasure trove of training. Take classes on every aspect of inbound marketing including:
| Social Media |
Content Creation |
Blogging |
| Email Marketing |
Permission Marketing |
Website Optimization |
HubSpot Academy’s free Inbound Certification Course features twelve classes that span the four stages of the Inbound Marketing Methodology. Video, combined with downloadable presentations you can refer back to, makes this accessible Academy one of the best. Look for downloadable templates, checklists, and worksheets you can easily customize and put to use.
Digital Marketer manages to combine the nuts and bolts of digital marketing with current tips and best practices. The classes are organized by specific marketing tasks such as email, content creation, and SEO. Using in-depth videos, combined with quizzes and downloadable materials, Digital Marketer's classes are designed to benefit the entire team.
Additionally, the ability to pick and choose which classes are available for each staff member means you can focus on improving weak spots in your knowledge base. If you are new to email marketing and have an upcoming campaign that depends on a successful email blast, start with the email marketing certification course.
LinkedIn Learning claims to be revolutionary and it kind of is. From basic excel formatting to growth hacking, these classes are incredibly focused on specific tasks marketers need help with. If you are looking to get up to speed quickly, spend some time researching options on LinkedIn Learning.
The classes are taught by experts. After a free month, a nominal monthly subscription is required. However, LinkedIn Learning's innovative ability to recommend classes based on your industry (that you may not even recognize you need) makes it a winning online training tool.
Warning. Quora is majorly addictive.
And while it is not online training per se, there is a lot to learn on this quirky and informative website. For quick and expert answers to specific questions pertaining to marketing (and really anything else), consider turning to Quora.
If conquering digital marketing is your goal, you can't ignore the presence of Google. Google offers a few options for online training. Their Digital Marketing course is self-guided training that covers every aspect of advertising on Google including "Google My Business," video, display, and search advertising.
The goal is to get new adopters to AdWords up to speed on the basics in preparation for their second online training offering, Google AdWords Certification.
This certification is achieved by passing two exams. Once completed, users receive a personal certificate showcasing the achievement. The bottom line is that given the strength and depth of Google across the digital marketing world, keeping up to date with AdWords and earning this certification is a valuable tool in any marketer's toolbox.
This video-based training was developed by Constant Contact, a leader in email marketing, particularly for entrepreneurs and small to medium businesses.
Constant Contact recognized that their customers needed to fully understand and embrace combining social media and email for best results. To ensure their customers can achieve success and drive interest in their products, they created free webinars specifically designed to provide fast training on best practices for email and social media. For busy entrepreneurs, that want to get up to speed quickly, this is an ideal resource.
Alison was designed and created to provide education and training to help people around the world enhance their workplace skills. Alison offers hundreds of courses in more than ten languages. Revenue is generated through advertising and other partnerships, which allows it to provide free training to users. Search capabilities allow users to search for incredibly specific training such as, "Understanding Google Analytics" or "Market Segmentation".
Our final suggestion includes our own services. We are focused on providing excellent advice, specific task oriented suggestions, and timely updates on changes in the digital marketing world via our blog. In a world exploding with opinions, misinformation, and content overload, finding an expert marketing company you can rely on is an option you shouldn't overlook.
Check out our resources page for valuable marketing tools you can put to work immediately.
It's time to put your thinking cap on...
Ongoing education doesn't have to be expensive or time-consuming. Take a look at the resources above and pick the best fit for your business goals. There are all kinds of resources available, from building online courses to building the best Facebook ads. Whatever your goal is, you can find a resource from an expert that will help you compress time and master the task.
By investing in an education in marketing, you'll learn the tools and tricks of the trade required to take your company to the next level.
