Udacity Digital Marketing Nanodegree Review
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Udacity Digital Marketing Nanodegree Review
The world of online learning is the perfect solution for those who have busy schedules and would rather work at their own pace.
If you’ve been thinking about a career change to digital marketing, or you simply wish to find out more about this subject area to enhance your current job role, a nanodegree in digital marketing could be the perfect solution.
A nanodegree is a course of study which can be completed in less than twelve months. The course is usually based on online tuition and resources rather than on attendance at a college or university.
Therefore, it’s ideal for those who work full-time, have family commitments, or simply prefer learning at their own pace without a tutor looking over their shoulder.
In this article, we’ll be reviewing Udacity’s Digital Marketing Nanodegree, outlining the course’s content, its instructors, vital details such as cost and duration, as well as the current job opportunities in digital marketing.
Interested in finding out whether or not the Udacity Digital Marketing Nanodegree is worth it?
Keep reading to find out more…
About Udacity’s Digital Marketing Nanodegree
Udacity’s Digital Marketing Nanodegree is the perfect introduction to all things Digital Marketing.
On this course, you’ll learn how to utilize social media to amplify your message, make content discoverable in search engines, run ad campaigns, and advertise on platforms such as Facebook. You’ll also learn how display and video ads work, how to market using email, and how to measure and optimize your campaigns with Google Analytics.
The course takes around 3 months to complete if you put in about 10 hours a week, and no previous experience is required before enrolling. All of Udacity’s courses contain real-world projects from industry experts, technical mentor support, career services, and flexible learning.
Meet the Instructors
The Digital Marketing Nanodegree is taught by real-life professionals who will mentor you and guide you through the course.
Anke Audenaert – Instructor
Anke not only has a big role in teaching the course, but she was also responsible for leading the development of Udacity’s Digital Marketing programs.
She has a lot of experience in the industry, having previously run Yahoo’s Market Research department and co-founded two marketing companies.
Anke is also on the marketing faculty at UCLA Anderson, so she not only has the industry experience but has the academic background necessary to guide you through the course, too.
Daniel Kob – Instructor
Daniel is a Standford MBA as well as an innovative digital entrepreneur and creative visual storyteller.
Having worked in different roles across media, tech, and marketing in Europe and the US, he has the advantage of having worked in different areas of digital marketing as well as the experience of working in different countries which has broadened his worldview and helped him adopt various principles from different companies and industries around the globe.
Julia Aspinal – Instructor
Julia also has a varied background, having worked as a Digital Marketer but also as a front-end Engineer. She also has an abundance of teaching experience and is a former Teach for America teacher.
She has also worked in various marketing, product management, and web development roles at Scholastic, Udacity, and other companies, so like the other instructors, she has the benefit of years of experience under her belt and can share all of the industry knowledge with you.
What are the prerequisites?
You don’t need any prerequisites to enroll in Udacity’s Digital Marketing nanodegree, as it’s been designed to cover all of the fundamental elements of the subject.
However, it’s advised that all students have basic computer skills and are comfortable navigating online, as if you’re not too comfortable with this you’ll be faced with the additional challenge of finding your way around the course and web!
Course Breakdown (Modules)
The Digital Marketing nanodegree contains nine modules in total. Let’s take a look at what you can expect…
Marketing Fundamentals
This first module is designed to give you the foundational knowledge and framework necessary to complete the rest of the course and will also help you organize and plan your marketing approach.
In this module, you’ll be introduced to three companies that are featured throughout the Nanodegree program as examples of how to apply what you learn in both B2C and B2B contexts.
Content Strategy
Content is central to digital marketing, which is why Content Strategy is the second module in the program.
In this module, you’ll learn how to plan and organize your content, as well as how to create content for a specific target audience, and how to measure its impact.
Social Media Marketing
With over 50% of the world’s population active on social media, it’s understandable why having a strategy for social media is vital in digital marketing. In this module, you’ll become familiar with the main social media platforms, how to strengthen and manage your social media presence, and how to create effective content that’s optimized for each platform.
After all, each social media platform opens up a brand new opportunity to target a different demographic or utilize a different content form.
Social Media Advertising
Social media is a key channel for digital marketers, but it can also be pretty oversaturated, and ensuring your voice is heard is important. This is where paid social media advertisements come in.
In this module, you’ll learn about how to use social media advertising to target specific audiences and how to create and execute advertising campaigns that speak loud and clear to your audience and leave a lasting impression.
Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
While producing great content is one important aspect of Digital Marketing, good content means nothing unless you utilize SEO. How high up on a search engine your content appears, and how many clicks it generates all comes down to SEO. But where to start?
SEO can seem daunting at first, but this module will familiarize you with how SEO works, as well as how to optimize your search engine presence through on-site and off-site activities, how to develop your target keyword list so you tick all the right boxes, how to optimize your website user experience (UX) and design and execute a successful link-building campaign.
Search Engine Marketing with Google Ads
The previous module will prepare you for this next step – optimizing your visibility in search engines, which is an essential part of digital marketing because it influences how likely people are to click your content.
In this module, you’ll learn how to reinforce findability through Search Engine Marketing (SEM) so you can achieve your marketing objectives. You’ll also learn how to create, execute, and optimize an effective ad campaign using Google Ads to target your audience.
Display Advertising
Digital display advertising is graphic advertising on internet websites, apps, or social media through banners or other advertising formats and we’re all exposed to these numerous times a day.
Display advertising is a powerful marketing tool and is more important today than ever before as its strength has been reinforced by new platforms like mobile, new video opportunities, and enhanced targeting.
This module will teach you the mechanisms behind display advertising, how it is bought and sold (including in a programmatic environment), and how to set up your own successful display advertising campaign using Google Ads.
Email Marketing
Another effective marketing channel, email marketing is especially important at the conversion and retention stage of the customer journey.
This module will teach you how to formulate your own email marketing strategy, how to create and execute email campaigns, and how to measure the success of your campaigns.
Measure and Optimize with Google Analytics
Google Analytics is a key tool for digital marketers as it’s through this software that you can track the effectiveness of your digital marketing efforts and see what works – and what doesn’t.
In this final module, you’ll learn how Google Analytics works, as well as how to use it to evaluate your audience, measure the success of your campaign and engagement efforts, and translate your user’s conversions to your goals.
Through this, you will also be able to use those insights to plan and optimize your marketing budgets and strengthen future digital marketing campaigns and strategies.
How long does the course take?
By spending 10 hours a week on the course, you’ll complete the Digital Marketing Nanodegree within 3 months.
This is perfect for anyone who wants to spread their learning out across the week or even on the weekends.
The duration is also ideal for learners looking for a foundational course in Digital Marketing without enrolling in a university or college course that would take much longer to complete.
What is the cost?
Udacity bases the cost of the course on the amount of access you have, and they give you two payment options: pay-per-month or pay for three months – the average time taken to complete the course.
Which option you go for depends largely on the amount of time you have to do the course as well as your budget and how much you’re willing to spend.
With the pay-per-month option, you’ll be charged $359 a month, and you basically pay as you go for as long as you need access. This is a good option if you think you can finish the nanodegree in less than the recommended time.
The other option is Udacity’s deal where you pay for three months and enjoy 15% off the overall cost. This brings the monthly cost down to $309, which brings the total for three months to just over $900. The only drawback is this has to be paid upfront, however, if you take three months to complete the course it’ll save you money in the long run.
What have other learners said?
Udacity’s Digital Marketing Nanodegree has a lot of positive reviews from learners.
A lot of people praise how the course follows a natural progression making it ideal for complete beginners, and how it is also extremely relative to real-world activities. For example, one user said:
“I completed the Nanodegree program today, and couldn’t be happier. I didn’t know much about digital marketing before the program, but the projects have a natural progression that really helps you understand how you tie the target persona to the marketing objective, marketing channels, etc. You gain real-life experience with Facebook campaigns, AdWords, Google Analytics, MailChimp, to mention a few.”
Others had previous experience and felt the Digital Marketing Nanodegree filled in the gaps in their knowledge:
“I took several digital marketing courses before and worked as a marketing manager but always felt like I was missing technical knowledge, guidance, and overall understanding of digital marketing. Udacity’s Digital Marketing Nanodegree was exactly what I was looking for: simple, straight to the point, everyday approach to a space that is becoming more and more complicated. The classroom was always up to date, filled with practical examples, interactive, with personalized mentoring and projects that helped solidify what was taught in the classroom.”
Learners also praised the technical knowledge they gained and how the course prepared them for digital marketing roles:
“I highly recommend it to anyone interested in digital marketing! It helped me prepare for technical interviews and to an extent, it helped me get two job offers in the digital marketing space.”
That said, learners also noted that the course is intense, as you’re learning so much in such a short space of time. However, they also add that this effort is definitely worth it:
“It’s not a walk in the park, you really have to put a lot of hours into it, but when you see the results of your Facebook or AdWords campaigns, it’s worth the effort!”
Finally, learners liked the mixture of content available and how it’s suitable for a wide range of learners.
“The classroom was intuitive and a pleasure to use. The content was a perfect mix of video, reading, and projects. The support resources like slack, the forum, and mentor were great.”
How is the job market?
The global digital marketing software market is huge, with a size valued at $43.8 billion in 2019.
With the rise of technology and Artificial Intelligence many other job markets are shrinking or changing, whereas the demand for digital marketers is only increasing.
For example, ‘digital marketing specialist’ made it onto the list of LinkedIn’s top 10 most in-demand jobs last year, with knowledge of SEO being one of the most desired skills.
The other most in-demand skills for digital marketers were knowledge of social media, content strategy, marketing channels, Google Analytics, and Google Ads – all areas covered in Udacity’s Digital Marketing Nanodegree.
According to research by Zip Recruiter, the demand for digital marketers is set to increase by 10% by the year 2026. As online markets skyrocket, companies are recognizing the value in ad campaigns, marketing channels, and social media to gain the exposure they need to ramp up their traffic.
If you’re looking for a career in digital marketing, the salaries are also pretty enticing; on average Digital Marketing Specialists can expect a salary around the $49,000 mark. Managers earn around $65,000 on average, whereas Directors can earn around $100,000.
It’s also important to recognize that this is a market where employees increase in value – and salaries rise – with the more experience they can offer and the more noteworthy ad campaigns they have under their belt.
Overall though, a career in digital marketing is one that offers never-ending possibilities because the market is so diverse: from Content Management to SEO Specialists, to User Experience (UX) Designers, and Analysts and AI specialists.
Jobs in digital marketing offer stability – as the demand is only going to increase – and the opportunity to earn a competitive salary.
Is this course for me?
If you’re looking for a course that will offer an in-depth yet encompassing knowledge of digital marketing, and you want to be able to learn at your own pace over the course of several months, Udacity’s Digital Marketing nanodegree is for you.
Offering the opportunity to engage in real-world projects and immersive content built in partnership with top-tier companies, you’ll be able to master the tech skills companies want, so you can translate your knowledge into the real job market.
You can also seek guidance and advice from Audacity’s knowledgeable mentors, who will guide your learning and answer all of your questions to help you remain motivated and focused.
You’ll also have access to resume support, Github portfolio review, and LinkedIn profile optimization to help you take the next steps in your career and land a high-paying role.
This course is ideal for those who have no prior knowledge or experience of digital marketing, and are looking for a career change, or for those who have some knowledge of the subject and want to fill in the gaps to help them in their current role.
The flexibility of online learning is suitable for anyone who has a busy schedule and wants to work at their own pace. It’s also a great way of compacting a lot of knowledge and material into a shorter space of time and is an intense but far more cost-effective alternative to university.
About the Author Jacob M.
Jacob has a background in finance and engineering. Outside of his day job, he is a lifelong learner, who enjoys reading, taking online courses, and writing about what he's learned.
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