By Darian Kovacs, Founder, Jelly Digital Marketing & PR
Digital marketing is evolving quickly to become a coveted career-choice for many. Yet, while the interest in roles is certainly there, a recent Canada-wide survey, conducted by Jelly Academy, demonstrates the extent of the skills gap in the industry.
The survey was conducted by gathering insights from hiring professionals in industries such as marketing, service-based businesses, healthcare, hospitality, education, across Canada. And one of the most prominent findings was from those respondents who found digital ads management to be the most difficult role to fill, while also being the most important role to hire for.
The role of rapid reskilling
That difficulty is most likely due to a lack of training within this sector of marketing, as 23.2% of respondents found digital ads management to be a key skill missing from resumes. To address this skills gap, we need to find ways to make digital training more readily available and build awareness about the existing programs and organizations that provide it. As a new wave of marketers enter the industry it is crucial that they have the skills and education that is expected from employers to land jobs and thrive in their roles.
This is where rapid reskilling comes in. This is the process of gaining new, or different, skills to change a current role in quickfire time. It’s ideal for both working professionals who are looking to make pivots or move forward in their career, and for post-secondary students who can’t take on much more in terms of course-load.
It’s the type of training that’s beneficial for digital marketing professionals who can cross-train in different skill sectors in order to fill a gap many companies are looking to fill. Combined with traditional post-secondary education, rapid reskilling through micro-credentials offers a solid foundation and wide breadth of knowledge for students. It can really help people to amplify and hone in on specific skills that apply directly to their roles, such as developing campaigns and strategies, and monitoring results with commonly used tools.
Bridging the skills gap
Following ads management skills, Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and social media were identified as the most important skills that respondents are looking for in new hires with 15.16% noting social media and 12.4% SEO. Within these particular sectors of digital marketing, most post-secondary courses cover the subject matter in a very broad sense but in reality, these are the types of skills that need more specific training using industry-accepted platforms and tools.
On top of this, rapid reskilling training is a viable way to bridge the skills gap in digital marketing by quickly training professionals with the in-depth knowledge to either land a new job or amplify their existing role. It’s also beneficial to in-house marketing teams looking to increase morale and simplify the process of hiring additional professionals.
For ads management specifically, it is important to find reskilling courses that use the most prevalent tools today such as Facebook Blueprint, cover a full scope of digital marketing, and dive deep into ads management training.
As the industry continues to grow, it is important that the professionals striving to advance their individual careers are equipped with the training required to fill the gaps. The time is now, more than ever, for rapid reskilling courses to play a large role in addressing both the current skills gap and minimizing future gaps by keeping digital marketers certified and prepared.
Read The Digital Marketing Skills Gap in Canada Survey results.
Jelly Digital Marketing & PR is a member of the Institute of Canadian Agencies. Report on Marketing is where leading Canadian agencies showcase their insights, cutting-edge research and client successes. The Report on Marketing provides a valuable source of thought leadership for Canadian marketers to draw inspiration from. Find more articles like this at the Report on Marketing.
