How Young Marketers Can Get Experience Without Experience

I frequently hear marketing majors struggling to find their first opportunity. It feels as though more young minds are pursuing higher education and internships every year. A simple, part-time role to learn and gain experience is very competitive. So, how does a marketing major take matters into their own hands? I've outlined some ideas...

Online Certs (Google, Hubspot, Facebook, Trailhead)

I have spoken about online certifications at nauseam. Why do I insist on sounding like a broken record? Online certs are still valuable, no matter how widely adopted they become.

Salesforce's "Trailhead" platform gives anyone who registers hands-on experience with their software, learning all of the in-demand skills that some of the largest brands in the world are developing. IoT? Email Marketing? Artificial Intelligence? All of that and more lives in their academy.

While Salesforce provides real-world experience with their software, other platforms such as Google Academy help introduce their software in the form of an online classroom. HubSpot Academy offers a wide variety of ideology and tips behind leading marketing skills. There are countless other online certifications that depending on the job you seek, can be helpful. When partaking in these courses, make sure to reflect on what you're learning and develop a unique perspective that you can chat with an interviewer about.

Manage Your Own Social Media on Free Hootsuite Tool

We all know that big brands are investing heavily into social media. But what about smaller businesses? Do they value social media skills? A 2018 Score study found that 77% of all small businesses in the United States have active social media accounts.

Rather than just relying on a certification, make your learning practical and visible. Did you know that you can create a free Hootsuite account and use their software to schedule up to 30 posts in advance? If you want to have some fun and learn how to use Hootsuite in the process, I recommend building up your personal social media accounts using this tool. If you really want to pull out all of the stops, convert your Instagram profile to a business account and use the "insights" section to optimize your scheduled posting times based on when your followers are most active. I guarantee that a hiring manager will remember you.

Attend User Groups (Salesforce, WordPress, etc.)

Business Insider estimates that 70% of open positions are filled through networking. That is MOST jobs! So how does a young professional grow their network outside of fellow college students? User groups. Some of the most common platforms used in marketing have user groups in virtually every city in the United States.

You do not need to be using these platforms to attend, they're open and free to all. At these events, people from small and large companies come together to learn and discuss the work that they're doing. Show up and be social! You never know who is in need of some help around their office. I've enjoyed meetups for WordPress (Website Management) and Salesforce (Customer Relationship Management)

Volunteer Locally (SMB's)

Everyone needs cash. After all, college is expensive. However, if you find yourself in a position where you can get by on a flexible part-time job, offer marketing assistance to a small business in your area, for free. Yes, I said the F-word. Nobody likes working for free, but it's a great way to get people to take a chance on you. It is amazing to see how much of a difference some helpful content, a mobile-friendly website and consistent/responsive social media accounts can generate for a small business in fierce local competition.

SMB owners rarely have the time or resources to get granular when it comes to marketing, show them that you can help. The best part about these opportunities? You can make them what you want. When you work with an SMB and establish trust, owners let you steer the (marketing) ship. I would argue that this exposure is sometimes better than a focused internship.

Grand Finale

All of these tips boil down to being humble and working hard. If you want people to take a chance on you, differentiate yourself. Make yourself stand out by showing that you are the type of person that does not rest on their laurels and finds outside-the-box ways to help.

Keys

• Online Certs (Google, Hubspot, Facebook, Trailhead)
• Manage Your Own SM on Free Hootsuite Tool
• Attend User Groups (Salesforce, WordPress, etc.)
• Volunteer Locally (SMB's)