Reading Daniel Flamberg’s “4 Secrets to Making the Perfect Digital Hire” reminded me why I love digital marketing so much. Digital’s ever-changing platforms, ideas, tactics, and technology make for exciting and challenging marketing.
In times before digital, someone who had done marketing in a particular category was pretty much up to speed within a few years. So much became about management, process, and steps. There were few changes happening that impacted how well you could effectively execute your category’s particular marketing strategy.
Not so with digital. Rest on your laurels and know-how in digital and you will wake up three months later way behind the marketing eight ball. Digital’s fast-pace insists on a constant education and flexibility in approach and technique. It keeps you on your toes. It is a lifelong learning process.
This ever-changing landscape also means that the learning curve is much shorter than in traditional marketing. I have spent just about three years in digital marketing and feel I can go toe-to-toe with anyone who has done digital marketing for more than a decade for the simple reason that much of what worked five-to-ten years ago in the digital world is now obsolete. To paraphrase another ’80s song, it truly is a “what have you done for me lately” industry.
What really stood out to me in David’s article was that it’s not enough to just be a digital marketing expert. In order to be on top of your digital marketing game, you need to be grounded in classical marketing. One without the other is not good enough any more.
If you’re a digital marketing maven with little to no traditional background, read up and learn the basics of what makes people tick in terms of marketing, advertising, and emotional connections. Otherwise you run the risk of being all new technology without the necessary psychological and historical underpinnings. And if you’re a traditional marketer, it’s time to go back to school. Be humble and start learning book-one-page-one digital marketing. You’ll be better for it.
