Foundations of Digital Marketing Strategy #255001

Upon successful completion of this course, participants will be able to:

• Define the core components of the digital marketing landscape and how they work together in an integrated strategy.

• Develop a customer persona and map the digital customer journey to identify key touchpoints.

• Build a structured digital marketing plan with clear goals, KPIs, and a budget.

• Understand and apply the fundamentals of key channels: Search Engine Optimization (SEO), Pay-Per-Click (PPC) advertising, social media marketing, and email marketing.

• Create compelling content that resonates with a target audience and drives action.

• Measure campaign performance using key metrics and analytics tools to report on ROI and optimize future efforts.

This course is ideal for anyone responsible for or interested in the marketing, growth, or online presence of a business or brand:

• Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs

• Marketing Managers or Coordinators new to the digital space

• Career Changers or Graduates seeking entry into the marketing field

• Bloggers, Creators, and Freelancers looking to grow their audience

• Specialists (e.g., designers, writers) who need a broader strategic understanding

• Non-Profit Communications Staff

• Pre-assessment
• Live group instruction
• Use of real-world examples, case studies and exercises
• Interactive participation and discussion
• Power point presentation, LCD and flip chart
• Group activities and tests
• Each participant receives a binder containing a copy of the presentation
• slides and handouts
• Post-assessment

Day 1: The Cornerstones of Digital Strategy

• Morning Session: The Digital Marketing Framework

  • Introduction to the Digital Ecosystem: Owned, Earned, and Paid Media.

  • The Strategic Funnel: Awareness, Consideration, Conversion, Loyalty.

  • Setting SMART Goals for Digital Marketing.

• Afternoon Session: Knowing Your Audience

  • Building Detailed Buyer Personas.

  • Mapping the Customer Journey (Awareness to Advocacy).

  • Workshop: Create a buyer persona and journey map for a sample business.

Day 2: Being Found: Search Marketing (SEO & SEM)

• Morning Session: Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

  • How Search Engines Work: Crawling, Indexing, and Ranking.

  • On-Page SEO: Keywords, content, title tags, and meta descriptions.

  • Off-Page SEO: The role of backlinks and authority.

• Afternoon Session: Search Engine Marketing (SEM) / PPC

  • Introduction to Google Ads: How the auction works.

  • Structuring a Campaign: Keywords, ad groups, and ad copy.

  • Practical Exercise: Craft a simple Google Ads search campaign for a product or service.

Day 3: Content & Social Media Marketing

• Morning Session: Content is King: Strategy & Creation

  • The Role of Content in the Marketing Funnel.

  • Developing a Content Strategy: Blog posts, videos, infographics, podcasts.

  • The Basics of Copywriting for the Web.

• Afternoon Session: Social Media Marketing

  • Choosing the Right Platforms: Where does your audience live?

  • Organic vs. Paid Social Strategy.

  • Creating a Content Calendar and Engagement Plan.

  • Workshop: Brainstorm a month’s worth of content ideas for a social media platform.

Day 4: Nurturing & Converting: Email and Landing Pages

• Morning Session: Email Marketing Mastery

  • Building and Growing an Email List (Legally and Effectively).

  • Crafting Effective Email Campaigns: Welcome series, newsletters, promotions.

  • Measuring Email Success: Open rates, click-through rates, conversion rates.

• Afternoon Session: Conversion Rate Optimization (CRO)

  • Designing Effective Landing Pages that convert.

  • The Power of A/B Testing headlines, images, and calls-to-action (CTAs).

  • Exercise: Critique and redesign a poorly performing landing page.

Day 5: Analytics, Budgeting & Capstone

• Morning Session: Measuring What Matters

  • Introduction to Google Analytics 4 (GA4): Key reports and metrics.

  • Tracking Goals and Attributing Conversions.

  • Calculating Return on Investment (ROI) and Return on Ad Spend (ROAS).

• Afternoon Session: Capstone: Build Your Strategy

  • Final Project: Participants work on building a complete digital marketing plan for a real or hypothetical business, incorporating all elements from the week.

  • Presentation: Groups present their strategy highlights and receive feedback.

  • Course Recap: Key takeaways and resources for continued learning.

  • Q&A and Adjourn.