We caught up with Digital Marketing Academy of Ireland graduate, Hazel Hill, to find out why she chose to study digital marketing and how the course has benefitted her.
Hazel was working as a digital marketing executive before starting the Postgraduate Diploma in Digital Marketing. “I had a lot of experience but I really wanted to apply the theory behind it and bring it to the next level, for myself and for the organisation I was working for,” recalls Hazel.
Finding the right course
Hazel was drawn to the home study option for her studies, “I wanted something that I would be able to do in my own time. I was a bit nervous doing something completely online, with no face-to-face contact, but I found the tutors really responsive. The feedback on all the different individual tasks was great.”
Looking back, Hazel believes she got as much tutor interaction online as she would have got in a classroom.
Benefits of the course
“What I found really useful was creating an entire digital marketing strategy from scratch,” says Hazel. “I was able to apply the digital marking plan that I did on the course to my job which was amazing.”
In her workplace, Hazel was being tasked with bringing their digital advertising to the next level. “It was really important for me to be able to show value for money, to be able to show effectiveness. I was able to create a really effective paid digital marketing campaign for my organisation and [we got] a really big return on investment. So that was fantastic.”
Having the option to complete the course over a few years was also a real bonus for Hazel. “I actually did the course a lot quicker than I first anticipated,” says Hazel. “But to know that I had those couple of years to do it really allowed me to focus on each assignment, on what I was learning. That made it lot more effective for me. I was not only able to digest the information but actually use it in a practical way.”
Doing this, Hazel says, allowed her to hone in on the areas of digital marketing that she particular enjoys. “I found out that I really enjoy writing web copy and I really enjoy looking at creative digital marketing strategies as a whole. So now I'm able to hone in on those because I had the time to really digest what I was learning.”
“I would say to anyone looking to do the course themselves, don’t speed through it just to have the piece of paper at the end. The skills you will learn will be really effective; they are very applicable to real-life jobs. So just take your time and digest all the information,” she says.
Developing her skills
Thrilled that she’s been able to bring her digital marketing skills to the next level, Hazel now has plans to develop the marketing activities in her workplace. “We're now looking at formulating a marketing team. So my next job will be to look at how to take what I've learned on board and to distribute that amongst my team.”
Hazel also has plans to develop her skills further. “The course gave me the base that I needed to be able to say ‘okay, what's the next thing that I want to focus on to really become an expert in my field?’.”
“I'm really excited to go out and see how I can apply this even more to my job,” says Hazel.
Inspired by Hazel’s story and looking to pursue your interest in digital marketing? View our full list of courses here.