10 Best Online Digital Marketing Courses & Training

Before you move ahead to go through the list of the best online digital marketing courses, a more pertinent question that you need to answer is —

How would you like to learn digital marketing?

We ask this question because there are numerous ways of learning digital marketing and no one is better than the other. It all depends on the objective. So let us first lay out the prominent ways of learning digital marketing.

 

Now the question arises, if there are free digital marketing courses and certifications, why should anyone go for paid online digital marketing courses at all?

The answer to that question is pretty straight forward. In a structured online digital marketing training program, not only learners will get practical experience but also the level of motivation required to complete the course isn’t that high. (Remember that only a fraction of coursera enrolments finish up their course and the biggest reason for dropout is attributed to lack of motivation)

We hope you’ve made up your mind by now about how you would want to learn the ropes of digital marketing and we bet that if you are still with us, it would be the first option. Below is a list of the 10 best online digital marketing courses and training programs that are handpicked by our pool of 20+ digital marketing experts.

Being one of the most comprehensive digital marketing courses on Udemy [and perhaps the best selling course as well], it is enrolled by more than 300 thousands students. That’s HUGE!

It comprises of neatly designed 12 modules covering different aspects of digital marketing starting from creating your own website to social media marketing, Search Engine Marketing to paid ads to mobile app marketing. Modules covered are –

 

Key USPs

Reviews by student:

Take the time to go through the entire course, it’s so worth it! An amazing course covers everything you need to enter the Digital Marketing field. I took this course as a supplement for my college classes because I felt school was going to damn slow. After completing the course I feel like I’m miles ahead of my class. Great course, totally recommend.

Digital Marketing Specialist offering by Simplilearn is an advanced Digital Marketing Training program that is equivalent to a masters. And true to its name, it actually prepares students on advanced concepts (including the basics) that will help join any company with great confidence.

The first thing that you notice about this digital marketing training program is that it is a combination of 8 different courses and each course in itself is a complete unit that prepares learners on specific skills.

Courses covered under this super specialization are –

 

Key USPs

Reviews by student:

Simplilearn has been an integral part of my learning for the past 1 year. I owe it greatly to Simplilearn to impart in me the knowledge and skills in Sales and Marketing. I have recommended this program to my friends and am considering enrolling my kids in the coding program during the summer.

If you click on the above link, you will notice that there is not one course that we are recommending but the entire bouquet of online digital marketing courses that LinkedIn (Lynda earlier) has to offer. And it is done on purpose for one can choose what he/she wants to learn.

If one sift through the options, not only one would find courses on major topics like SEO, Paid Ads but also on smaller ones like Online Video Content Strategy, Digital Marketing Trends or GDPR for Marketers.

Key USPs

Note: Since most of the courses are of short duration, completion might not result into skill building.

If there is an online course (and that too in marketing) from Wharton, then one can expect that something would be different and this digital marketing professional certificate program doesn’t disappoint on that by any measure.

While other online digital marketing courses focus more on actual execution and trains you for executional roles, this program takes a more business oriented approach which is reflected in its curriculum as well.

Divided across 4 different courses, the certificate program is a good match for those who are at CXO level (or upper management) and wants to look at digital to further the business growth. 4 courses are –

 

Key USPs

The best part about digital marketing specialization by University of Illinois is that it forms a part of its online MBA program i.e. if you get admitted to the MBA program then the courses under this specialization count towards the MBA degree.

But not many would be interested in the MBA degree program so let’s evaluate the specialization based on its own merit. And the biggest point going for this specialization is that one of its courses (Marketing in a Digital World) was rated as one of the top 50 MOOCs of all time.

Divided across 7 different courses, the specialization starts off with how marketing in the digital world is changing and provides tools to navigate through this change; then moves on to digital analytics (theoretical base along with practical exercises) and digital marketing strategies. The specialization finally takes the learners to the realization that though digital has taken over but we as the human race still live in an analog world and any marketer needs to marry analog with digital. Capstone project rounds up the specialization. 7 different courses are —-

Key USPs

Reviews by student:

Gaining new knowledge and skills through Coursera helped me break out of the mold I’d been in for over a decade. Coursera helped open doors for me.

Though Udemy courses tend to be short in duration, this Digital Marketing Masterclass is an exception to that rule. And that’s what makes it one of the most comprehensive digital marketing courses one would find online.

Spread across 320+ lectures covering all the facets of digital marketing, this one goes quite in depth and enables learners to get practical experience. The good part is that each module intends to build an individual skill for example Website module will enable to create your own wordpress website.

Topics Covered: Website creation, Email marketing, Social Media Marketing (different modules for each social media platform), SEO, Paid Ads, Quora, LinkedIn, Analytics

Key USPs

Reviews by student:

I have been through most of the course. There is some great information in here. Some of it is really helpful. Because it is a long course there are going to be bits you might not need. But overall a really big help especially for the cost. Many thanks

As the name suggests, this digital marketing course from Kellogg School of Management focuses more on the strategies rather than the execution. In-fact if one goes through the course page, it is clearly written that the course is intended for someone who manages a marketing team and hence provides a strategic perspective on digital marketing.

Taught by acclaimed Prof. Mohanbir Sawhney, the course is neatly broken down into 5 learning steps –

Key USPs

Reviews by student:

I thought the course videos were fantastic. I’m impressed by the availability via office hours of
the program leaders. The course gave me a great foundation for further learning and research,
and also gave me very valuable insights regarding the organizing principles necessary to
execute better marketing at scale.

After reviewing so many online courses if there is one thing we have come to realize is that no list is complete without a Udacity offering. So how could the list of the best online digital marketing courses be?

Designed in collaboration with big names like Google, Facebook Blueprint, Mailchimp, Hubspot, Hootsuite and Moz, the nanodegree program is 3 months long with 10 hours/week effort required. The program is very well structured in 9 modules and has an element of application built into the curriculum. Modules are –

Key USPs

Reviews by student:

Going well. Very thorough lessons. Only suggestion is a QA process for the lesson plan videos and images. The Udacit content doesn’t always match the (ever-changing) UX/UI of the platforms we use to complete our projects.

When it comes to reliable independent players in digital marketing training, they are far and few. In-fact one would be able to count all of them on one hand only. But DigitalMarketingInstitute will be one of them.

Armed with an impressive Global Industry Advisory Council, who oversees the content, DMI has multiple courses on digital marketing catering to different needs. Their shortest one called Specialist is 5 hours long whereas their most extensive one runs for 2 years and is titled Certified Digital Marketing Masters.

Key USPs

10. Digital Marketing Masterclass – Get Your First 1000 Customers [Udemy]

One would wonder what this so called digital marketing masterclass has to offer that others don’t and yet makes the list of the best online digital marketing courses. So the answer is that this course is geared towards generating traffic and hence getting your first 1000 customers.

Therefore if you are a small website owner or a blogger and want to learn digital marketing to grow traffic, wouldn’t you want to take a course that addresses that specific pain point while still teaching all the nuances of digital marketing?

Created by Evan Kimbrell, who has been an ex-VC and ex-start-up founder, the course has more than 200 lectures and dives straight into the essentials building digital strategy and then getting down to bringing your first 10, 100, 500 and then 1000 customers.

Key USPs

Reviews by student:

Fantastic course and an amazing value! After having completed the course I feel much more confident about understanding tools and approaches for digital marketing. The explanations were very clear and examples very helpful. Excellent work!

That rounds up our list of the best online digital marketing courses. There is something for everyone. All you have to do is now choose as per your work experience and objectives. In case you are looking to do only SEO, then we’ve covered the best SEO courses online as well. Happy learning!