Marketing certifications are meant to give the recipient deeper subject knowledge and enhanced credibility. But, with so many options available, how can inbound marketers select the one that will best help? This survey of useful marketing certifications is a starting point.
As Uber's Chris Messina noted, "These days, you’ve gotta be a real polymath to get ahead; you’ve got to be a full-stack employee." Certifications are one way to indicate you have the skills and interest to get the job, earn the promotion, or land the client.
Full stack employees have an insatiable appetite for new ideas, best practices, and ways to be more productive and happy. — "The full-stack employee," 2015
There are two main certifications from Google. To become AdWords certified a user must take the Google Adwords Fundamentals exam plus one in search, display, shopping or video advertising. The Google Analytics exam is focuses on data analytics and related 
best practices. Hands-on experience is recommended, for both, but not required. Review the study materials and take the exams for free.
Bing similarly offers a Big Ads Certification free to active Bing Ad users.
Hootsuite
Social media managers and strategists may want to purse the HootSuite certification. Signing up for HootSuite University and the exam costs $21 USD per month. The certification never expires once the exam is passed.
HubSpot
The first certification for an Inbound Marketer is free and open to the public. The Inbound Certification from the Hubspot Academy covers the basics of inbound methodology, optimizing websites and landing pages and even gives a glimpse into the sales side.
The HubSpot Certification is the next tier up, and is free to HubSpot members. This training revisits what was learned in getting the inbound certification, but offers best practices and technical skills using the HubSpot software. There is both a test and a practicum (using your HubSpot communications) to pass before being fully certified.
HubSpot further offers Inbound Sales, Email Marketing, or HubSpot Design certification to individuals, free and open to the public. A HubSpot customer can also pursue the Contextual Marketing Certification while the remaining two Academy offerings are agency focused.
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Understanding programming basics can also help. Codeacademy offers free and interactive tutorials. Writers might consider the Content Marketing Institute’s quarterly Content Marketing University. This online class series can be done at the marketer's own pace, although the ($995) price tag may be prohibitive for some. Another great place to look is Generalassemb.ly's digital marketing course, which is taught on-location and in-person. General Assembly has made it's debut in the field of web development and coding, but the General Assembly system works great for digital marketing as well.
Image source: Fractl
Fractl in May 2016, examined 3,300 job listings on indeed.com that included the phrase “content marketing” to find that experience is valued more highly than education. Getting certified can help demonstrate commitment and competence. We hope this survey of useful marketing certifications helps drive success in today’s modern marketing world.
Here are a summary of some great certifications to enhance your marketing skillset:
Related reading: How to Become an Inbound Marketer
Sources:
Carlisle, A. (2016, July 11). What 3,000+ Job Postings Taught Us About Today's Content Marketers. https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/modern-content-marketer
Fractl. (n.d.) Today’s Content Marketer: What Over 3,000 indeed.com Postings Can Teach Us About the Hybrid Content Marketer. https://www.frac.tl/research/hybridcontentmarketer
HubSpot Academy Certifications. (n.d.). https://app.hubspot.com/academy-certification/281355/
Messina, C. (2015). The Full Stack Employee. https://medium.com/chris-messina/the-full-stack-employee-ed0db089f0a1#.dbo3lqgi4
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