I’m Caroline and since July 2019, I have been a Digital Marketing Apprentice for 360 Apprenticeships. But before I jump right in a tell you about my journey, I want to tell you why I became an apprentice.
In 2013 I attended Nottingham Trent University to complete a Graphic Design Degree. Unfortunately, I didn’t receive the grades I hoped for or find a job within my chosen career. After graduating, I moved back home to Manchester and had a number of jobs within retail and catering. Even though I did gain skills and confidence, the roles were not for me. I felt as if I wasn’t going anywhere and couldn’t progress. After thinking about it for several months I decided to apply for apprenticeships in Digital Marketing. I looked over several online job boards, signed up with recruitment agencies; and then started to apply. Now I’ve completed my Digital Marketing Apprenticeship, I want to tell my experience and why it was right for me.
Why I chose a Digital Marketing Apprenticeship
I have always been a creative person, so I knew that I wanted a career that could showcase my creativity. Graphic Design was my first love, but anything which had a creative would be perfect for me. In one of my previous jobs, I updated the businesses social media channels, promoted new products and communicated with the customers online. This helped me to decide what route I wanted to take; so I started to actively look for Digital Marketing roles. I looked at many different jobs and advertisements, until I applied for 360 Apprenticeships. Here I am almost 2 years later and still learning more about digital marketing everyday.
My daily tasks as a Digital Marketing Apprentice
Digital Marketing is an ongoing process and requires a lot of time each day to each task. There is a whole world behind the pretty pictures and functioning website; So I want to show just some examples of my daily tasks as a Digital Marketing Apprentice:
Online Research
At the beginning of the apprenticeship, I would first look at Digital Marketing strategies and research how I can help improve 360 Apprenticeships presence online. One way of doing this is by completing online courses with HubSpot Academy and Google Garage. Here I began to understand the areas involved in Digital Marketing and how it is beneficial to every business.
Social Media
One of the major tasks that almost every Digital Marketer will do is post on social media platforms. For me I primarily focus on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn, where I will tailor posts for our two main target audiences; apprentices and employers. To upload each post with ease and help to free time, I use social media dashboards such as Hootsuite and Buffer. These programs are great take the stress out of getting everything uploaded in time. Out of all the social media platforms that I use, Facebook has been the most successful. Here we don’t just upload posts, but advertise all of our Apprenticeship roles and answer online queries. Since we started to use Facebook as a platform for showcasing our roles, we have garnered over 1000 likes and received 5
Content Writing and Website Development
Blog writing is also a major part to my Digital Marketing role, creating monthly blog posts that will interest those looking to understand more about apprenticeships. For this to be successful, I use Keywords and relevant language/terms that will draw in the targeted audience. My main task over the last few months has been updating 360 Apprenticeships website. Our website is a driving force in creating business, so updating and adding elements to strengthen the website is a priority. Using WordPress and WPBakery I can make the website stronger and more professional, which will drive traffic to the business. All of this is then recorded and analysed with Google Analytics and Google my Business. Here is where I can see how well we are performing, where we need to improve and what steps I need to take to improve 360 Apprenticeships online presence.
What I have learned about the Apprenticeship
Before I started to look at apprenticeships, there were a number of misconceptions that made me believe it to be wrong for me. Before I really looked into it, I believed that Apprenticeships were aimed at school leavers, those who didn’t get the grades, or aimed at areas such as Construction and Engineering etc. But once I started to look into it, I knew I could start to pursue a career that I could be proud of. Apprenticeships also give you the hands on experience needed for a full time career; so when it comes to looking for roles in the future, I am confident in knowing that I have the right experience.
Why this was the right route for me
Digital Marketing is used in almost every business across the world, and knowing that there are so many routes to take within this area gives me confidence that I have chosen the right path. What also reassures me is knowing that once I complete my apprenticeship and gain my Level 3 qualification, I will have the knowledge and skills needed to move towards my dream role in Digital Marketing.
How 360 Apprenticeships can help
The year 2020 has been a difficult and scary time, yet apprenticeships are on the rise and needed more than ever. Whether you are an apprentice or an employer, 360 Apprenticeships can help. We provide a free service from first point of contact to the successful placement of each apprentice. Every apprentice who is successful will only be placed with the best training providers (Graded 1 and/or 2 by Ofsted) so you know that they will be in safe hands.
You can find out more regarding the apprenticeship scheme on our website. To speak to one of our recruiters directly, you can contact us on:
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