It’s okay to choose to learn everything about one thing, or digital marketing specialisation. However, to get the most out of that one thing (or to become really, really good at it), you’ll need to at least learn how that one thing works with all the other things—because each specialisation complements the others.

As good as each digital marketing channel is, there’s no single channel that can do everything. No channel is without its loopholes or weaknesses, which is why having other channels to compensate for those weaknesses is what smart digital marketers do.

Some specialisations or aspects of digital marketing can be a bit tricky depending on your background—if you have a creative background, for instance, you might find analytics a bit challenging, and vice versa. But everything becomes easier to understand in the context of, 1. serving your customer, and 2. growing your business.

Anybody who’s had experience buying anything, anywhere and who’s ever spent time online should be able to learn digital marketing—because this person knows what it’s like to be a customer, and knows how things work in the digital space. Anyway, it’s not so much your experience as your willingness and determination to learn.

As long as you know how to surf the internet and use the average word processor, slideshow or spreadsheet, you should be okay. Some specialisations or aspects of digital marketing such as SEO do need some basic coding skills, while others, such as graphic design and website development will require advanced computer know-how.

Digital marketing skill sets vary between specialisations, but generally you’ll need good communication skills, online research skills as well as planning and management skills. But it’s not so much your skills as your characteristics—you’ll need to be adaptable, patient, have great attention to detail, and be able to think on your feet.

If you’ve mastered all the skills you need, then go for it. If all you have is enthusiasm, self-confidence, “creativity”, and delusions of becoming the next Neil Patel overnight, we highly recommend taking Hackalogy courses before setting yourself up for disappointment. Remember: Starting an agency is easy; success is something else, altogether.

Very simply, consultancy involves businesses asking experts for advice on their digital marketing—from tactical consultations on things like running a social media campaign to strategic direction such as switching agency pricing models. This advice is given during a consultation period which can last for an hour to up to several months.

Consultants assess your current strategy and practices and recommend areas for improvement. There are specialised consultants for SEO, content and so on who may also provide hands-on help in implementing their recommendations.