Know-How Exchange : Career/Training

this is a lot of different fields to be an expert in.

SEO alone is four hours a week or reading/research, just to stay current let alone catch up. Add onto that web design, email marketing, etc, etc...and you pop through 120 hours just to keep up.

So, assuming you could digest all this information going by you at rocket speed, when exactly to you think you have time to provide such services and market them to paying clients?

Think about narrowing down your list and specializing in just two or three.

There are categories such as: aware, knowledgeable, and expert.

Expertise is the rarest of qualities. It's more than courses. It's applying what you've learned to see what works and doesn't (for you) over time. It's being willing to continually learn new things, and research new ideas on your own to develop insight.

Knowledge is sitting down and studying. It's taking courses to find the tools others have used to solve problems. It's simple exercises to give you the feel for things.

Awareness is talking about the various problems/solutions, but not with much granularity. You'll be able to understand the buzzwords and may have some ideas for how to solve problems.

All of the areas you're asking about are currently "fluid" - there are few techniques that everyone agree are best for all applications. People are trying everything out to see what "sticks". And, as users get more sophisticated, the tools they need likewise change.

Thanks to both of you, Levon and Darcy. My story is that I've worked in marcomm for software for over 9 years and had a very large team supporting me at my last job. Now I've accepted a position as the ONLY marketing person at a very small software company and need to do everything on my own. I realize I'll only have enough time to do a little here, a little there, so I want to maximize my efforts within a very small budget. Online seems the cheapest route and offers work I can do on my own without outsourcing.

Anyway, I've researched some courses but many of them are scams or books that I don't feel like reading. I want a live course with an instructor that I can ask questions and get a "certificate" (or some such proof of my training) that I can use for future employment opportunities. That's why I was hoping someone out there could recommend a good one instead of sifting through bazillions of sub-par courses.

Thanks again and I'll keep on searching!

If you are limited with time and money I would recommend identifying one strategy and then mastering that - diluting your effort will result in a diluted campaign.

Only you know what strategy is most likely to meet the needs of your potential customers - identify that and then get the best training you can afford in that one area.

Good luck
- what ever else you do - apply the principles of generic marketing to the world of web and you wont be too far away (unless you are targeting the younger generation - there the book needs to be re-written!

Mike

Thanks to all of you for taking the time to offer some advice. I think I'll keep searching for that elusive "covers everything" online course or may even look at our local college where I live for a continuing ed course.

Best regards,
Stefanie