Digital marketing is always changing. When you’re busy it can be hard to stay current on algorithm updates and best practices. Here are some of the best digital marketing resources. Whether you want to stay up-to-date or you’re trying to learn digital marketing these will help.
Tip: Create a Habit
One of the best tips I can give you is to try and create a routine to stay current on digital marketing. Don’t overwhelm yourself. Try to incorporate some digital marketing news into your daily or weekly routine.
To start, choose one of the following sources that will fit best with your existing habits. If you find more time, add more sources.
If you start by subscribing to everything at once you’ll end up ignoring everything. Don’t do this, it’s pointless. If you don’t like the first source, drop it and try another. Create a stream of sources that work for you.
Podcasts
Podcasts are a great way to stay current on marketing trends. You can listen during a commute, while you’re cooking dinner, doing chores, or going for a walk. And to be more efficient, I recommend listening at 1.5 speed. It takes a bit to get used to, but once you do you won’t want to switch back.
There are tons of marketing podcasts. You may be able to find one for your specific niche. My favorite marketing related podcasts are Online Marketing Made Easy with Amy Porterfield, Search Off The Record, Marketing Over Coffee, Authority Hacker, Akimbo, Nudge, and The Jasmine Star Show.
Online Marketing Made Easy with Amy Porterfield
Listening to Amy is an easy and enjoyable way to learn about new digital marketing tactics. Her content is directed specifically to online course creators, but almost all of it is useful to anyone interested in online marketing.
Most of what she teaches is based on her own experience with the topic. Because of that, each episode feels authentic and genuine. The episodes are sometimes interviews and other times it’s only her. In either case, she comes prepared and provides actionable advice.
Search Off The Record
This podcast is created by people who work on the Search Relations Team at Google. These are people who actually can play a role to impact search ranking, talking about search ranking. Most of their examples are hypothetical. Instead of saying what you need to do, they discuss what they think makes the most sense for how search should be handled. This is really interesting information and helps provide insight into how to handle optimizing your site so it will have long-term ranking benefits as Google continues to improve the algorithm.
Marketing Over Coffee
These guys do a good job of recapping some of the big changes in the digital marketing industry. The episodes are pretty short (around 25 minutes) which makes this a convenient way to stay up-to-date when you don’t have much time.
Many times they’ll have a guest with a pretty big name. Other times the hosts, John Wall and Christopher Penn, chat with each other. Either way, it’s an interesting half hour and worth the time.
Authority Hacker
This podcast is all about affiliate marketing. I don’t focus much on affiliate marketing but I decided to give this show a try for that very reason. I wanted to stay current on the aspects of digital marketing that I don’t dedicate much time to.
It turns out, this podcast is very useful for all digital marketers. Even if they don’t focus on affiliate marketing. Many episodes can apply to other marketing fields such as content marketing and SEO.
Gael Breton and Mark Webster do a great job of discussing best practices. They tend to explain topics in a very simple, easy to understand language. This is helpful for any level of marketer.
Akimbo
This podcast is by Seth Godin. Need I say more? Probably not, but I will anyways.
This is an amazing podcast that makes you think. Each episode is intriguing and brings up excellent points.
This show doesn’t discuss technical changes but instead discusses important marketing principles. This may not help you stay current on trends but it will make you a better marketer.
Nudge
This podcast helps explain the psychology behind marketing tactics. Each episode digs into a psychological principle, explains what it is, and how it can help you become a better marketer. Each episode is interesting and typically includes actionable insights.
The Jasmine Star Show
This is now my primary podcast to stay on top of social. Now, this show includes so much more than social, but if there’s an important social change that will certainly be covered. Jasmine covers a wide range of topics that are helpful for solopreneurs. Sometimes the episodes are coaching sessions with personalized advice, sometimes it’s an interview, and sometimes it’s just her. No matter what is covered in the particular episode, it is sure to have some nuggets of business advice that you can benefit from.
DIY SEO Tips
Of course, I have to mention my own podcast. The DIY SEO Tips podcast has short episodes that discuss various inbound marketing tactics. It covers topics on SEO, social media, digital analytics, content marketing, and conversion optimization. If you create content online and want to grow your audience, you should check out this podcast.
RSS Feeds
If you follow blogs and already use an RSS feeder, such as Feedly, add some digital marketing related blogs. My favorite digital marketing blogs are Quick Sprout, Backlinko, and Conversion XL.
Quick Sprout
This blog is by Neil Patel. This is a great way to stay on current on best practices for all aspects of digital marketing.
These posts are thorough and offer material that is useful to any level of marketer. Most of the articles are long but have several subheadings and bullets so you can scan the article. That way you can find the content that is most useful to you.
Backlinko
This blog is by Brian Dean. These articles are in depth and incredibly well researched. The blog isn’t updated as frequently as some as the others and when you read the articles you can quickly understand why.
The quality is top-notch. Both the content and the design make these articles interesting and a must add subscription to your RSS feeds.
Conversion XL
Conversion Rate Optimization is important for all digital marketers. It’s always interesting to learn about marketing psychology and what makes people convert. This is a great blog to follow to learn from case studies and research that can improve conversion rates.
If you prefer to get a daily digest in your email check out SearchCap from Search Engine Land or Marketing Day from Marketing Land. I’d choose only one as they have some overlap. These daily digests provide a nice overview of the most important marketing articles.
Even if you only end up reading the headlines this will help you stay more current than nothing. When there’s a big change you won’t miss it. You’ll see it pop up in many article headlines day after day. When that happens, I’d recommend reading one and making sure you understand how it impacts you.
Conclusion
Don’t over do it. Choose a method you’ll actually pay attention to and not ignore. None of these will help you stay current if you don’t have the time to pay attention to them. So, start simple.
Do you have a digital marketing resource you love that I didn’t mention? Please let me know in the comments.
Do you want to listen to this article? Here’s the podcast episode: