Social Media Marketing Course: Get Certified

Course Content

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Module I - Introduction

An Introduction to Marketing and Social Media Marketing
The first lesson in your Professional Diploma will introduce you to the world of marketing and, specifically, social media marketing. We will cover a high-level overview of various marketing terms and see exactly how social media marketing fits into your overall marketing strategy. You will learn about social media strategies that you can incorporate into your marketing, budgeting for social media as well as frequently used social media marketing terms.
Getting to know the Social Media Platforms
In this lesson of your Professional Diploma you will become familiar with the Social Media platforms mainly used for social media marketing and the types of audiences that mostly use these platforms. You will learn how to choose which platforms you should use for your business social media marketing.
Deciphering your Target Audience
This lesson will teach you how to identify you target audience for social media marketing. We will provide you with an understanding of who is using social media, identifying your target audience and elements to consider when compiling your target audience and segmenting them into buyer personas.
The Social Media Strategy
In this content packed lesson you will learn about the various elements that are required to build a social media strategy for successful social media marketing. Identifying goals, how to measure your success and identifying the various platforms and content types that you will use to market your business on social media.
Optimising your Social Media Profiles
In this lesson you will learn how to create the main social media platforms as well as how to optimise your profile so that you are easily found online. This lesson covers Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest and LinkedIn.
Basic Data Analysis and Reporting
In this lesson you will learn about the various metrics that you can measure on the major social media platforms, how to access them on your social media channel as well as what to include in your social media report.
Content Creation 101
This lesson introduces you to various social media content types, the content development process and what makes engaging content for your audience as well as what your audience wants from you.
Introduction to Social Media Management
This lesson introduces you to the basics of social media management, understanding what it is and what it entails as well as what it takes to manage your social media marketing. You will also be introduced to more advanced concepts such as community management, reputation management, social listening and more!

Target Audience Segmenation
In Lesson 1 of Module 2 you will learn what target audience segmentation is and how to implement it, as well as a step-by-step process to researching and creating buyer personas based on market research and data mining as well as what drives people to make the purchases they do and how to create targeted content from your personas.
Social Media Branding
In Lesson 2 of Module 2 you will learn how we define a brand, the various elements of brand development that you need to pay attention to within your social media marketing efforts, the importance of brand consistency on social media as well as common online branding issues and what actually makes effective branding.
Identifying, setting and measuring goals
In Lesson 3 of Module 2 you will learn about identifying our business goals, aligning them with our social media goals, choosing the relevant key performance indicators. You will also learn about some strategies that you can use to achieve these goals as well as how to interpret and take action from your data.
Social media auditing and competitor research
In Lesson 4 of Module 2 you will learn why a social media audit is so important, how to conduct a social media audit and check the optimisation of your profiles as well as analysing your social media posts and conducting competitor research and how to keep an eye on them.
Content execution and publishing
In Lesson 5 of Module 2 you will learn about content distribution, content curation and trend jacking as well as copywriting formulas, behavioural psychology applied in marketing and how to develop a content library and fill in your content calendar.
The dark side of social media
In Lesson 6 of Module 1 we explore the dark side of social media by looking at big brands whose posts didn’t get the response they were expecting. You will learn how to develop a social media policy and how to handle a social media crisis, social media listening and avoidable social media fails.
Data-driven social media marketing
In Lesson 7 of Module 2 you will learn about data-driven marketing, types of social analytics and social insights, you will learn about additional metrics that you can use to validate the value of your social media marketing efforts and you learn about attribution models to identify the various touch points that are adding value to your customer journey or where you need to optimise your customer journey.
Advanced social media management
In Lesson 8 of Module 2 you will learn about social media reputation management and the keys to successful reputation management, you will also learn about community management and the various community management strategies that you can use and we will delve into social media budget allocation and the types of operational budgets.

Module III - Visual Communication Module

Deep dive into using Facebook
Lesson 1 of Module 3 explores the intricacies of the various posting features that you will find on Facebook and how to use them, you will also learn how to use Facebook Publishing Tools and the Facebook Creator Studio.
Facebook best practices and using Messenger
Lesson 2 of Module 3 continues with Facebook as we look at content creation and best practices for the largest social media network, you will also learn how to use Facebook Messenger for your business as well as how to develop engaging conversations throughout your customer journey and how to use Facebook and Messenger together.
Getting the most mileage out of YouTube
Lesson 3 of Module 3 will teach you how to post to YouTube as well as other posting features that you can use. You will also learn about how to prepare before you shoot your video, what to consider during your shoot and what to do after your shoot, as well as video content creation and YouTube best practices and community guidelines.
Exploring Instagram in detail
Lesson 4 of Module 3 looks at the variety of posting features that you can use on Instagram and how to use them, content creation tips for the platform as well as Instagram best practices and how to use Instagram and Facebook in conjunction with each other.
Get tweeting with Twitter
Lesson 5 of Module 3 will show you how to get tweeting with Twitter. You will learn about the various posting features on Twitter and how to use them, content creation tips and ideas as well as the best practices to follow when using Twitter for your social media marketing.
Taking an interest in Pinterest
Lesson 6 of Module 3 explores the posting features on the Pinterest platform. You will learn how to post pins, carousels, videos as well as how to make use of rich pins. You will learn what to consider when creating content for the platform as well as get some ideas for business content and learn about Pinterest best practices.
Delving into LinkedIn
Lesson 7 of Module 3 will teach you how to use the various posting features on LinkedIn as well as content creation considerations, ideas for content on LinkedIn and the best platform practices to keep in mind.
Using Snapchat and Tiktok for business
Lesson 8 of Module 3 will teach you how to navigate the Snapchat and Tiktok platforms, you will learn about the posting features available on each platform as well as how to post and what to consider when creating content for each platform. We will go through some business content ideas for each platform and learn about the best practices for both Snapchat and Tiktok.

Module IV - SME & NPO Module

Social Media For SME’s And NPO’s - Part 1
One of the biggest challenges for smaller companies is reaching the right audience on Social Media, and this is even more difficult for NPO’s who work with tight budgets. This week aims to showcase how to effectively reach your audience for conversions while not breaking the bank. We look at the features available for SME’s and NPO’s on the main platforms and how to maximise the impact of your content.
Social Media For SME’s And NPO’s - Part 2
One of the biggest challenges for smaller companies is reaching the right audience on Social Media, and this is even more difficult for NPO’s who work with tight budgets. This week aims to showcase how to effectively reach your audience for conversions while not breaking the bank. We look at the features available for SME’s and NPO’s on the main platforms and how to maximise the impact of your content.
SEO And Social Media - Part 1
Social Media platforms are now indexed by Google so they have to be part of your SEO Strategy. Creating a connection between your website and your Social Media platforms is the key to success. This week you will learn about Social Signals for SEO, social sharing and the indexing process, the relevance of backlinks from Social Platforms and some interesting tools.
SEO And Social Media - Part 2
Social Media platforms are now indexed by Google so they have to be part of your SEO Strategy. Creating a connection between your website and your Social Media platforms is the key to success. This week you will learn about Social Signals for SEO, social sharing and the indexing process, the relevance of backlinks from Social Platforms and some interesting tools.
Advanced Social Media Management - Part 1
Management is one of the most important parts of Social Media Marketing. As marketers, we are tasked with operating a number of platforms and using the right tools is critical to our success. We will have an in-depth analysis of the tools available and a detailed demonstration of the alternative services offered by these tools.
Advanced Social Media Management - Part 2
Management is one of the most important parts of Social Media Marketing. As marketers, we are tasked with operating a number of platforms and using the right tools is critical to our success. We will have an in-depth analysis of the tools available and a detailed demonstration of the alternative services offered by these tools.
Auditing Your Social Media - Part 1
When we develop our Social Media Strategy, being able to critically analyse the performance of our efforts will ensure continued success. Auditing our content, our advertising and our engagement is vital for Social Media Marketing. You will learn what to look out for when auditing Social Media and what tools we can use for Social Media Auditing.
Auditing Your Social Media - Part 2
When we develop our Social Media Strategy, being able to critically analyse the performance of our efforts will ensure continued success. Auditing our content, our advertising and our engagement is vital for Social Media Marketing. You will learn what to look out for when auditing Social Media and what tools we can use for Social Media Auditing.