Usually, there is a vast difference in the salary between entry-level and certified positions, which is the usual driving force for employees to boost their careers. However, the qualification for certified positions mostly requires getting an MBA. Although taking traditional MBA courses is not the only way to get digital marketing certifications, specialized courses are available.

What is the alternative for getting an MBA?

Getting an MBA has become a possibility for more people as schools are embracing neurodiversity and introducing core concepts to younger students. Having an MBA can certainly advance your career and open up a lot of opportunities, but taking specialized digital marketing courses can also be an efficient and convenient way to further your career. It only takes two to six months of studying to get the digital marketing certification. In addition, most of these courses are offered part-time, which is convenient for those who are already working. Some courses are also free and can be studied anytime.

Hootsuite Social Media certification

Knowledge and mastery of social media is among the top requirements to be hired as a digital marketing manager. Hootsuite’s Social Media certification can help you stand out from the competition, and apart from learning crucial skills, you’ll have a certificate as proof of taking the course. After graduating, you can display your Hootsuite badge on your LinkedIn profile, and you’ll be added to Hootsuite’s roster of social media experts. 

HubSpot Content Marketing course

The next certification course for marketing is the HubSpot content marketing certification course, which is in demand because it’s free and time-effective. Usually, the course only takes 6 hours or more depending on the one who’s taking it. It covers most of the basic content marketing topics under 12 lessons. There are also quizzes and videos available to take advantage of.

Google Adwords certification

Next, we have the Google Adwords Certification that is perfect for those who want to take a deep understanding of how Google Ads work. The same with the HubSpot certification, Google Adwords Certification is also free. It is valid for one year, but can be renewed by passing the exam again. This is a short course that’s worth taking, since having a Google Ads certification means that Google recognizes you as an expert in online advertising. 

Facebook Marketing courses

Facebook marketing careers are also growing; that’s why most marketing experts are taking advantage of Facebook’s free marketing courses. Facebook offers courses that cover Facebook Ads, navigating Facebook Business and many more. The company also provides digital certification in various categories.

Nowadays, learning new skills and acquiring certificates are easy and convenient as there are free courses. In addition, most courses are also accessible online, which makes it more efficient for everyone.

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The pros of hiring a professional

If you constantly find yourself overwhelmed with your business and all of the worries it brings financially, getting a bit of help can do wonders for both your mental health and the business as a whole. This is primarily because a professional will allow you to focus on what’s important while they take over certain stress-filled tasks entirely. One highly effective way to achieve this is by hiring an accountant, who can help you with a myriad of money-related tasks that are often overwhelming for a new business owner. Not only will this save you time in the long run, but it will ensure that money matters are handled by experts, which, in turn, will prevent expensive mistakes. From standard bookkeeping to project budgeting and preparing financial reporting records like tax returns and income statements, you can gain major peace of mind that everything is handled properly. 

Focusing on the positives

As a new business owner, it can be easy to get wrapped up in the things that are going wrong, might go wrong, or the things you constantly need to address. Adding an extra dose of positivity to your day is a fantastic way to ease your worries, and can be done effectively by simply taking the time to recognize your accomplishments. In turn, this will allow you to quit focusing on the things that aren’t going right, and can remind you of what is – something that’s bound to help refocus your mind and outlook as a new business owner. By writing down and keeping a running list of personal and business related accomplishments (both big and small), you can literally put the positives in your line of sight each day, and help the heavier negatives stay out of mind.

Getting organized helps

Sometimes, simply getting organized can help immensely in limiting your worries as a new business owner, especially if your worries actually stem from an organizational problem. In order to combat the overwhelming stream of tasks, making use of apps and organizational software presents a fantastic solution. Used by Chloe Brittain, the owner of Opal Transcription Services in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, the software Trello is just one example, as it can be used to organize things like SEO campaigns, to-do lists, and calendars. Trello even has color coding capabilities to make things much easier to keep track of. Other apps, like Focus To-Do, however, bring other capabilities to the table – including a Pomodoro function that helps you to break up and tackle tasks in more manageable intervals.

Running a business isn’t for the faint of heart, but there are ways to limit your worries and reduce the accompanying stress that so often comes along with the position, particularly if you’re still new at it. By implementing an organizational system, focusing on the positive achievements you’ve accomplished, and even hiring a virtual assistant, you can eliminate unnecessary worry while effectively boosting productivity at the same time.

The post Managing (And Limiting) Stress As A New Business Owner appeared first on Global Business University.

The research was led by Valerio Mancini, Director of the Research Center of the Rome Business School and Fabio Guglietta, CEO of BiT256.          

Below, we present the main results of the research.

The report looked into the characteristics of the phenomenon especially in the sectors most affected, highlighting an exponential growth in the market for drugs and illicit medical supplies, especially following the Covid-19 pandemic.

Based on the counterfeiting report, it appears that turnover in Italy exceeds 30 billion euros and with Covid-19 the market for counterfeit medicines is growing. According to the report, these represent fake objects seized and misleadingly intended for consumers, creating economic damage equal to 100% of the value of the original goods. The report also highlights the tendency of counterfeiters to enter the primary market (products that are misleadingly aimed at consumers) to achieve a more effective ROI.

Specifically, the numbers show an increase in the following products:

• 48% for clothing (which remains the most exposed sector with a production value of € 2.2 billion, equal to 32.5% of the total);
• 307% for footwear;
• Over 90% for electrical and IT equipment (with a production value of 1 billion euros). 

The Italian “fakes” are mainly produced in Campania (clothing and raw materials), Tuscany, Lazio and Marche (leather products), in the North-East and North-West regions (watches). The main poles of criminal activities related to counterfeiting are represented by Lombardy, Campania, Lazio and Liguria.

“Italian companies suffer incredibly from the loss of turnover due to counterfeit goods that are sold abroad regardless of where they are produced“, says Valerio Mancini.

Leather goods and bags are among counterfeit and imported goods with 16% of fakes, followed by games and toys with 14.9%.

“There’s a huge damage if we consider that in Italy one in 3 jobs (about 31.5%) is in industries that make intensive use of trademarks and patents, contributing to half of the Italian GDP”.

The study proposes that the main global challenges following the COVID-19 pandemic are: 

• The movement of drugs and illicit medical supplies across borders has increased exponentially. “Amazon has banned more than a million products that claim to protect against coronavirus – or even cure it” 
• Less than 2 months from the start of the control activities, OLAF (the European Anti-Fraud Office) has identified over 340 companies acting as intermediaries or traders of counterfeit or non-compliant products with pandemic standards”.   

All this seems to influence the forecasts of the global anti-counterfeiting market, given that the value of the counterfeiting market is approaching 4% of the total world market value (OECD data), considering the stress on the markets caused by Sars-Cov-2 and first data on seizure activities, the CAGR (Compound Annual Growth Rate) in the anti-counterfeiting packaging market alone, which in the pre-pandemic era was around 5%, will grow to 11.98% to reach 169.847 billion dollars by 2025.      

For more info about the original report, please visit: https://bit.ly/3f7yLBW.       

The post Counterfeiting in the Current Economic Context: A Report by the Rome Business School appeared first on Global Business University.

 Communication skills

As a finance professional, you already understand how important strong communication skills are for the job. Whether you’re presenting a proposal to an investor, board, or major prospect, you need to break down complex information simply for your audience to understand. Similarly, marketing relies on excellent communication skills — whether your crafting ad copy, creating multimedia campaigns, or writing budget proposals.

Marketing, at its core, is a type of professional communication. It involves understanding your target customer and convincing them to purchase a product or service. And, since marketing is a team effort, you’ll also need strong oral communication skills to succeed within the company. Highlighting the communication skills you’ve developed in your finance career will make it easier for you to make a career switch in mid-life. Switching jobs may seem difficult, but people make 11.7 career changes between the ages of 18 and 48 on average. Taking pride in your financial background experience and transferable strengths will help you stand out to employers.  

Analytics and data skills

The analytics and data skills utilised in your financial career will also come in useful in marketing — an industry depends on collecting and analysing customer data throughout the buyer’s journey. With this information, analytic experts are expected to optimise sales funnels, attract customers, and increase conversions. For example, an email subject line that performs 5% better than a different one could mean the difference between the company making $5,000 and $10,000. As an analytic expert, it’s your job to analyse data, spot oversights, and devise innovative solutions that increase the company’s bottom line.  

Corporate leadership skills

If you have experience in corporate leadership, you may be a perfect candidate for a chief experience officer position — a relatively new marketing job set to be in high demand in 2020. Chief experience officers have become increasingly important due to the need for company’s to create outstanding customer experiences. Customers now consider brand experience even more influential than product or price on their purchasing decisions. Chief experience officers work to devise consumer-focused strategies that deliver fantastic customer experience. Experience in corporate leadership and a track record of customer loyalty and retention can set you in good stead for this role.

Marketing is a booming industry, and there’s never been a better time to make a career switch. With a little patience and hard work, you’ll be able to make the transition from finance to marketing this year. 

The post From Finance To Marketing: Transferable Skills That Will Help You Make A Career Change appeared first on Global Business University.