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Inbound marketing is vital to your company’s success, but the social media element is not always easy to master.
While many would agree that, for the most part, its methods are easier to grasp than those belonging to outbound marketing, if you’re a complete rookie, some training would most likely help.
Below are five resources for learning how to leverage social media for inbound marketing success.
DS106
If this course sounds like one you would’ve taken in college, that’s because that’s how this one started out.
A professor at the University of Mary Washington actually began this course back in 2010. Originally, it was just for Professor Jim Groom’s students. Its purpose was to re-imagine how storytelling would function in the digital age.
Within a year, there was so much interest in DS106 that Groom made the course accessible online. The year after that, a Kickstarter campaign brought in more than $12,000, allowing for the creation of a social media MOOC (Massive Open Online Course) that was free of charge.
For immersion into the world of social media, DS106 is easy to recommend and will definitely help with your inbound marketing campaigns.
HubSpot
HubSpotFor just about anything to do with online marketing, HubSpot is worth checking out. They have a ton of free information, as well as software available too.
Their training program and certification course for inbound marketing should be of especial interest though. While their software comes at a price, their inbound marketing course is 100% free.
Eleven free classes, plus numerous reading assignments and even homework, if you choose to do it, help make this comprehensive course a fantastic way to go from zero to hero in the world of inbound marketing.
HubSpot has also done a great job of keeping their course relevant. It’s already been redesigned for 2015!
Quickstarter
To many people, social media is still a foreign concept. This can be especially true for those in the business world, despite the fact that they could benefit from these platforms the most.
If this sounds like you, let Quickstarter help. It will take you through the basics of social media, step-by-step, before proceeding through breakdowns of Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn (there are 17 chapters on the first two and 13 on LinkedIn).
There are even nine chapters on YouTube and much more. A lot of people may not need this kind of help, but it’s probably worth testing just to make sure. However, for those who completely lack any experience, Quicksarter will make a huge difference.
ALISON
Though they’re not an accredited college, ALISON will still provide you with a “diploma” after completing their courses in Social Media Marketing. Not only are all their classes free, but you can complete the entire thing in under 20 hours.
Get learning today. Over 750 free online courses with #ALISON http://t.co/K7Ao7vLX3D #ALW15 #love to learn pic.twitter.com/05intpgg8J
— ALISON (@ALISONcourses) May 14, 2015
Subjects include affiliate marketing, email marketing, blogging and even podcasting. You’ll also learn all about Facebook, Twitter, Audacity and more.
When you get done with ALISON’s Social Media Marketing course, you’ll definitely be in a better position for inbound marketing purposes.
White Papers
This isn’t actually a course of any kind, just good advice. Some of the best options for learning about social media marketing is to go find white papers online from top companies in the industry.
HubSpot is definitely a good source of quality white papers worth looking over.
Salesforce, SpredFast and Hootsuite are too. Not only are these white papers helpful for getting up to speed, but they’ll also help you keep on top of changes in the industry too. Social media marketing can be your company’s best friend as long as you take the time to learn its ins and outs.
With the above courses, you can learn how to use social media for inbound marketing purposes.
