The Top 6Digital Skills

Every BusinessOwner Should

Master

In today’s world, it’s common for small business owners to conduct atleast some part of their business online. Whether they own anecommerce store, host appointment bookings online, or drive leads andcustomers through digital marketing—most small businesses need adigital presence to not only survive, but thrive.

Unfortunately, this means that many businesses are losing out onpotential customers by not having a digital presence, or they’re payingconsultants exorbitant prices to do their digital work for them.

For many, it can be hard to know where to start or what to learn.

That’s why we created this eBook.

Here, we’ve outlined exactly what skills you should have and how to getthem on your own time and budget.

However, many smallbusiness ownersdon’t have the digitalskills necessary tocompete in today’sonline landscape.

INTRODUCTION

And with goodreason—they’re busyrunning their business!

Maybe they don’t havethe time or money toinvest in keeping up withthe latest digital trends.

What are their digital skills? What are they missing?

We included the insightful data gathered in this guide, and paired itwith a list of the skills every business owner should have at least abaseline knowledge of—and tools and courses you can use to get there.

Obviously, you don’t need to have a deep understanding of every topicon this list.

But knowing enough to be dangerous can help you level up and bring

6

SKILL #1

that the the term “digital marketing” was used was in

Online marketing has had a near thirty-year evolution, and it’s still aconstantly changing practice across businesses both large and small.

However, there are key tenets of digital marketing that aren’t goinganywhere. And if you want to bring more customers to your businessthrough online channels, it’s worthwhile to get these core digitalmarketing skills under your belt.

According to our survey of 243business owners,respondents wished they hadmore digital marketing skills.

We’re here to shed some light onthe digital marketing componentsthat are essential to marketing asmall business today.

Digital Marketing

A digital marketing skill that is particularly helpful for small businessowners is email marketing.

Conducting an email campaign is, for some businesses, an e ective wayto nurture leads and educate your audience on your product andservices.

SKILL #1

Help you stay top of mind to customers whoare interested, but not ready to buy yet.

or to certain product landing pages.

Educate your potential customers on yourproduct or service.

Establish thought leadership in your industry.

Convert leads that have started the buyingprocess, but abandoned their cart.

A successful emailstrategy could:

Being visible in your prospective customer and clients’ inboxes is animportant way to stay relevant and convert leads.

While email marketing will be a digital marketing channel that workswell for some businesses and is less e�ective for others, it’s a strategythat any aspiring online marketer needs to try out.

In fact, email marketing is the second most desired digital marketingskill across the business owners we surveyed, withindicating that they wish they knew more about email marketing .

SKILL #1

GET THE S K ILLS

Learn how to build a killer email strategy to drivemore sales from Udemy’s bestselling online Email

Marketing Mastery course.

Whether you’re ready for it or not, social media has become anundeniably important aspect of digital marketing.

Create word-of-mouth buzz around yourbrand, product, or service.

Engage both loyal and potential customers,informing how you market to peopleinterested in your product or services. .

your industry (and tap into their ownfollowing).

Drive potential customers to your website

Promote your business’s content and pressplacements.

A good social mediastrategy can:

SKILL #1

then you might feel left out of this digital marketing channel as a whole.

However, with a little persistence, any business can enter the realm ofsocial media.

When it comes down to it, 86% of B2B buyers use social mediaplatforms when making a purchasing decision. And according to aDeloitte review , consumers who use social media during the shoppingprocess were four times more likely to spend more money on theirpurchase.

According to our survey, it seems as though small business owners arealmost totally there: 83.9% of small business owners surveyed usesocial media to promote their business , and a majority of ourrespondents have presences on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram,and LinkedIn.

SKILL #1

Social media is agreat platform toshow the personalitybehind your business. All in, you want to be on

the social mediaplatforms your customersare active on.

work completely.

If you’re tackling this digital marketing channel on your own, then thereare di�erent skills to learn and tools to use to master the art of socialmedia marketing.

And because content marketing is so versatile, it can be executed inmultiple ways: blog articles, white papers, eBooks, interactive tools, andmuch more.

GET THE SKILLS

Become a brand builder. In GeneralAssembly’s Digital Marketing course, you’ll learn to

harness cutting-edge tactics across contentmarketing, paid advertising, social media, and more

to execute data-driven campaigns.

SKILL #1

If you’ve dabbled in the world of digital marketing before, then youmight have heard that “content is king.”

For some businesses, content marketing really is king.

Today’s consumers are demanding more high-quality (and free) digitalresources and tools that enable them to make more informed decisions.

Good content not only markets your business, but also informspotential customers of the ins-and-outs of your product and your

to take the next step.

A good content marketing strategy will touch all aspects of yourbusiness, like your:

+ Homepage messaging,

+ Landing pages,

+ Social media accounts,

+ Email marketing campaigns,

+ Blog,

+ and more

SKILL #1

And because content marketing is so versatile, it can be executed inmultiple ways: blog articles, white papers, eBooks, interactive tools, andmuch more.

All in, a content marketing campaign is necessary for getting your brandout there, and facilitating the purchasing process for your customers.

And the best part?

Content marketing is (mostly) free!

Convey your brand’s value and vision.

Be relevant to a point of your buyer’s process(shopping around, in the middle of apurchase, after their purchase, etc.).

Be promoted across your social mediachannels so as to get your content in front ofthe right eyes.

Be original, creative, and execute across avariety of content types.

SKILL #1

Any content marketingcampaign should:

Paid Marketing

If you’re a cash-conscious business, paid marketing might be a bitter pill to swallow. But it’s a core aspect of many successful digital marketing campaigns.

These days, paid marketing can take many di�erent forms.

But the paid marketing channel that presents the most opportunity for small business owners is likely search engine marketing, or SEM.

Paying for search ads via SEM is an important way to make sure your business is getting in front of potential customers’ eyes when they’re searching for terms related to your business.

Google Adwords is by many measures the most popular paid marketing platform.

SKILL #1

GET THE S K ILLS

Take Hubspot’s Free Content MarketingCourse. In just four hours, you’ll be ready to generateincredible content ideas, tell powerful stories thatattract customers to your brand, and create and

distribute your content in a systematic way.

However, despite its popularity across search marketers, it’s clear thatsmall business owners haven’t tapped into this digital marketingchannel—Adwords to promote their businesses.

If you’re part of the otherthey wished they knew more about paid marketing , check out theseresources below.

GET THE SK ILLS

Attend a paid advertising workshop at GeneralAssembly, and learn to acquire and retain customersthrough Facebook, Twitter, AdWords, and LinkedIn

campaigns. With help from an industry insider, you’llleave able to leverage the channel that’s right for your

budget and goals.

SKILL #1

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is another powerful tool in a smallbusiness owner’s belt.

an easy way to be found is via the organic search engines—Google, Bing,Yahoo!, and so on.

If your customer’s journey likely starts with a quick Google search, youshould be paying attention to what your prospects are searching for andstart taking steps to rank for those search terms.

In today’s competitive environment, visibility is key. If your business

money into SEO measures.

Marc Prosser , small business expert and co-founder of Fit SmallBusiness , notes that, “An understanding of SEO, especially local SEO, iscrucial for small business owners. Showing up when someone searcheson Google or Yahoo! for ‘pet stores near me’ is critical. Understandinglocal SEO means optimizing your website for search, citation building,and encouraging customer to leave online reviews.”

According to our survey, small business owners are clued into SEO:

strategy themselves.

While there are many good SEO services out there, acquiring a baselineknowledge of di�erent SEO strategies—like content creation, on-pageoptimization, link building, and so on—is a great start that small

SKILL #1

SKILL #1

business owners seem to already be taking.

If you’re new to the world of SEO, check out the resources below.

While not always thought of as a core aspect of digital marketing,graphic design is a skill that makes any online marketing campaign thatmuch better.

Graphic design is the process of visual communication and problem-solving using digital typography, illustration, or photography.

In a sense, it’s what makes a good website or a good email campaigngreat. Graphic design puts life behind a campaign’s words and copy,helping your message stand out and appeal to your customers.

GET THE SK I LLS

Start plotting your course to better search rankings.Take a hands-on SEO workshop at General Assembl y,and gain practical tips to increase your brand’svisibility. You’ll learn how to pinpoint what yourcustomers are searching for, curate keywords,implement web page optimizations, and more.

In the recent past, most websites relied on pre-set and subtle templatesthat accompanied content.

marketing campaigns.

However, if you’re bootstrapping your business and need to launch awell-designed website, some graphic design skills can be self-taught.

In fact, our study shows that 43.4% of respondents did their owngraphic design for their business.

But 44.2% of all respondents wish that they had more graphic designcapabilities.

These courses and tools below can help.

Mastering the art ofgraphic design is a taskworthy of devoting anentire career to.

Don’t let your businessget behind with sub-par graphic design .

SKILL #1

SKILL #1

GET THE SK ILLS

Dive into composition, color theory, and typography,and take creative control over your ideas. In General

Assembly’s Visual Design course, you’ll learn tocommunicate visually and bring engaging websites

and marketing assets to life.

SKILL #2

Data Analysisand Presentation

Many approach the task of crunching numbers with dread, but as asmall business owner, data analysis is an important skill andunavoidable task.

Understanding how to pull, organize, calculate, and interpret data pointscan be crucial for making important business decisions.

Data is not something to ignore—especially when it comes to lead

Data analysis can show you where your digital marketing campaigns arepaying o� or when your sales numbers are routinely fallingshort—allowing you to make adjustments when necessary.

There are a variety of data analysis platforms business owners can useto get a hand on the nitty-gritty of their business’s numbers—especiallywhen it comes to your website’s performance or the ROI of your digitalmarketing campaigns.

According to our survey, though, business owners are using the mostbasic analysis tools to keep track of their numbers:respondents are using Google Sheets and Excel , andrespondents don’t use any other online analytics tools to measuretheir business .

And while utilizing Google Sheets and Excel is a great start when itcomes to data analysis, it’s clear that small business owners have room

would say they’re advanced users .

Here’s a breakdown of the most important analytics and presentationtools for small business owners:

Excel is a tried-and-true analytics tool, and one that’s extremelypowerful when you know how to use it.

While most are at least somewhat familiar with Excel’s basicfunctions—comfortable enough to create tables and use basicformulas—not all master the Excel skills that make every workplace

There are countless advanced formulas and analysis tools to discover inExcel, and investing in an Excel course can help you unlock some of thetime-saving features of this program.

SKILL #2

GET THE S K I LLS

Master pivot tables, data analysis, formulas and morewith Lynda’s most popular onl ine Excel courses. You’ll

even get a day trial!

SKILL #2

Any business owner ready to embrace digital marketing needs to getfamiliar with Google Analytics.

While there are many tools small business owners can use to measuretheir site’s performance and track the progress of their marketingcampaigns, Google Analytics is probably the most accessible andpowerful.

media accounts? You can use that insight to further optimize thatchannel.

Or, you might notice that one product landing page has a particularlyhigh exit rate. Whatever the takeaway, Google Analytics gives you theinsight that will help you optimize your website and your marketingcampaigns to their full potential.

There are many powerful ways to use Google Analytics when you reallyget to know the platform. While you can use its most basic functionspretty easily, you’ll discover insightful information about your websitewhen you’re an advanced user.

GET THE S K ILLS

Google has built a robust library of free courses in itsAnalytics Academy. Whether you’re a beginner or

advanced user—there’s a course for you!

SKILL #2

An equally important facet of data analysis is the ability to present your

break bringing on the next investor in your business.

Of the business owners who indicated that they have to present data fortheir business, aboutpresentations.

Powerpoint is used far and wide in the business world, and businessowners who need to present data can get a step ahead with tip-topPowerpoint skills.

GET THE S K ILLS

Explore Lynda’s suite of PowerPoint tra inings and tutorials.Learn the program inside out with expertly crafted videos

and trainings made for any level.

SKILL #3

Web Developmentand Design

These days, many small business owners are starting businesses thatare fully online. Or, brick-and-mortar shops are complementing theirphysical presence with an ecommerce site.

In either case, if you want your business to have an online presence,

found that small business owners are, for the most part, already there:.

Not only is your website the place where you do business online, it’s acrucial part of digital marketing.

A well-designed, optimized website will help make any digital marketingcampaign better.

Digital marketing is, after all, a way to promote your business, products,and services online. And oftentimes, a digital marketing campaign

page.

If your website isn’t appealing to that user, then it doesn’t matter howgood your digital marketing campaign was—you’ve lost that customer.

SKILL #3

Convey the business’s value proposition.

Present the business’s products and servicesin a clear, thorough, and appealing way.

Be responsive and mobile friendly.

Be relevant and up-to-date.

In today’s digital landscape,a website should :

If having a stellar website for your small business is the endpoint, thenthere are a variety of ways to get there.

You could use a website builder to create a simple, but well-designedand functioning website.

However, according to our survey,website built it themselves —without any website building systems.

tools like Squarespace, Wix, Weebly, Shopify, eBay stores, and so on.

SKILL #3

Small business owners are also using outside contractors to create theirwebsite—though every business owner surveyed wished they had theskills to fully create their app or website on their own, from scratch.

web development, and

If you’re interested in learning basic web development skills, try outsome of the courses below.

SKILL #4

Conversion Optimizationand User Experience

Getting new customers to your website is important.

And those digital marketing campaigns to get them there are crucial.

But what if people are getting to your website but not taking any action?Then all of your e�orts creating a website and crafting thoughtful onlinemarketing campaigns are useless in the end.

If you’re not getting any sales or lead value out of your website, it’s timeto embrace the art of conversion optimization.

Conversion optimization is the system o�ncreasing the percentage ofvisitors to a website that convert into customers.

So whatever a “customer” or “conversion” means to your business, youwant more of them—and conversion rate optimization will help you getthere.

While there are well-known tips and tricks in the practice of conversionrate optimization—like color schemes, copy, image and text hierarchy,etc.—conversion optimization will look di�erent for every smallbusiness.

That’s because conversion rate optimization starts with knowing youruser and their experience on your site.

A good conversion rate optimizer understands their customer’s journey,and where that funnel fails.

SKILL #4

Google Analytics is a good tool for looking at quantitative conversion

However, user experience research, testing, and ultimately, design, willgive you a qualitative look into how users are interacting with your site.

Getting to understand your user’s experience is crucial to understandingwhy people don’t convert.

Is the design of your website not intuitive to them? Maybe they’reunclear on where they should be taking action.

Understanding a user’s experience has been crucial to entrepreneurChris Campbell, CEO of ReviewTrackers :

Conducting user research is a valuable tool small business owners anddigital marketers use to gather insights on what user experience worksand doesn’t work for their website.

You've got all kinds of digital

social, etc.—so the question becomes,‘How well do my customers interact with eachchannel? Are these channels working together?Or are they merely working side by side?’Organizations can take the biggest leap forwardwhen they make sure every prospect is getting atop notch customer experience on every channel.

SKILL #4

Despite how valuable conversion rate optimization and user experiencetesting is for a company, small business owners haven’t embraced thesepractices.

respondents said that they don’t engage in any type of user researchfor their company.

In the end, understanding your users and optimizing for conversion isall about getting more out of each visitor that comes to your website. Ifyou want to get more customers online, then you can’t ignore basicconversion rate optimization.

GET THE S KILLS

Discover powerful tools for understanding yourbrand’s audience —and improving your conversion

rates. At General Assembly, you can get hands-ontraining in user testing, user research, and more andlearn to tailor campaigns to your ideal customers.

SKILL #5

Online Accountingand Mobile Payments

crucial to your success.

However, the days of recording your accounts payable and yourexpenses in a notebook are long gone.

platforms.

Online accounting can compile all your accounting tasks—bookkeeping,payroll expenses, tax procedures, and so on—to one system, helping you

Plus, managing your cash online could be a better way to work with yourclients and partners. Many are moving towards invoicing customerscompletely online. If you want to make onboarding new clients

payments online is crucial.

Small business owners can choose either accounting software or cloud-based accounting tools.

Cloud-based tools (like Xero and Zoho) are accounting systems thatwork fully on the internet—there’s no need to install software on yourdesktop. A cloud-based accounting system is a good option for small

dashboards on the go, from any device.

SKILL #5

business owners surveyed don’t use an online accounting software.Those who do use an accounting software mostly use Quickbooks—thesmall business accounting giant.

According to our survey, small business owners are tackling necessaryaccounting tasks on their own, the old school way.

Which software or system is right for your needs? And how do you evenuse it?

If you’re used tomanaging your business’sbooks the old way, thenembracing onlineaccounting and mobilepayments can be adaunting task.

An easy way to takework o� your plateand automate your

to learn andimplement an onlineaccounting platform .

SKILL #5

These resources below will help kickstart your transition to onlineaccounting.

GET THE SKILLS

Udemy o�ers a popular online course called Introd uction toSmall Business Accounting. If you’re looking to learn how to

use a particular software like Quickbooks or Xero, theirresource centers are incredibly helpfu l o�ering free guides,

tools, and articles.

SKILL # 6

Online Communicationand Productivity

An essential part of going digital is learning how to communicate withothers online. If you’re a business owner who is used to conducting

channel that works for you, your customers, and your employees isespecially important.

Turns out, most small business owners are embracing onlinecommunication already:communicate with their employees or customers online .

And .(Communication platforms like Gchat and Slack are rising in popularity

them, respectively.)

If you’re using email for communicating with your clients andemployees, it’s crucial that you use this communication channel

According to a recent Fundera studyin upper management (business owners, executives, and vicepresidents) were the most likely to send an email with inappropriatematerials—with acronyms, typos, or too casual a tone.

If you’re glued to your email like most small business owners, then it’simportant that you’re communicating with your clients and employeesappropriately—setting a good example for acceptable communication.

SKILL # 6

Good communication has far-reachingimpact and can be the deciding factorin whether or not you win a project bid,

stay within budget, or ever work again. Being ableto understand a client’s needs can be tricky attimes. Miscommunication and misunderstandingare the roots of overages and blown budgets.Clearly communicating and thoroughlyunderstanding the scope of work will save youtime, money, and heartache.

Entrepreneur Chad McComsey and co-founder of his business, MINDDevelopment & Design , hits home the importance of being a goodcommunicator:

When it comes down to it, e�ective online communication is not only away to stay connected to clients and employees, but it’s also a time-saver and productivity tool for small business owners.

Another way to communicate with your employees and stay productiveis to use an online task management tool.

The many task management platforms available online not only helpremove some of the time it takes to communicate tasks and projectswith your team members in person, but also makes sure you’re alwaysdoing what’s most important for your business.

You are the leader of your business, after all, and using a taskmanagement tool can help you keep tabs on your business’s daily,weekly, and monthly progress—making sure you’re always pushingahead.

SKILL # 6

Task management tools like Trello, Asana, Todoist , and so on are waybeyond the old notepad approach. These tools help you manage yourtasks as they relate to major projects in your company, loop in multipleteam members on multiple projects, and sync up everything you’reworking on in a given week on easy-to-use online dashboards.

However, according to our survey, business owners aren’t using thesetools to better manage their tasks and their team—owners reported that they don’t use task managers or projectmanagement tools .

Going digital is all about connectivity and productivity—and that’s whatthese online task management tools are all about. Use the resourceslisted to below to pick the right task manager for your business.

GET THE SKILLS

edX, founded by Harvard and MIT, o�ers a number ofonline courses to help you communicate more

e�ective online and in the workplace.

Small business owners wanting to get ahead of the competition need tobe anywhere their customer is—and for many small businesses, that’sonline.

Embracing these 7 digital skills will help you widen your audience andbetter serve your customer:

+ Digital marketing,

+ Data analysis and presentation,

+ Web development and design,

+ Conversion optimization and user experience,

+ Online accounting and mobile payments,

+ Online communication and productivity.

If you take steps to get a basic knowledge of these digital skills, you’rewell on your way to equipping your small business for success.

And if you have the time and money to invest towards learning thesedigital skills, the classes and guides highlighted in this eBook will bringyou from a novice to a pro.

Bringing Your Small Business to the Digital World

Welcome to the digital age!

lowest rates on small business loans, guaranteed.

Boost your career or transform your business through innovative events, workshops, and courses inweb development, user experience design, data science, and more. Employers seeking an edge in

today's digital economy can assess job candidates and current teams through GA’s Credentialsdivision or grow employee skills through our corporate training programs.