As per the recent reports by Hostinger, it is believed that the global digital marketing industry will reach around $1.3 trillion by 2033.
Ever wondered how brands manage to pop up on your Instagram, Google search, and even YouTube ads every time you open such apps? That’s the magic of digital marketing, promoting products and services online using tools like social media, SEO, email, and content.
In this blog, we’ll explain digital marketing meaning, and why it's one of the most in-demand skills in 2025. You’ll also explore key components, top digital marketing courses, growing digital marketing jobs, and how digital marketing services and agencies near you gain traffic by using the digital marketing strategies.
If you're excited to turn your scrolling habits into a high-demand skill, explore upGrad’s Digital Marketing Courses to learn how top brands attract, engage, and convert online!
What is Digital Marketing?
Digital marketing means promoting products or services online using platforms like Google, Instagram, YouTube, emails, and websites. In simple terms, it means if you’re searching for a product, watching an ad, or scrolling through brand posts, you’re already interacting with digital marketing!
Now the question comes, what does it involve? A lot of cool stuff, like SEO (so your site shows up on Google), social media campaigns, paid ads, content writing, email marketing, and more. All these parts work together to help businesses grow online.
If you're curious about starting your journey, joining a digital marketing course can open up real job opportunities. upGrad offers various online courses in the field of digital marketing.
Digital marketing includes several important components that work together to help brands grow online. Each of these plays a different role, from getting traffic to engaging users and converting them into ideal customers.
SEO stands for search engine optimization, which is all about making your website rank higher on search engines like Google. When people search for something related to your business, SEO helps them find you. SEO focuses on using the right keywords, like digital marketing services, digital marketing course near me, and helps you appear in Google searches without paying for ads and builds a site’s authority by building quality backlinks.
Did You Know?
Google released its June 2025 core update on June 30, which is expected to take up to three weeks, as confirmed by Google’s Search Status Dashboard.For students learning digital marketing, it’s a reminder to create content that puts users first and not just keywords.
2. Social Media Marketing (SMM)
Social Media Marketing entails the utilization of platforms such as Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter to advertise products, engage customers, and establish brand presence. In this digital marketing, you can establish brand communities and target advertisement campaigns on social media platforms such as Instagram, Facebook, Snapchat.
Did You Know?
As of 2025, India has over 491 million social media users, making SMM a powerful tool for reaching new customers.
3. Email Marketing
Email marketing is a powerful way to connect with your audience by sending them useful updates, offers, or content straight to their inbox. It's cost-effective, easy to personalize, and great for building long-term customer relationships.
If you want to master the art of writing emails that convert? Explore upGrad’s Email Marketing Courses and learn how to create impactful campaigns that drive real results.
Did You Know?
For every $1 spent, email marketing returns $36 on average. That's huge ROI!
4. Content Marketing
Do you know it's said that Content is king in digital marketing? Content marketing includes blogs, videos, guides, and infographics that inform or entertain your audience. This form of marketing builds trust and improves SEO. It helps you rank for keywords like digital marketing meaning and what is digital marketing.
In fact, around 76% of marketers use blogging to share content, making this the most popular content marketing strategy ( a significant part of digital marketing) today.
5. Pay-Per-Click (PPC) Advertising
PPC is a model wherein advertisers pay an amount of money each time their ad is clicked.
This form of digital marketing happens on platforms like Google and Meta (Facebook).PPC is highly measurable and adjustable, allowing you to track ROI and optimize performance in real time.
Did You Know?
Approx. 46% of the total clicks were directed towards paid advertisements in search engine results.
6. Affiliate & Influencer Marketing
Affiliate marketing is a performance-based strategy where individuals (called affiliates) promote a company’s products or services through unique links. They earn a commission when someone buys through their link. Popular platforms for affiliate marketing include blogs, YouTube, and Instagram.
On the other hand, Influencer marketing involves partnering with social media influencers who have strong followings on social media sites like instagram and facebook.These influencers promote their products or services through their stories , posts or reels.
Did You Know?
Affiliate marketing has become a multibillion-dollar industry, with brands investing around $12 billion in creator partnerships globally in 2025!
How upGrad Helps You in Digital Marketing?
Now that you understand the key components of digital marketing, it’s clear that standing out in this rapidly changing world requires more than just surface-level knowledge. At upGrad, we help you build a unique and future-ready profile through industry-relevant digital marketing courses designed by top experts.
Here is the list offree digital marketing courses available at upGrad for someone who wants to pursue their career in the digital marketing field.
We are in an era where we see everything is going online today even from a small beauty parlour to a big company like Tata Motors. That’s why the need for digital marketing has grown so high in 2025. From promoting services, reaching new customers, or building a brand, digital marketing has become a crucial part for every business. Because of this, it’s also becoming one of the top career opportunities in 2025.
If you’re planning to make a career in digital marketing, upGrad offers many great options to get started. One such program is the Professional Certificate Program in Digital Marketing and AI with PwC Academy. This digital marketing course is made to skill you with the latest AI marketing techniques, and certifications from top industry leaders like PwC Academy, Google, Meta, and NSDC. And if you’d like to get expert guidance, you may book a free counseling session with us, and our mentors will get in touch with you!
Subscribe to upGrad's Newsletter
Join thousands of learners who receive useful tips
Promise we won't spam!
Elevate your digital marketing skills with our expertly crafted online courses, covering everything from SEO to social media strategy to boost your career.
Advance your career by mastering vital Digital Marketing skills such as conversion rate optimization, digital advertising, CRM tools, and strategic campaign planning.
Get valuable marketing tips and stay updated with trends through our popular Digital Marketing blogs, your go-to resource for actionable strategies and industry news.
Start learning with our free Digital Marketing courses, offering practical knowledge on SEO, email marketing, and more to help you grow your digital presence.
KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) are important metrics that we use to track how well a digital marketing campaign is doing. Common KPIs include website traffic, leads, conversion rates, click-through rate (CTR), cost per lead (CPL), and return on investment (ROI).
2. How does digital marketing work?
Digital marketing works by using the internet and online tools to connect businesses with their target audience. It involves strategies like SEO, social media, content creation, email marketing, and paid ads. These methods help attract users, turn them into leads or customers, and build long-term relationships, all through digital platforms like websites, apps, and social media.
3. What skills do I need to become a successful digital marketer?
To succeed in digital marketing, you need a mix of creative and technical skills. These include SEO, content writing, social media management, email marketing, analytics, and paid advertising. Knowing tools like Google Analytics, Canva, and Facebook Ads is also helpful.
4. Inbound Marketing vs. Digital Marketing – what’s the difference?
Inbound marketing is a part of digital marketing. It focuses on attracting people through useful content like blogs, videos, and social media posts, drawing them in naturally. Digital marketing is a broader term that includes all online marketing strategies—both paid (like ads) and unpaid (like SEO), including inbound methods and more.
5. What are the biggest challenges in digital marketing?
Some key challenges include keeping up with changing algorithms, increasing competition, managing ad budgets, and creating content that stands out. Data privacy regulations and measuring accurate ROI also make digital marketing more complex. Staying updated and experimenting is key to overcoming these issues.
6. What does CPM stand for?
CPM stands for "Cost Per Mille" where "Mille" means thousand in Latin. It’s a pricing model in digital advertising where you pay a fixed amount for every 1,000 impressions your ad gets. It’s commonly used in display advertising to build brand awareness, even if users don’t click on the ad.
7. What is a hashtag in digital marketing?
A hashtag is a word or phrase preceded by a ‘#’ symbol, used on platforms like Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn. Hashtags group similar posts together, making it easier for people to find content on a particular topic. Marketers use hashtags to boost visibility, reach new audiences, and track engagement on social media campaigns.
8. What is CTR in digital marketing?
CTR (Click-Through Rate) is a metric that shows how often people click on your link or ad after seeing it. It’s calculated by dividing the number of clicks by the number of impressions, then multiplying by 100. A higher CTR means your content or ad is engaging and relevant to your audience.
9. How can I do digital marketing?
You can start digital marketing by learning the basics through free resources or online courses. Then, practice by creating social media posts, writing blogs, running small ad campaigns, or building a simple website. Tools like Google Ads, Canva, Mailchimp, and WordPress can help. With experience, you can start freelancing or apply for jobs.
10. Who is the father of digital marketing?
Philip Kotler is widely considered the father of modern marketing, including digital marketing, because of his groundbreaking work in marketing strategies and consumer behavior. He introduced key concepts like the marketing mix (4Ps) and emphasized the importance of customer-centric marketing, which laid the foundation for today’s digital approaches.
11. What are the common mistakes beginners make in digital marketing?
Beginners often ignore target audience research, rely too much on paid ads, skip analytics, or forget to optimize content for mobile. Not testing campaigns or neglecting SEO are also common issues. Learning step-by-step and reviewing results helps avoid these mistakes.
Sriram K is a Senior SEO Executive with a B.Tech in Information Technology from Dr. M.G.R. Educational and Research Institute, Chennai. With over a decade of experience in digital marketing, he specia...
