If you think you know some careers that are lucrative think again.
Industries go from boom to bust all the time, and entire segments can disappear overnight. Recent developments like department store Debenhams being bought by online retailer Boohoo, show a clear shift of work online into the digital sphere.
So instead of basing your career choices on assumptions, make sure that you look at the numbers and the future prospects. Have a look at the infographic below to see jobs that didn’t exist 20 years ago to understand why it’s important to think carefully about your career path:
As you can see, many job roles that emerged from the digital revolution such as social media manager or digital analytics manager, continue to rise in demand. So, look at your strengths and weaknesses, take your interests and talents into consideration and look at popular job profiles that are in high demand to determine areas where you could thrive.
What to Consider for your Future Career Path?
You must find a compromise between your dream role and remuneration. Going for the money only is a sure-fire roadmap to unhappiness. Instead choosing a career that is future proof and purposeful will provide you with several options down the line to lead a fulfilled life.
According to Youthemployment.org the current number of 16-24-year-olds in employment is 3.53 million and 581,000 16-24-year-olds are unemployed as of October 2020. Unemployment has increased during the pandemic and you should ensure that you opt for a field of work that would survive a crisis like this.
Working freelance is a growing trend and a great way of getting experience whilst on a job search. Depending on the skills that you possess, there are a range of freelance job websites that you can sign up to. You may even consider this while you are studying.
The most sought-after job roles on job sites like People Per Hour or Upwork are web developers and designers, content writers, virtual assistants, and digital marketers. If you’re looking to get into education then check out online tutoring and teaching jobs as the demand for remote learning rises. Have a look around and see if there are any job roles for the skills you are competent in, but as you can see, digital skills are required in most of these.
Why learn Digital Skills for a Successful Future Career? – Top 5 Reasons
1. Digital Skills are in High Demand:
Many governments around the world are trying to narrow the digital skills gap between digital natives and non-natives. Increasingly more jobs are online and require at least some basic computing and digital skills like email management, Microsoft knowledge etc. The digital nomad lifestyle revolution has arrived and is here to stay for the foreseeable future. This is still not common knowledge, but many influencers earn a very competitive income with their online presence and through social media. This can be a side hustle while one still studies or works in a secure position, but it can be a full-time occupation.
2. Good Career Prospects:
Companies know how valuable digital networks and the Internet are and understand the significant role digital skills and marketing play to reach a broader client base, grow a business, and increase profits. Planning and managing a business online, running marketing campaigns, and managing advertising strategies are digital marketing specialists’ activities to produce business growth. That is why there will continue to be greater demand for digital skills, but they are equally important for every individual establishing themselves online as an expert. According to a 2017 survey by CareerBuilder, 70% of employers use social media to screen candidates before making a hiring decision. Presenting yourself online will hugely influence your career opportunities.
3. More Freelancing Business Opportunities:
You can start an online business yourself if you learn digital skills. They will enable anyone to receive freelancing projects through the work portfolio and successes they have achieved in the digital realm. More people opt to become their own boss with around 4.8 million freelancers in the UK and 57 million freelancers in the US according to Upwork in 2019. It is therefore clear that the demand for digital skills is growing in the job market as well as in the freelance domain.
4. Good Pay:
Employers are willing to pay more for certified and well-trained digital marketers. Depending on your experience and expertise, you will obtain better positions in a company or grow your own online business, increasing your pay or revenue. It is certainly an attractive field with various digital marketers starting out with an annual salary of $45,000 on average. Combining employment and freelancing opportunities can lead to an even better and more reliable income stream.
5. Career with good Future Prospects:
Once you have learned the essential online skills and marketing tactics and have set up a portfolio or website, you are ready to go. If you wish to become a digital marketer, it’s relatively easy to enter the digital marketing field and establish yourself either together with a company or on your own. Knowing how to use online platforms like YouTube or creating your blogs and doing affiliate marketing, you can easily create your own projects on the side. If you understand how this works, you will know where you can make a more significant effort to meet your target audience and which marketing platforms work best for you. You will also have the know-how to grow your website and your online presence to reach a wider audience. This will provide you various options for employment or freelance opportunities so that you can generate income through different channels and not only rely on one income.
Prepare for the Future of Work
The future of work is digital and even the OECD recognises this stating on their website:
DIGITALISATION AND GLOBALISATION HAVE SPARKED RADICAL SHIFTS IN HOW WE LIVE AND WORK. THE CORONAVIRUS (COVID-19) CRISIS HAS ACCELERATED THESE BEYOND ANYTHING WE COULD HAVE IMAGINED.
The eLearning platform SeekaHost University can equip you with vital digital skills like SEO, blogging or social media marketing and more. Join the SeekaHost University for FREE today and start your online career, no matter which niche or career you are interested in! Any field and industry require digital experts, so be ready!
Author bio:
Manuela Willbold – Online Media and PR strategist at ClickDo Ltd. and SeekaHost Ltd.
I am the editor in chief of various blogs and handle press releases and content writing. I have taken a summer course at the London School of Journalism, a one-day course at the City of London University in writing for the web and am myself a course instructor at the SeekaHost University where I teach SEO content writing.
