Content marketing is a marketing strategy that involves creating media that is compelling to a particular group with the aim of attracting new - and engaging current - customers. Well-placed content addressing the specific needs of your target audience can establish an awareness and authority of your brand while providing them with the information, products, or services they are looking for.

Content marketing is important to learn about because it can be more effective and less expensive than traditional marketing approaches. Instead of searching for your customers with the paid advertising associated with outbound marketing, this approach uses compelling content, SEO optimized copywriting, and eye-catching multimedia on websites, blogs, and social media platforms as part of an inbound marketing strategy. And, with new channels such as podcasting and influencer marketing, content marketers have the ability to engage customers in more ways than ever.

A background in content marketing can inform many different career paths. Since so much content still depends on good writing, including researched articles, in-depth interviews, and scripts for video blogs and podcasts, talented copywriters are often essential to this strategy. Social media specialists as well as SEO specialists are also crucial to content marketing campaigns.

Marketing managers oversee all of an organization’s digital media campaigns, including their content marketing strategies. They are responsible for managing the research, creation, and presentation teams that execute marketing campaigns as well as working with sales, public relations, and product development departments. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, they make a median salary of $135,900 per year, and their job growth is expected to be faster than the average for all occupations due to the ever-increasing growth of Internet-based marketing.

Absolutely! Coursera has a wide range of online courses and Specializations on content marketing and related topics like social media marketing, digital marketing, and search engine optimization (SEO). And, because Coursera offers content marketing-related courses from top-ranked schools including the University of California, Davis, Northwestern University, and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, you won’t have to sacrifice the quality of your education to learn about content marketing online.

You’ll be doing the same coursework as on-campus students, but at a significantly lower tuition. And, with virtual office hours and collaborative student projects, you’ll be able to explore content creation from a broad diversity of perspectives.