St Louis Web Marketing

I am one of the few and lucky graduates of Spring 2009 that actually received my degree and got a job in my field within three months of graduation. “Advertising, so you write commercials and stuff?” is often a response when I tell people the industry I belong to.  I usually laugh, because that is a common stereotype for those of us in advertising and marketing. Honestly, it is those stereotypes that lead me to choose my major in the first place. While, I didn’t learn how to write funny commercials in class, I will say that I did not learn how to do what I am doing now either.

I am a web marketing account manager for an internet marketing firm.  Search engine optimization, social media, and Google Analytics are apart of my daily vocabulary at my new job, but I never heard one of those terms during my four years at an accredited University.  Schools are still teaching students about the ancient traditional media and are not training pupils on internet marketing or even mentioning the growing technology. Perhaps it is because it is a new genre that professors do not even understand, but in my opinion it needs to become a part of the curriculum sooner than later.

Having a degree no longer sets you apart from the eager job seekers, but knowledge and experience sure does. And in an industry that is constantly growing, employers are looking for those who know more than then they do. If Universities really want to stand out for their marketing programs, they should really begin teaching about internet marketing, search engine marketing, and social media. Soon enough they will realize that traditional media is yesterday’s medium, and internet marketing is the advertising of the future. Schools, students, and the industry are sure to benefit from these changes. At least until something else comes along…

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