How to Become a Digital Analyst At Home

Learn how to become a Digital Analyst from home. You can learn the skills necessary to work on digital marketing campaigns and utilize data analytics through a variety of paid and free online resources. While many Digital Analysts have a bachelor’s degree, it is also possible to take classes online and remotely to learn the necessary skills and gain the right certifications for this career path. Whether you are a self-motivated learner or looking to upskill and move into this line of work, you can find the right training to become a Digital Analyst from home. 

What is a Digital Analyst?

A Digital Analyst collects and analyzes digital marketing data to aid a business in optimizing their digital performance and sales. Digital Analysts, also sometimes called Digital Marketing Analysts, are tasked with gathering and analyzing all manner of data from an organization’s various channels across websites, social media, applications, emails, and advertisements as it relates to who uses what digital asset and how, along with information about market saturation, trends, performance, and sales. Digital Analysts must analyze and make sense of this data to write reports, create dashboards, and generate presentations that communicate vital insights about an organization’s current digital performance and effectiveness, make predictions about future outcomes, and build strategies for more effective and competitive performance.

Many companies employ full-time and part-time Digital Analysts and it is also a career that one can do as a freelancer. Whether working singularly or with other Digital Analysts, this job has a unique role in analyzing a company’s data and preparing easy-to-understand reports for stakeholders and those from other departments and will need to communicate and work well with others in marketing, sales, and finance departments. Often, Digital Analysts will need to prepare reports daily, weekly, and/or monthly to communicate key insights into the customer’s digital experience and the effectiveness of the business’s current and future digital marketing strategies. As such, Digital Analysts need to have excellent communication and presentation skills, along with their ability to analyze detailed datasets and make predictions based on this information. 

Can I Learn to be a Digital Analyst from Home?

Yes, you can learn to be a Digital Analyst from home. There are an increasing number of resources and classes being offered for those who either need more flexible options or who want to pursue an education outside of a traditional four-year college degree program. Even many colleges and universities are starting to offer remote and part-time options as the needs of their student populations change. You can find a variety of free and paid resources online that aim to teach the basics of digital marketing and data analytics and that provide in-depth training on how to master specific strategies or important software you will need as a Digital Analyst.

What are the Advantages of Learning from Home?

One of the main advantages of learning from home is the ability to learn at your own pace and on your own schedule. Learning from home allows you to decide when and how you access a course and its material. Many online resources and classes are better able to cater to someone with a busy schedule as there are options to take self-paced on-demand classes or choose when to take a live online class. Additionally, at-home learning is a great option for someone looking to learn part-time as there are an increasing number of part-time education options one can access online and from the convenience of home. 

Another important advantage of at-home learning is that it is often more cost-effective to learn from home than to pursue a traditional college or university degree program. Though many still find an in-person college education useful, you can find high-quality education and training programs that are offered remotely and for a lot less money than an in-person class. There are many free and paid digital resources and classes that one can utilize to learn how to become a Digital Analyst from home. Many people are deciding to pursue remote, at-home education and it is a great alternative for those who need a more flexible and economic option. 

What are the Disadvantages of Learning from Home?

One of the primary challenges of at-home learning is that you must be self-motivated. Learning at home is a great option for those who do not need to face external pressure to accomplish a goal. Often, when learning at home you will be in charge of what material you cover and how much time you devote to your studies. This can present an obstacle and if you are someone who has a hard time forcing yourself to get things done, you should consider remote classes that are offered live and at the same time for all students. These types of classes will offer the structure necessary to learn the material and complete the course, though how and when you take these classes will be less flexible and you will need to commit to taking the class over a specific period of time. 

What Resources are Available to Help Me Become a Digital Analyst at Home?

You can find a variety of free and paid resources to help you become a Digital Analyst at home. Free resources are great for helping you to learn specific skills or software programs while on-demand classes will offer you a convenient, self-paced learning option. Live online classes offer the structure of a traditional college or university course with the convenience and cost-effectiveness of at-home learning. As you consider which resource works best for you, you should weigh the costs and benefits of each type of resource as well as determine who or what is providing the resource and what you want the class or training to provide for you. 

Free Resources

There are a variety of free resources available for those looking to learn about digital marketing and data analytics from home. You can find free comprehensive training certificates and programs from a variety of providers online. To find these, search for digital marketing resources or data analytics resources--you will need to know both to become a Digital Analyst. Many of the most useful free resources are focused on providing more information or training on a specific skill or type of software. As a Digital Analyst, you will need to know about social media marketing strategies, SEO, SQL, Google Analytics, pay-per-click advertising, Tableau, and more. When looking for free resources, you will have the most luck finding quality videos, guides, classes, presentations, and training programs if you search by discrete skills rather than trying to learn all of digital marketing or data analytics from one resource. Stick with well-known and proven providers and know that some services offer their own free resources and training programs, for example, Google offers training on how to use Google Ads and Google Analytics and Facebook offers free training on how to advertise on Facebook and Instagram. 

The main limitations of using only free resources to become a Digital Analyst are the potential for finding low-quality resources and receiving misinformation or conflicting information. There are so many different resources online that it can be hard to find the ones that provide real and useful information and that offer actual skills-based training that you will need. You might find that one lecture suggests a certain technique for digital marketing on Instagram, for example, and that conflicts directly with what another resource says. In a class, you could usually ask an instructor for clarification or further information on any conflicting information, but this is something you cannot usually do with a free resource. 

On-Demand Classes

On-demand classes are self-paced classes that allow individuals to access the course material when they want. Instead of meeting for a set time as a class or with other students, these classes usually consist of pre-recorded lectures, videos, readings, presentations, and other material that you can access on your own. On-demand classes often do not require essays or projects to be completed as a course requirement, though many do include skills checks and quizzes where you can test your knowledge of the material before moving on to a new unit. This mode of instruction is beneficial for those who value learning at their own pace and around their own schedule. On-demand classes allow you to speed up and skip material that you already know but slow down, repeat, and closely study important material that might be more challenging to master. 

A limitation of these classes is the lack of one-on-one guidance from an expert instructor. While there might be an expert instructor who has put the course together and provided the material for the course, these classes often do not have a live or accessible instructor to give feedback or answer a student’s question. Similarly, you are not learning alongside other students when taking an on-demand class, so you miss out on some of the peer-to-peer guidance and networking opportunities of an in-person or live online classroom setting. 

Live Online Classes and Bootcamps

Another great at-home education option is a live online class or bootcamp. The live aspect of this type of course means that while it is still remote and online, you will receive expert instruction and take the course at the same time as other students. These classes closely mirror the experience of taking a class in person and often include similar course requirements. While these courses are not free, they are one of the best ways to get training outside of a four-year college or university degree program and they are offered by many reputable education providers. 

To maximize the benefit of a live online class, look for one taught by an expert in the field who will provide not only up-to-date knowledge but also guided training and feedback. Your ability to access an expert and get their feedback on your skills, projects, and assignments is the main advantage of this type of class. A good online class should give you practical, real-world examples of successful strategies other Digital Analysts have used as well as provide experience working on real projects. Hands-on and project-based courses are important for allowing you to try out the skills you have been learning in class and they can be used in your portfolio to show to potential employers and clients. 

The main limitation of this type of class is that it is less flexible. For a live online class, you will have to commit to attending the course over a specific number of hours, days, or weeks and this schedule often cannot be adjusted for your particular circumstances. Additionally, a live online class costs more than many on-demand classes because you are paying for access to and training from an expert. A quality live online class with make up for the higher cost not only through live instruction but individualized feedback and mentoring. These classes can not only offer superior training but they can be a great place to network with others who already have experience working as a Digital Analyst or others like you who are gaining this experience and just starting as a Digital Analyst. Either way, these people can form a support network as you look for potential clients and continue to build your resume and work portfolio. 

Learn the Skills to Become a Digital Analyst at Noble Desktop

Noble Desktop offers a variety of certificate programs and shorter, skills-based bootcamps to get you started on the pathway to becoming a Digital Analyst. To learn comprehensive digital marketing skills over a short period of time, consider pursuing Noble’s Digital Marketing Certificate program which can be taken in person in New York City or live online. During this program, you will learn the basic tenets of digital marketing across different platforms, including all major social media platforms, blogs, and email, as well as what you need to know about search engine optimization (SEO), how to track and analyze key performance data utilizing data analytics, and how to implement paid advertising. During this program, you will receive expert one-on-one mentoring as you work on real projects to improve your digital marketing skills. 

Additionally, Noble Desktop offers a complete Data Analytics Certificate program, which can be taken part-time or full-time, either live in New York City or remotely online from any location. This comprehensive, project-based certificate program teaches how to analyze and visualize data and includes units covering Excel, SQL, Python, and Tableau. The Data Analytics Certificate is a great option for someone who either needs training on how to interpret data as a Digital Analyst or someone looking to transition into more data analysis work. Similar to the Digital Marketing Certificate, you will receive expert instruction and mentoring during this course. 

If you are looking to learn specific skill sets quickly, consider taking a bootcamp. Bootcamps are a great option for those needing to upskill or quickly learn about a more specialized topic. Consider taking any of Noble’s marketing-related bootcamps, like those offered for individual social media platforms (TikTok Marketing, Instagram Marketing, Facebook Marketing, LinkedIn Marketing, and Social Media Marketing: Blogs and Twitter) and skills such as Content Marketing, Email Marketing, and Search Engine Optimization. 

Noble also offers a bootcamp to learn the basics of three important tools you will need for data analytics as a Digital Analyst, Microsoft Excel, SQL, and Tableau, in their Data Analytics Technologies Bootcamp. If you need to learn how to utilize just one or two of these tools, you can also take a bootcamp for each individually: Excel for Data Analytics, SQL Bookcamp, and Tableau Bootcamp.