8 Marketable Blogging Skills To Put On Your Resume

Throughout university, I did not study marketing. I mean, I did have a lecture or  two over the six years I studied, but never enough to spark an interesting in the field nor make me specialize  in marketing. It is really a bit randomly that I got into it. My first internship was in a jewelry startup in London where I got to do social media marketing for the first time. In  all honesty, it was also the first time I used Instagram and Twitter. And although that internship got me into social media, it really is blogging that started my marketing career and allowed me to add those 8 marketable blogging skills to my resume.

I started blogging in 2016. Sure, I had some experience in social media but my blogging skills were really poor. You know what they say. Practice makes it better. And it did. As I blogged, got serious with Instagram, started to use Pinterest, grew in my marketing career, I learnt many marketable blogging skills. Blogging encompasses a lot of disciplines. Social media management of course, content marketing, photography and editing, and many more, which in those days of digital marketing are very important marketable blogging skills to put on your resume.

Add your blog to your resume

Before I delve into each single one of those skills, let’s quickly explain why you should add those 8 marketable blogging skills to your resume and always work to improve them. As I left university and looked for a graduate job, I had no experience. Sure, I did have a few internships in social media but that was not enough. Simply because marketing is a very competitive industry and it can be difficult to stand out. Basically, everybody does internship throughout university. However, my blog did help me to stand out. Because it was something extra I had.

Marketing executives and specialists know what blogging encompasses. Simply because they use blogging in their work probably on a daily basis. Recruiters are always curious and will ask questions. Adding your blog and all the marketable blogging skills associated will give you the chance to shine during the interview. To talk about yourself more, to talk about what you do, the initiative you take. Since blogging comes with a lot of self-learning and self-taught skills, recruiters will also assume that you are quite inquisitive, love to learn but also can work well independently. Furthermore, blogging is for some a money-making business which highlights your entrepreneurship spirit.

I always add my blog to my resume and describe what it entails. That is why I also list those marketable blogging skills that I think are super helpful in the marketing industry and can make you stand out from the competition. Blogging did help me get most of my jobs, since most of my marketing knowledge comes from what I learnt blogging. Which I have applied to the  job. As I grew in my career and learnt more in my jobs as well, I am also applying that fresh knowledge to improving my blog. Now, let’s delve into those 8 marketable blogging skills you should add to your resume!

8 marketable blogging skills to put on your resume

1. Search Engine Optimization or SEO

Search engine optimization is a crucial aspect of content marketing. Now that most things are online, there is a lot of competition on the internet. When people perform a search on Google, they end up with a lot of results. What determines which website ranks first, second or third? Search engine optimization or SEO. In the world where people have an attention span of three whole seconds and are unlikely to go beyond the second page of results on Google, brands know how important it is to rank first.

Bloggers also want their content to rank first of course. Even if you blog for yourself, you still want people to read your content. Thus, you will have learnt that improving your SEO, making your blog SEO-friendly and optimization every single piece of content for SEO will help you rank higher in search results. Which in turn will increase your traffic and reach. Search optimization entails a lot of things from keyword research, to crafting killer post titles, to improving the speed of your website or increase your blog authority. Of course, SEO is not limited to the things mentioned above. It is more than that.

Yet, knowing the basics of SEO through blogging still gives you an edge over the competition. You are already familiar with a critical aspect of marketing and can get to work on it straight away basically. SEO is also a free marketing technic that bring organic traffic. If you kick ass at search engine optimization, you will save your company a lot of money and improve their profitability! And companies do love that!

2. Copywriting

Second of those 8 marketable blogging skills to put on your resume is copywriting. Copywriting is the essence of blogging. You write blog posts to publish on your blog. You share your experience, your story, tips and tricks, etc. Yet, copywriting goes beyond writing articles for your blog. It is also about crafting engaging Instagram captions, putting together great email campaigns, publishing witty and funny tweets, playing with words, creating a brand’s tone of voice.

To be honest, even if you are not in marketing or involved in copywriting, your writing still must be pristine. You are a professional. Spelling mistakes are not an option. In marketing, good writing skills are essential. If you are a copywriter, you will work on product descriptions, website copy and other marketing assets. Social media marketers will work on social ads, captions and any relevant copy. Good copywriting is essential for good SEO. There is always a need for good writing skills.

When you blog, you learn just that. And again, practice makes it better. I am not an English native, yet I always write in English. And not to brag, but I do think I am really good at writing in English. Why? Because I practiced a lot through my blog. As you write, you improve the structure of  your sentences, your spelling, your language skills as well. You also develop a unique writing style, a tone of voice and strengthen your creative writing skills. I believe blogging also gives you the ability to write creatively on a multiplicity of topics, which can help you land a marketing job in any industry!

3. Social media management

Social media goes hand in hand with blogging and it is one of those marketable blogging skills that you should really add to your resume. Because it is a job in itself now. Nowadays, it is very rare that a company that can afford it does not hire a social media manager. Because it is a new field of marketing that evolves every day, changes as we speak, requires a lot of time and research and demands creativity.

As bloggers, we are always looking for new ways to improve our blog and bring in more traffic. One way to do so is to use social media of course. While bloggers most commonly use Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, they also look at other channels to increase their traffic. That is how Pinterest, Mix, Bloglovin, etc came to become part of content marketing strategies. Bloggers know how to use social media. They became very savvy at writing post, delivering content at the best time for more engagement, know how to read their audience and adapt their content.  Bloggers use different channels in different ways, know how to be time and cost efficient with scheduling tools and analytics.

Sure, social media requires constant improvement and learning since a new platform pops up every other day and channel popularity shift regularly. Yet, bloggers are already digital savvy. They are used to learning, being inquisitive, doing their own research, testing things out and putting together successful social media strategies that can help companies both increase traffic to their website as well as improve conversion rate!

4. Content creation and graphic design

Content marketing encompasses a lot of disciplines including social media, SEO, copywriting, emails, etc. To sum up, anything that involves the creation of an asset belongs to content marketing. Bloggers are content creators. First, because blogging evolved  to become content marketing. Second, because they spend their time creating new content.

A blog post is more than writing enough copy to get a good SEO score. Sure, copywriting is a big part but there is more. Images for the post, social media posts, Pinterest pins, maybe an email to send to your subscribers. Some bloggers sell digital products such as e-books. There is also a lot of brainstorming and thinking that goes behind each piece of content. Bloggers have the ability to think creatively, come up with new ideas. Plus, since they are usually a whole marketing team on their own, they had to self-teach a lot of skills that, as it turns out, are essentials to businesses and thus, very marketable.

Graphic design for example. A lot of bloggers learnt graphic design. It is one of the most marketable blogging skills and one that they taught themselves. Some will use Canva, others photoshop or illustrator. The software does not matter. Bloggers know how to draft create briefs and turn their vision into reality. They can design and that is really useful. I do think marketers should not be asked to graphic design when working for a company. Graphic designer is a full-time job. Yet, it is still handy to have the skill.

5. Photography and editing

In this age of digital dominance, it is visual appealing content that wins the day. Thus, photography and editing are both great marketing blogging skills to have. One big cause of high bounce rate is a visually unappealing blog. Appearance and first impression are so important to get people to stay. You want your blog to look good and you want your photos to be stunning. Great imagery does catches the eyes. Not only will beautiful photos keep people on your blog but they will also help you get more followers on Instagram.

As a blogger, you need photos to illustrate your blog posts. Even though stock photos are really helpful, you cannot always use those. Plus, it is better to use your own photos on Instagram. To kill two birds with one stone, you will use your blog photos on Instagram too. And thus, arming yourself with your phone or an actual camera, you will have to get into photography. Sure, the first attempts won’t be brilliant but you will improve as you practice. Plus, you will know how to use editing softwares to improve your photos. At some point, you will have improved enough to consider some of your photos product photography and see brands ask to use them on their social media or website.

Small brands and startup does not always have the budget to hire a professional  photographer. Then, having photography skills can really make you stand out from the competition as you will be able to independently and on your own create original content. I cannot tell you how many time I created original content with my iPhone both indoors and outdoors. We used it on social media, emails, product pages, ads, etc. I would always advocate for hiring a photographer when you can but in the meantime, having some photography skills never hurts. Neither does knowing how to use the Adobe suit and other editing tools.

6. Branding and brand building

Starting a blog comes with a lot of implications that many people are not always aware of. There is brainstorming what you want to blog about, picking your niche (although that’s not necessary), deciding on the overall look of the blog. You need to pick a color theme, a blog template, a font to stick with, a style of imagery. Blogging also involves finding your tone of voice, your writing style and basically creating a brand from scratch. You are the brand. Or blog is an extension of your brand. One way to speak about your brand.

As a blogger, you will come up with a branding strategy, mostly applicable to all the visuals, content and assets associated with your blog and used across channels. You will also work on a content marketing strategy, using all those assets. Something you will also do, and sometimes not even on purpose, is being consistent across all channels. Every single piece of content that you will put out will have your signature, that little vibe that screams of you, this little detail that will make people know it is you. That is being a brand.

Brand management and brand building are essential marketable blogging skills that you can transfer to your daily job or talk about during a job interview. Good branding is what make people remember you. A strong brand is also what sets you apart from the competition. Ultimately, that is what brands want. They want to stand out, they want to be different, show another alternative and beat the competition. Having branding skills is one way to help a brand do that.

7. Computer skills

Seventh of those 8 marketable blogging skills is knowing how to use a computer, sure, but even more priceless, how to manage a website. You will find it ironic in this age of digital marketing but digital skills are across the web still very poor. A lot of people do not have digital skills. Alternatively, when they have some digital skills, they will just have one or two. It think it is a good idea to specialize in one particular field and become an expert. Then, you can move onto a new skills. It is better than having knowledge in a lot of different fields but very superficially.

However, having knowledge of something else on top of what you are excellent at, never hurts. Especially when it is a skill as rare as computer knowledge. It is better to know more than not enough. And you never know when a particular skill of yours might be needed. Especially when you work in digital. When owning your own blog, you will have at one point  encountered some issues with your website. And had to deal with it. So you will have learnt.

Through my blog, I learnt to use WordPress and deal with content management systems, to find good plugins to improve my blog performance. I dabbed into HTML, CSS and Javascript. Plus, I learnt to optimize my blog for speed and SEO. They are small marketable blogging skills that makes you tech-savvy, which companies love. Especially if they don’t have a web developer to change the layout or boost the speed of the website. They are things you can do because you did them on your own blog.

8. Influencer marketing

Last but not least of those 8 blogging marketable skills to put on your resume is influencer marketing. Influencer marketing is a new field in marketing. It came to be with the advent of social media and social media influencers. Now, it is a very big part of marketing strategies. More and more brands use influencer marketing to increase their reach, their social media followers and their revenue.

However, very often, influencer marketing is not leveraged the way it should. Or is not  being dedicated enough time and attention. Very often, brands also do not vet their influencers and partake in due diligence. That is how so often, fake influencers end up being paid thousands without producing any return on investment, which of course is a waste of money.  As a blogger and influencer, you are very aware of all the dodgy practices used by some of your counterparts, know how to spot them and would know not to work with those individuals.

I think being an influencer yourself makes you better suited to hold a position in influencer marketing. You can put yourself in the influencer’s shoes more easily, will know how to approach them, to talk to them and how to set up a collaboration that will be mutually beneficial. You will also be better able to avoid working with fake influencers, to better pick influencers for collaborations and know what metrics to use to judge the ability for a blogger to produce a return on investment. And I think this is very useful for brands and should 100% be on your resume!

Are these all marketable blogging skills you acquired already? Do you agree with this post? Have you put them all on your resume? Have prospective employers been impressed with 8 marketable blogging skills? Do you have any other marketable blogging skills you’d wish to add to this list? 

Thanks for reading. Hope you liked this post.

See you soon,
Love,
Corinne.

Pin me