Top 3 Best Things You Can do to Get Ahead This Summer
During these unprecedented circumstances, many of us have more free time on our hands. Whether you lost your summer internship, or you are just looking for something to do on the weekend, the QMA has some solutions for you. We have outlined the 3 best things you can do to get ahead this summer and add value to your resume.
1. Online Courses
There are various platforms that allow you to take online business courses for a very low price. Firstly, LinkedIn Learning offers a one-month free trial which allows you to decide whether the platform works for you. They offer courses in all areas of business, such as marketing, advertising, analytics, and more. These courses can range from 30 minutes to 6 hours, which allows you to choose courses based on your availability. Some popular courses include Online Marketing Foundations, Digital Marketing Trends, and Creating Your Personal Brand. Another platform is Udemy, which offers thousands of courses starting at $16.99 CAD each. This website has an entire category dedicated to marketing; some subcategories include branding, content marketing, and growth hacking. The courses range from 30 minutes to 60 hours of content, so you have the opportunity to take a small course that you can complete in one sitting, or a course that will take you a couple of months to complete. Fortunately, Udemy has a lifetime access policy that allows you to have access to your course content forever. Some best selling courses include Social Media Marketing Mastery, Mega Digital Marketing Course, and Marketing Psychology: How To Become A Master Of Influence.
2. Volunteering Opportunities
There are many virtual opportunities to volunteer, which is a great way to get involved and help your community. These opportunities will enable you to develop transferable skills that will help you in your career going forward. Also, it’s a great add to your resume and will diversify your experiences!
Canadian Opportunities: Volunteer Canada has a list of virtual volunteer opportunities including:
Telephone Reassurance Volunteer: Connect with an isolated senior or adult with a disability and bring some light to their day!
Public Relations Specialist: Help support communications efforts and contribute to the development of a media relations, influencer engagement, and social communications strategy.
Writer: Assist with writing marketing and communications documents such as newsletters, request letters, website content, and more.
Volunteer Social Media Specialist: Join an organization’s marketing team to produce and implement social media strategies. You could manage, maintain, and grow an organization’s social media presence on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
Visit https://volunteer.ca/index.php?MenuItemID=419 for an organized list of virtual volunteer opportunities in various regions across Canada.
Global Opportunities: UN Volunteers offers virtual volunteer opportunities in many different categories such as:
Writing and Editing (example: Provide Book Blogging Support to Promote a Newly Released Special Needs Resource Book)
Art and Design (example: Design Promotional Materials to Raise Cancer Awareness)
Project Development and Management (example: Lead the design and implementation of a Virtual Parenting Summit Event)
Leadership and Strategy (example: Communications Strategy Development)
Community Organizing (example: Design a Program that Helps Youth In Africa Raise Money Online to Fund Small Scale Enterprises)
Visit https://www.onlinevolunteering.org/en for a categorized list of global volunteering opportunities that can be completed online. Each volunteer opportunity outlines how many hours are required per week, so you can choose a program based on your availability.
3. Online Conferences
Many industry professionals have been hosting online events during quarantine due to cancelled conferences. This is a huge opportunity for students who wouldn’t normally have the chance to attend these events that occur around the world. We have outlined a list of upcoming online conferences:
MozCon (July 14-15) - This conference includes two full days of action packaged insights and content from some of the best and brightest in the marketing industry. While the world changes around us, SEO doesn't stop — searchers keep on searching, and marketers need to stay sharp to meet their needs. This conference allows you to discover next-level tactics on everything from ranking higher in today's evolving search landscape to making data-driven decisions in your marketing initiatives. This conference usually occurs in Seattle - but this time you can join in your sweatpants from the comfort of your own home! Virtual tickets are $129, which is a steal compared to previous years in-person tickets starting at $999.
GrowthHackers Conference (September 1-2 at 11:30am - 10pm EST) - This two-day event offers one FREE day of live streaming. This conference is focused on pushing the boundaries of growth innovation, with helpful tips for growth-stage startups to large public corporations. Some large companies that have embraced growth hacking include Wal-Mart, IBM, and Microsoft, who recognize that their stock prices are driven by customer and revenue growth and want to tap into the potential that the growth hacking process has delivered for their upstart competitors. This year’s speaker lineup includes Nancy Hensley from IBM, Hila Qu from Gitlab and Rachid Harrassi from StubHub.