Interested in studying Social Media Marketing? Keen to dive into the world of content creation? Maybe you’re looking to start your own business but need to wrap your head around marketing yourself first. NZIE’s Diploma in Social Media Marketing is an applied diploma, meaning you’ll get valuable, hands-on experience using current industry tools – from well-known ones like Canva and Adobe Creative Suite (Premiere Pro, Photoshop, InDesign, and similar), to newer AI integrations like ChatGPT, Perplexity, Google Gemini, Microsoft Copilot, to social media management tools like Meta Business suite, TikTok & Google Ads Managers, Notion, and heaps more!
Of course, while you’ll still learn the core theory behind key concepts within digital and social media marketing, hands-on practice makes perfect, and this course is the ideal way for you to get your practice in before heading out to the real world.
Our tutors are experts in their fields, with extensive experience working in all corners of Digital and Social Media Marketing, meaning you can feel free to ask all those tricky questions you might not be able to find answers to if you were attempting to learn this type of content by yourself!
We sat down with NZIE tutor, Matt, who teaches the final paper of the Diploma – “610 – Industry Project” to answer some common questions, as well as what students can expect from his paper and the course in general.
Why choose the NZIE Diploma in Social Media Marketing over similar courses?
The biggest difference between our programme and others is that our course is practical focused. Each week you’ll be working with new tools and each week there will be new learning outcomes tackled. We aim for classes to be as hands on as possible so that when students graduate, they won’t just have an idea on how to use these tools, they’ll actually have the real skills and hands-on experience needed to thrive in the industry.
Who is the Social Media Marketing Diploma designed for?
This course is ideal for somebody who is ready to develop a career in social media and just wants a leg up on the competition. It can be really difficult to jump in the world of digital marketing from nothing, so this course equips our students with the base skills and core knowledge needed to be able to hit the ground running.
What types of jobs can students expect to be equipped for once graduated?
We’re looking at people becoming content creators, whether that’s through roles like digital assistant, marketing assistant, community manager, and heaps more, they will go out and find employment within content creation because that’s where we’re developing a lot of their skills.
It could also be a gateway to other opportunities though, like Social Media Manager, Junior Content Producers, Junior Designers, that kind of thing. For example, if a student finds they really enjoy learning about Paid Ads in the course and wants to pursue that, then a Junior Paid Ads role could be perfect for them. If a student really enjoys the graphic design aspects of the course, then that’s definitely something they can pursue.
Isn’t this the type of stuff I can just teach myself online?
There are YouTube videos online that you can watch and pick up skills from, for sure. However, the thing we offer is an expert that you can talk to directly. Your tutors have years and years of industry experience, they know the frustrations you’re experiencing, the software glitches and work-arounds – and they can troubleshoot with you live. If you need help on a certain topic that a YouTube video might not cover or delve into, our tutors are there to walk you through it.
Another big element of this Diploma is you’ll be learning with fellow students who are going to be going out into those careers with you, so you’re building your network and making really important connections.
How do you incorporate AI into your papers and ensure the content doesn’t become stale?
We’re not just teaching the tools that are current today, we’re teaching the concepts behind those tools. Instead of looking at one AI tool, we’ll give you the skills to become an efficient prompter, which is something that you can take with you as AI develops and grows. We’ll teach you the core concepts so that no matter what emerges over the next 5-10 years, you’ll have the skills needed to get the most out of that tool.
We’re also keeping our course content as up to date as we possibly can. Your tutors are constantly searching for, and learning the latest insights, tools and trends, while each term we’re reviewing course content, updating with new tools and concepts, and removing outdated content that’s no longer relevant. We also offer additional one-off sessions! Let’s say a cool new video tool emerges six months after you start studying, and you’re now no longer taking the video paper. We’ll put together a one-hour workshop where you can come and learn that tool, even though you’ve finished the video paper. So you’ll be able to brush up on a tool that is now relevant in the industry.
Do I really need to be taught about content creation?
A really big misconception around content creation is that you can wake up, have an idea and post it, leading to millions of followers and engagements. What we teach in our programme is creating content with a purpose, content that cuts through the noise and has a strategy behind it. You’ll create content with a goal, that absolutely can still be fun and light, but you’ll know the back-end strategy behind that, and you’ll implement content that aligns with that – which is how you stand above the crowd.
What sorts of assessments will there be?
The aim of this Diploma was to ensure the assessments are hands-on and less theory-focused (we steer clear of long essays!). Each paper has their own specific assessments, but what you learn in each paper comes together in the final part of the course in an “Industry Project”. Students will spend 10 weeks working on their final project, by going out into the real world, connecting with a company (or using one they are already familiar with) work with them to build a marketing plan and then take that marketing plan and develop it into a campaign. They’ll make content, they’ll have a performance plan and it will be all ready to put into action by the time they finish the course. The idea is they’d then be able to go back to their chosen business and say “Hi, here is the finished, complete plan – let’s work together!”
