Classroom teaching is not just about teaching theoretical concepts. It is about involving students and making them participate in the classroom discussions. This is how students find interest and relate the subject to their day-to-day activities.

Once, I asked my students, “What are the different modes where you see advertisements?” The response was prompt – Instagram reels, food delivery apps, online shopping platforms, YouTube videos, and many more. This one simple question made the students realise that marketing is linked with every digital experience of the day.

Now the discussion further raised many questions in students’ minds: Who created these campaigns? How are they created? What skills are required for such creations? What degree do we need to pursue for entering this career path?

A BBA in Digital Marketing is designed around these new business realities. A BBA in Digital Marketing relates fundamentals of management with online and technological aspects of marketing. It acts as a medium to help students gain knowledge in promotion, advertising, social media, data mining, and data analysis.

The curriculum starts with the basic and foundational subjects of management, like organisational behaviour, economics, accounting, communication, entrepreneurship, etc. Later, the students are introduced to the specialised subjects of digital marketing. The basics of management help in laying a strong foundation for the students, which can further be applied to different aspects of the business.

Then, the specialised subjects related to digital marketing, like Social Media Marketing (SMM), Web Analytics & Data Visualisation, Content Strategy & Marketing, Email & Mobile Marketing, and E-Commerce Marketing, are taught to the students, which helps them to gain expertise in their respective specialisations.

Now let me ask you a simple question: What if the classroom is just the teacher coming to the class and delivering the lecture? It becomes so monotonous and boring for the students. Also, it is so difficult for the students to concentrate. Hence, just classroom teaching is not sufficient. They need to be backed by various engaging classroom activities to provide better understanding of what is being taught. If we talk about digital marketing, activities like designing a digital campaign, website creation, and promotion techniques serve the purpose. The students give their inputs and suggestions, and the discussions help to improve presentation, negotiation, and team-handling skills.

These activities, backed by case studies, real-world examples, and marketing simulations, further make the course more interesting. Students can easily relate through these examples what has been taught to them in the class and what the different solutions can be in each situation. Also, internships are included in the curriculum, which change students’ perspectives to a great extent.

One of my students highlighted how her mindset changed after her internship at a marketing agency, and she realised that digital marketing is such a broad area, including audience tracking, data analytics, customer perception, optimisation, etc.

The industry-academia interface through guest lectures, industrial visits, and corporate projects helps bridge the gap between what is taught and how things are applied. This keeps students updated with the latest trends, changing needs and technology upgradation.

Beyond these, there is another important aspect which we usually fail to teach to our students, i.e., ethical values. Digitalisation has broadened the domain into which an individual can work, but as teachers it is our responsibility to help them know what is right and what is wrong. Students need to know which things are unethical and are to be avoided.

Now in each class students come from different backgrounds and different cultures. Peer discussion and learning contribute significantly to their overall development. I prefer giving group assignments to the students in class, the reason being that it gives a platform to students to discuss their ideas, resolve disputes, and reach a consensus while appreciating each other’s opinions. This is what happens in corporates and businesses. Participation of students in management fests, club activities, and networking events helps in interacting with new individuals and building better connections.

Now, coming to career opportunities in BBA Digital Marketing, the scope is remarkably wide. After graduating, students can work as digital marketing executives, content analysts, social media managers, e-commerce executives, customer relationship managers, marketing consultants, etc. Later, with gain of experience, more leadership roles can be taken. Also, students can start their business related to digital media platforms and digital consultants.

Hence, it can be summarised that a BBA in Digital Marketing is a course that goes with the current market trends. It introduces students to the fundamentals of management and later helps them gain specialised knowledge related to their specialised area. I have seen the transition among students: entering the classroom at the start of the programme with enthusiasm and curiosity and then learning and developing their skills to provide thoughtful ideas to the organisations in the future. This transformation is what we teachers need to see in our students, and through a BBA in digital marketing, we hope to make our students aligned towards changing market trends and customer needs.

Author
Dr. Tania Mengi
Assistant Professor (Sr. Scale)
Department of Management & Commerce
The NorthCap University