Top Tips for Integrating Learners into Your Certification Program Marketing

In today's fiercely competitive education arena, learning and training providers constantly seek innovative ways to stand apart from the competition and attract. While traditional tactics like brochures, direct mail and print advertising have been a mainstay of campaigns, the digital age has ushered in a transformation in how training providers can be marketed.

What is truly revolutionary is social media's remarkable power and reach, coupled with the ascendancy of digital marketing. In this new era, learning and training providers like you have the opportunity to harness the influence of their learners and corporate customers.

This blog explores how to use your learners' achievements and the power of digital credentials to propel your marketing efforts to new heights.

Understanding digital credentials

Digital credentials are an effective tool that learning and training organization can leverage in digital marketing campaigns. A smarter, data-rich alternative to traditional paper-based certificates, they serve as certifiable proof of the skills and knowledge learners can gain through the programs.

A digital badge is a tangible representation of a learner’s competencies and provides a way to assess, recognize, and verify a skill, learning, or achievement. Every badge contains verifiable data that confirms what, where, and how someone earned that credential. They complement paper-based certificates, but because they’re online, they’re data-rich.

With the right platform, management, and integration, it’s easy for organizations to create, issue and share digital credentials with their learners. In turn, learners can share their digital badges on social media, embed them into an email signature, resume, or website, or use links for full visibility into their verified abilities.

The shareability of these verifiable achievements and certifications is key to their use in powerful learner endorsement campaigns. The following are two strategies to maximise the impact.

The Power of Social Proof

In the marketing world, the concept of social proof—a term coined in 1984 by author Robert Cialdini— is when “we determine what is correct by finding out what other people think is correct.”

Rooted in psychology, it is the phenomenon where individuals tend to conform to the actions, opinions, and behaviors of others, especially in situations where they might lack information or feel uncertain. For example, research shows that 82% of Americans ask for referrals and recommendations from family and friends before making any kind of purchase.

This psychological concept plays a significant role in shaping our choices, from the products we buy—and the courses we enroll in. As a training provider, you can use personal testimony to influence individuals in choosing their learning pathways. So, how can you harness this concept in your marketing programs?

When an individual shares the digital badge they've earned on their social media profiles or networks, they are not only showcasing their knowledge, skills, and abilities but also promoting your organization and the programs. They become advocates, and with every shared or viewed digital badge, brand reputation as well as reach expands, courtesy of the persuasive force of social proof.

With social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter boasting over 3.6 billion active users, a number projected to soar to 4.4 billion by 2025, it’s evident that the power of social proof is immense.

They not only allow learners to share their recommendations with their often-extensive networks in a short space of time, but they also make it easy for you to leverage the influence of your learners, past and present.

So, you need to encourage learners to share their experiences on social media platforms. One way is to create specific hashtags related to the brand or programs and encourage learners to use them when posting about their achievements.

Building a sense of community

Learners who feel connected to their learning community become brand ambassadors, speaking positively about their experiences and recommending your programs to friends and peers.

And this is ever more vital in today’s connected digital world. Just consider that 69% of millennials cite FOMO (Fear of Missing Out) as their purchase driver, and 85% of Gen Z rely on social media for product discovery.

Digital credentials can help create this sense of community among learners who share a common achievement. When students earn a digital badge or certificate, they join a select group of achievers, and this shared accomplishment creates a sense of belonging.

In addition, these achievements can be shared on a variety of social media and networks, making digital credentials not just a marker of accomplishment but a catalyst for building a vibrant and connected community around your organization.

To nurture this, you can establish online forums social media groups, or even host virtual events exclusively for your credential holders. These spaces provide a platform to connect, share insights, and network.

By fostering this sense of belonging and community among learners, you can effectively leverage the influence of current and former learners to attract new ones, setting themselves apart from the competition.

Digital credentials: A strategic marketing asset

Digital credentials are not just a passing trend but a strategic tool to enhance marketing efforts for learning and training providers. They are more than representations of learner achievement; their shareability and versatility help strengthen credibility, foster learner engagement, and open doors to expanded networking opportunities.

Ask for a demo now to learn how, by implementing digital credentials in your marketing strategy, you can stay competitive and set yourself apart in a crowded market.