Digital Business

Digital Marketing & Social Media Management

Plan, create, run and measure digital marketing — social media content, short video, SEO, paid ads, WhatsApp and email — for real local businesses and organisations.

Level: Beginner–Intermediate Beginner: 4 weeks • Intermediate: 8 weeks Contact for pricing

Prerequisites

No marketing experience needed for the Beginner level; learners should be comfortable with a smartphone and social media apps. The Intermediate level requires the Beginner level or a portfolio of social media work.

Certificate

Awarded by Rescue Academy on successful completion of the program's assessments and final project.

Learn Online — Live Classes

Register, receive your schedule, and join live instructor-led Digital Marketing & Social Media Management classes on Zoom. Assignments, instructor feedback, and a certificate on completion.

Learn In Person

Attend Digital Marketing & Social Media Management classes in person in Juba with hands-on labs, instructor mentorship, and a certificate on completion.

What You'll Learn

Marketing foundations: channels, goals and customer personas
Content calendars, Canva design and captions
Short-form video for TikTok and Reels with a smartphone
Meta and Google Ads: objectives, targeting, budgets and testing
SEO, Google Business Profile, WhatsApp Business and email
Analytics, UTMs, dashboards and honest client reporting

Program Objectives

Plan marketing from goals and audience research rather than guesswork
Create consistent, on-brand content and short-form video with free, phone-friendly tools
Run small, disciplined paid campaigns on Meta and Google
Improve local search visibility and reach customers directly through WhatsApp and email
Measure results honestly and report them to clients and managers

Who It's For

Small-business owners and entrepreneurs who market their own business
Young people seeking social media management or freelance marketing work
Communications and outreach staff in NGOs, schools and churches
Sales and customer-service staff moving into marketing roles

Where You'll Use It

Retail, hospitality, beauty and other small businesses
NGO communications, awareness and outreach campaigns
Schools, training centres and events
E-commerce and WhatsApp-based selling
Freelance social media management for local and remote clients

Curriculum

Instructor-led, practical training. Each level is a block of 4, 8 or 12 weeks; every module ends with a practical activity and an assessment, and every level with a project.

Beginner

4 weeks · 54 guided hours · 6 modules Free taster lessons available Level overview

Module 1: Digital Marketing Foundations 8 h

Understand what digital marketing is, the main channels, and how to set goals and describe the customer before posting anything. 3 lessons

Module 2: Content Planning and Social Media Creation 10 h

Plan a content calendar and create posts that are on-brand, useful to the audience and suited to each platform. 3 lessons

Module 3: Meta Advertising Fundamentals 10 h

Understand how Facebook and Instagram advertising works and set up a small, well-targeted campaign responsibly. 3 lessons

Module 4: Short-Form Video for TikTok and Reels 8 h

Plan, film and edit short vertical videos on a smartphone that hold attention and support marketing goals. 3 lessons

Module 5: Brand Consistency Across Channels 8 h

Keep a business recognisable and trustworthy everywhere it appears online. 3 lessons

Module 6: Social Media Insights and Reporting Basics 10 h

Read platform insights, track simple KPIs and report results honestly to a business owner. 3 lessons

Level project: Social Media Launch Plan for a Local Business

Intermediate

8 weeks · 100 guided hours · 6 modules Level overview

Module 1: Market Research, Personas and Campaign Strategy 16 h

Research the market and competitors and turn findings into a campaign strategy with objectives, budget and KPIs. 3 lessons

Module 2: Search Visibility: SEO and Google Business Profile 18 h

Help customers find the business on Google Search and Maps with sound, ethical SEO practices. 3 lessons

Module 3: Paid Campaigns on Meta and Google Ads 20 h

Plan, launch, test and optimise paid campaigns with controlled budgets and clear measurement. 4 lessons

Module 4: WhatsApp Business and Email Marketing 14 h

Reach customers directly with permission-based messaging that respects privacy and avoids spam. 3 lessons

Module 5: Web Analytics and Campaign Measurement 16 h

Track where results come from and present them in a simple dashboard. 3 lessons

Module 6: Digital Marketing Campaign Studio 16 h

Execute, monitor and report the integrated level-project campaign under instructor supervision. 3 lessons

Level project: Integrated Campaign for a Local Client

Final practical project

Digital Marketing Campaign Portfolio

Each learner presents a portfolio built around a client case study: the research and strategy, the content and ads created, the campaign as executed, measured results and recommendations — demonstrating they can plan and run marketing for a real organisation.

Deliverables

Client case study: research summary, persona and campaign strategy
Content samples: designed posts, a short video and ad creatives
Evidence of execution: calendar, ad set-ups, Business Profile/SEO changes and messaging plan
Results dashboard and an honest final report
A 10-minute portfolio presentation

Assessed on

Strategic thinking: decisions follow from research and objectives
Content quality and brand consistency
Correct, policy-compliant use of platforms and ad tools
Accurate measurement and honest reporting of results
Ethical practice and professional client communication

Worked Examples

A selection of the visual, practical examples used in this program's lessons — each teaches a different skill.

Free Course: Digital Marketing Starter

A free introduction to marketing a business online: the digital marketing mix, planning social content, how paid ads work, short-form video, consistent branding and reading your results. Free, self-study, about 6 hours — no certificate. The full program above is taught live by an instructor, with practical assignments, assessments and a certificate.

Open the free course

Tools & Technologies

Primary Tools

Meta Business Suite and Ads Manager — Facebook and Instagram publishing, insights and advertising Practice: Scheduling, insights, campaign structure, budgets
Canva — Free, browser- and phone-based design for posts, stories and brand kits Practice: On-brand post and story design
WhatsApp Business — Catalogues, quick replies, labels and broadcast lists for direct selling Practice: Customer service and permission-based messaging

Supporting Tools

CapCut and TikTok — Smartphone video editing and short-form publishing Practice: Scripting, filming, captioning and editing vertical video
Google Business Profile and Google Search Console — Local search visibility and website search performance Practice: Profile optimisation, reviews, on-page SEO checks
Google Forms / KoboToolbox and Google Sheets — Low-cost customer research and KPI tracking Practice: Surveys, trackers and simple analysis

Professional / Industry Tools

Google Ads and Google Analytics 4 — Search advertising and website measurement Practice: Keyword campaigns, UTMs, key events and acquisition reports
Looker Studio — Free dashboards that combine campaign data Practice: Client-ready reporting
Email marketing platform (free tier) — Consent-based newsletters and campaigns Practice: Sign-up forms, templates, deliverability basics

Career Opportunities

Social media assistant or social media manager
Digital marketing assistant in a business or agency
Communications or outreach assistant in an NGO
Freelance content creator or social media manager
Marketing for your own business

Practical Projects

Social Media Launch Plan for a Local Business — persona, content calendar, posts, short video, ad plan and KPI tracker (Beginner level project)
Integrated Campaign for a Local Client — strategy, SEO/Business Profile, paid test, WhatsApp/email and results dashboard (Intermediate level project)
Digital Marketing Campaign Portfolio with a client case study (final project)

Problem-Solving Focus

Problem: A small business has almost no advertising budget but needs to reach real customers

Approach: Prioritize free organic content and direct WhatsApp Business engagement first, and only add a small, tightly targeted ad budget once organic content has shown what actually resonates.

Problem: A campaign runs on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok, but posting the identical content everywhere gets weak results on some platforms

Approach: Adapt format and tone per platform — native-feeling vertical video for TikTok, curated feed posts for Instagram — instead of cross-posting the same asset unchanged everywhere.

Problem: A business posts regularly but has no idea whether any of it is actually working

Approach: Check Meta Business Suite Insights and Google Analytics on a regular schedule and adjust the content plan based on what the numbers actually show, not gut feeling.

Problem: Customers message a business page constantly, but replies are slow and inconsistent

Approach: Use WhatsApp Business features — a catalog, quick replies, broadcast lists — to respond faster and more consistently, instead of treating every message as a one-off.

Ready to register for Digital Marketing & Social Media Management?