7 Digital Marketing Skills That Let Me Work From Pretty Much Anywhere

I’m writing this from a café that’s pretending to have strong internet while my laptop gasps for connection like it’s running a marathon. I keep forgetting why I even come here, right, I like the noise? No, I think I actually don’t like the noise. Anyway, I wanted to talk about something that basically changed my whole work life, but changed it in a weird, messy, stop-and-start way.

I guess the simplest version is: I learned a bunch of digital marketing skills, and they started making me money. Not huge yacht money (I get seasick anyway), but enough that I don’t have to panic every Sunday night about office life.

Oh wait, I should probably start at the beginning. Or maybe not the beginning, but somewhere near it.

1. Social Media Stuff (I Still Don’t Know What To Call It)

I used to think social media managers spent all day sipping iced coffee and planning aesthetic grids. The truth is closer to: “Why is this post not getting reach?” followed by staring at analytics until your eyes melt.

My first “client” was actually my cousin who runs a small dessert shop. I posted a picture of brownies, wrote something like “warm chocolate happiness,” and somehow people liked it enough that she got a few new customers. She paid me in… brownies, not money. But it counted. Sort of.

Then someone else asked me to handle their page. And then someone else. And suddenly I wasn’t just a random person scrolling, I was someone who could earn money doing it.

(Side note: scheduling posts at 2am because you forgot earlier is… not glamorous. I’m just saying.)

2. Writing (Which I Thought I Was Terrible At)

I’ve always been the person who overthinks every word. Sometimes I write a sentence, delete it, rewrite it, then realize I wrote the same thing again. But apparently businesses like people who can write like humans instead of robots reading from instruction manuals.

One time I wrote a blog about a skincare brand and accidentally mentioned the smell reminded me of my grandmother’s cupboard. They loved it. I still don’t understand why.

Writing online isn’t about being perfect. It’s more like being clear-ish and sounding like someone who actually exists.

Oh, wait, I already said something similar earlier. Whatever, keeping it.

3. SEO… Which Sounds Boring But Isn’t (Most Days)

I used to think SEO was only for people who enjoy spreadsheets. Turns out it’s kind of like solving a puzzle, except sometimes the puzzle changes shape while you’re solving it.

My first win was helping a local store show up on Google when people searched for “cheap plants near me.” The store owner hugged me. It was awkward but also kind of sweet.

Sometimes SEO feels like magic. Other times it feels like screaming into the void. Both are normal.

4. Emails (The Ones You Actually Want To Open)

I started writing email newsletters for a small fitness coach. My first subject line was “Hey… quick thing.” Somehow it got great open rates. Maybe because it sounded like a friend texting?

Email is basically writing tiny stories that trick people into reading more. And honestly, half the time it works because the internet has trained us to click anything that looks slightly suspicious.

One time I sent an email to the wrong segment and a bunch of people thought they were getting a free workshop. They weren’t. I had to fix that mess while sweating so much my keyboard was basically a swimming pool. But I learned from it.

Sort of.

5. Running Ads (Scary At First)

Ads were the one thing I swore I’d never touch. Too much pressure: “Spend this money but don’t mess it up.”

Then one brand basically begged me to try. I ran a small ad for $50 and they got five sales. They called me a genius, which is hilarious considering I was panicking the entire time and double-checking every button like I was defusing a bomb.

Ads are weird, they’re simple but also complicated, and sometimes they work for no reason at all. Or don’t work for no reason at all.

Contradiction? Yes. Accurate? Also yes.

6. Basic Design (Mostly Me Faking It Till It Looked Decent)

I’m not a designer. My drawings look like a potato tried to sketch another potato. But Canva exists, and honestly, Canva has saved more careers than coffee.

I made social posts, little banners, simple logos. Nothing fancy. But people liked them because they were clean and not the chaotic clipart nonsense some businesses still post.

One brand hired me only because I knew how to make their fonts match. Imagine being paid just for that. Beautiful.

7. Building Simple Websites (I Still Panic When Something Breaks)

My first website took me three weeks because I kept hitting the wrong settings and breaking the layout. I nearly quit. But the client ended up loving it, mostly because it finally had proper buttons that worked.

After that, building websites became easier. Still stressful, but easier. The best part is that people really do pay well for it, even basic sites.

One guy said, “I don’t care how it looks, I just need it working,” which was probably the most refreshing thing anyone has ever said to me in this field.

The Point, If I Even Have One

I didn’t start with some grand plan. I just learned one skill, then another, then kind of stumbled into offering full digital marketing solutions without realizing I was doing it.

Sometimes I still feel like I’m winging everything. Other times I feel strangely proud, like, wow, I made rent this month because I wrote emails and fixed broken buttons.

And there are contradictions in this life:

I wanted freedom but sometimes I miss routine.

I wanted to work anywhere but sometimes I want to stay home for weeks.

Both things can be true.

Why I Think This Works for So Many People

If you can learn one skill, you can learn seven. Not all at once. Not smoothly. You’ll mess things up, I do constantly.

But slowly, it builds into something that lets you sit in a café (with horrible Wi-Fi) and still earn a living.

If someone had told me this five years ago, I probably would’ve rolled my eyes. Yet here I am, writing this messy, slightly chaotic piece about skills I didn’t even know existed back then.

And the funny part? I’m still figuring it out. Still backtracking. Still repeating myself without meaning to.

But it works.

And that’s enough.