Google has announced that any U.S. company that spends more than $100,000 on courses online in data analytics, design, and other tech skills for their employees will receive them for free.
More than 70,000 people have completed certification in the U.S., with 75% reporting a positive career impact (e.g., a new job, higher pay, or a promotion) within six months. According to Google, 55% of graduates identified as Asian, Black, or Latino.
The offer represents a significant expansion of Google's Career Certificates program, which the company launched in 2018 to help people all over the world improve their resumes by trying new tools at their own pace.
Although course completion rates are higher when people pay out of pocket, Lisa Gevelber, founder of Grow with Google, the company unit in charge of certificates, said the latest offer was still worthwhile if it could support some businesses to gain digital-savvy.
The Google-designed courses, which are sold through the online education service Coursera Inc, typically cost students around US$39 per month and take three to six months to complete. Google will now cover the costs of up to 500 employees at any US business, with grants valued at $100,000 because people typically take up to six months to complete.
IT support, project management, e-commerce, and digital marketing certificates are also available. They cover famous software in each field, as well as Google advertising services.
If you have employees who require online marketing or e-commerce training, this fresh certificate may be worth investigating.
The certificate is described by Google as follows: "Whether your business sells to individuals and business entities, your web presence is important."
Employees will learn how to attract and engage customers online, build successful e-commerce stores, and grow customer loyalty."
Participants in this certificate program will know how to identify customers online, sell products or services, and perform marketing analytics and measurement. They will also gain practical experience with digital marketing tools such as Canva, Constant Contact, Hootsuite, HubSpot, MailChimp, Shopify, Twitter, Google Ads, and Google Analytics.
Google's digital marketing and e-commerce certificate could be used to train employees for positions such as:
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Email Marketing Specialist
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Marketing Coordinator
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SEO Analyst
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Paid Search Specialist
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Digital Marketing Specialist
Google also provides the following career certificates:
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Google IT Support
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Google Data Analytics
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Google Project Management
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Google UX Design
Google said this offer will expire on Dec. 18, 2024. Also, make sure to read up on the program's specifics.
