Skills • Tools • Courses Alignment
Choose your electives that are aligned with your career
How MSDM courses develop the data, analytical, and strategic skills for digital-marketing careers.
1 Tools and Skills along the Student Learning Journey
1.1 Course → Skill → Tools
| Term | MSDM Course | Skill Area(s) | Typical Tools & Methods* |
|---|---|---|---|
| Year 1 – Fall | IBM 5910 – Strategic Data Wrangling & Visualization | Data Wrangling, Data Cleaning, Visualization, Data Storytelling | R (Tidyverse, ggplot2), Tableau, Power BI, Excel |
| IBM 6010 – Digital Marketing | Digital Strategy, Campaign Design, Analytics Foundations | GA4, Google Ads, Meta Ads, BigQuery/Looker Studio, html/css | |
| Year 1 – Spring | IBM 6510 – Foundations of Customer Analytics | Data Analysis, Modeling, Statistical Inference | R, Excel, SQL |
| IBM 6100 – Search Engine Marketing | Search Advertising, Keyword Optimization, Performance Analytics | Google Ads, Search Console, SEMrush | |
| IBM 6150 – Database Marketing | Customer Segmentation, CRM, Automation | SQL, HubSpot, Salesforce, Email Platforms | |
| IBM 6520 – Market Forecasting | Predictive Modeling, Forecasting, Time Series | R (forecast, prophet), Excel | |
| Year 1 – Summer | IBM 6300 – Retailing in Digital Economy | E-Commerce Strategy, Digital Merchandising, Customer Journey Analytics | Shopify, GA4, CRM Dashboards |
| IBM 6540 – Applied Machine Learning in Marketing | ML Apps, Model Building, Evaluation | R (caret, tidymodels), Python (scikit-learn, TensorFlow) | |
| IBM 6600 – Marketing Text Analytics with LLMs & AI | NLP, Text Mining, Generative AI | R (Tidytext), Python (transformers, spaCy), LLM/ChatGPT APIs | |
| Year 2 – Fall | IBM 6200 – Online Consumer Psychology & Behaviors | Consumer Behavior, Experimental Design, Behavioral Insights, MSDM Culminating Experience Project | UX Research Tools, A/B Testing Frameworks, Project Management tool (e.g., Notion) |
| IBM 6500 – Customer Insights Methods & Survey Research | Survey Design, Data Collection, Quant Research | Qualtrics, SurveyMonkey, SPSS, R | |
| IBM 6450 – AI in Marketing | Generative AI, Predictive AI, Automation | LLM/GenAI Tools & Platforms | |
| Year 2 – Spring | IBM 6250 – Social Media Marketing | Content Strategy, Influencer Marketing, Social Analytics | Meta Business Suite, LinkedIn Campaign Manager, Hootsuite |
| IBM 6530 – Marketing Analytics | Data Integration, Dashboarding, KPI Reporting | Tableau, Power BI, GA4, Python/R | |
| IBM 6400 – Current Issues in Digital Marketing | Emerging Trends, Ethics/Policy, Tech Applications | Case/Toolkits vary by topic | |
| IBM 6800 – Data-Driven Digital Marketing Strategy I | Data analysis, Insights generation, Strategic Integration, Campaign Planning, Team Project | GA4, Looker Studio, CRM Systems, Project management tool (e.g., Notion) | |
| Year 2 – Summer | IBM 6950 – Data-Driven Digital Marketing Strategy II | Plan execution, KPI’s, Capstone Integration, Presentation, Decision Support | BI Dashboards, Visualization Tools, GA4, Project management tool (e.g., Notion) |
| IBM 6700 – Marketing Data Management | Data Architecture, ETL, Governance | SQL, BigQuery, Data Warehouse Tools |
1.2 Course Sequence
| Term | Course | Core / Elective | Primary Skill Focus | Key Tools |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year 1 – Fall | IBM 5910 – Strategic Data Wrangling & Visualization | Core | Data Wrangling, Visualization | R, SQL, Tableau, Quarto |
| IBM 6010 – Digital Marketing | Core | Strategy Foundations, Campaign Design | GA4, Google Ads, CRM tool, Html/css | |
| Year 1 – Spring | IBM 6510 – Foundations of Customer Analytics | Core | Statistical Analysis, Modeling | R, Excel |
| IBM 6100 – Search Engine Marketing | Elective | Paid Search, Optimization | Google Ads, Search Console, Google Tag Manager, GA4 | |
| IBM 6150 – Database Marketing | Elective | CRM, Segmentation, Automation | SQL, HubSpot, Tableau/Power BI | |
| IBM 6520 – Market Forecasting | Elective | Predictive Modeling, Forecasting | R, Python | |
| Year 1 – Summer | IBM 6300 – Retailing in Digital Economy | Elective | E-Commerce, Consumer Journey | Shopify, GA4, Amazon Ads |
| IBM 6540 – Applied Machine Learning in Marketing | Elective | Machine Learning Applications | Python, R | |
| IBM 6600 – Marketing Text Analytics with LLMs & AI | Elective | NLP, AI Integration | R, Python (transformers), LLM APIs | |
| Year 2 – Fall | IBM 6200 – Online Consumer Psychology & Behaviors | Core | Behavioral Insights, UX Research | Qualtrics, A/B Tools |
| IBM 6500 – Customer Insights Methods & Survey Research | Core | Survey Design, Data Collection | Qualtrics, SPSS | |
| IBM 6450 – AI in Marketing | Elective | AI Strategies, Automation | GenAI Platforms | |
| Year 2 – Spring | IBM 6400 – Current Issues in Digital Marketing | Core | Emerging Trends, Ethics | Various |
| IBM 6800 – Data-Driven Digital Marketing Strategy I | Core | Data Analysis, descriptive/predictive analytics | GA4, BigQuery/Looker Studio | |
| IBM 6250 – Social Media Marketing | Elective | Social Strategy, Influencer Marketing | Meta Business Suite | |
| IBM 6530 – Marketing Analytics | Elective | Reporting, Visualization, Modeling | Tableau, Power BI, R/Python, Quarto | |
| Year 2 – Summer | IBM 6950 – Data-Driven Digital Marketing Strategy II | Core | Digital Marketing planning, implementation and reflection | BI Tools, GA4, Google Ads, Social Ads |
| IBM 6700 – Marketing Data Management | Elective | Data Engineering, Data Ops | SQL, DWH Tools (e.g., AWS, GCP, Snowflake, Databricks) |
2 Project Management Tools
2.1 List by Categories
When it comes to Digital Marketing and Marketing Analytics professionals, project management tools tend to prioritize campaign planning, collaboration, client tracking, performance dashboards, and content calendars.
Here’s a focused list by category 👇
2.1.1 All-in-One Marketing Project Management Platforms
| Tool | Key Features | Why Marketers Love It |
|---|---|---|
| Asana | Campaign templates, timeline view, cross-functional dashboards, and automated workflows. | Clean interface and strong collaboration features for content, ads, and analytics teams. |
| Monday.com | Visual campaign pipelines, automation, integrations with HubSpot, Meta Ads, Google Analytics. | Ideal for managing multiple campaigns and creative production workflows. |
| ClickUp | Combines tasks, docs, chat, goals, and reporting; strong dashboards for KPIs. | Great for agencies and data-driven marketing teams needing both flexibility and structure. |
| Wrike (Marketing Suite) | Campaign briefs, proofing tools, custom dashboards, and advanced reporting. | Enterprise-grade system designed for marketing operations. |
2.1.2 Content & Campaign Workflow Tools
| Tool | Key Features | Best Use Case |
|---|---|---|
| Trello | Visual Kanban boards for campaign progress, content calendars, and social media pipelines. | Small teams and content creators managing multiple channels. |
| Notion | Customizable marketing wiki, asset database, and content calendar templates. | Marketing teams combining campaign planning, analytics notes, and brainstorming. |
| Airtable | Spreadsheet-database hybrid with automations, filters, and integrations with ad platforms. | Tracking influencers, campaign budgets, creative assets, and metrics. |
| CoSchedule | Calendar-focused platform integrating with WordPress, Google Analytics, and social channels. | Content-heavy marketing teams scheduling posts and tracking performance. |
2.1.3 Analytics & Reporting-Oriented Tools (with Project Management Features)
| Tool | Key Features | Best Use Case |
|---|---|---|
| Databox | Centralized dashboards pulling data from GA4, HubSpot, Facebook Ads, etc. | Analytics teams tracking KPIs and sharing reports. |
| HubSpot Marketing Hub | Combines CRM, campaign tracking, automation, and analytics dashboards. | Inbound marketing management and lead analytics. |
| Smartsheet (for Marketing) | Campaign calendars, resource allocation, and integration with Power BI or Google Data Studio. | Cross-department coordination of marketing analytics and execution. |
2.1.4 Specialized Collaboration & Proofing Tools
| Tool | Key Features | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| Miro | Visual collaboration whiteboard for brainstorming campaigns and data storytelling. | Ideation, creative concept mapping, analytics visualization. |
| Slack + Asana / ClickUp integration | Real-time communication linked to tasks. | Keeps marketing and analytics updates centralized. |
| Google Workspace + Notion / Airtable integration | Easy coordination of documents, campaign sheets, and reports. | Streamlines workflows for marketing teams that already use Google tools. |
2.2 Top Choices by Use Case
| Scenario | Recommended Tool |
|---|---|
| Agency managing multiple client campaigns | ClickUp or Monday.com |
| In-house marketing & analytics team | Asana or Wrike Marketing Suite |
| Solo marketer or small team | Notion or Trello |
| Data-heavy marketing analytics team | Airtable + Databox combo |
2.3 Categories by Career
2.3.1 Marketing Analytics–Heavy Teams
These teams prioritize data integration, KPI dashboards, reporting automation, and collaboration between analysts and strategists.
| Tool | Strengths | Data Integrations | Reporting & Dashboards | Collaboration & Workflow | Pricing (approx.) | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ClickUp | Combines task management, docs, goals, and dashboards; automations for analytics updates. | Google Analytics, HubSpot, Meta Ads, Data Studio via Zapier. | Custom KPI dashboards and widgets. | Real-time chat, task automation, integrations with Slack. | Free–$12/user/mo | Hybrid marketing-analytics teams. |
| Asana (Business plan) | Visual timelines, campaign tracking, portfolio dashboards. | Google Analytics, Tableau, Power BI via connectors. | Custom dashboards, CSV export. | Smooth cross-functional task flow. | Free–$25/user/mo | Analytics teams coordinating with creative or media. |
| Wrike (Marketing Suite) | Campaign briefing forms, proofing, analytics reporting. | Google Ads, GA4, Adobe, Salesforce. | Custom reports and visual dashboards. | Advanced approval workflows. | $24–$36/user/mo | Enterprise analytics teams. |
| Smartsheet (Marketing) | Excel-like interface with powerful automation and integrations. | GA4, Power BI, Tableau, Salesforce. | Robust reporting and Gantt charts. | Strong versioning and permission control. | $9–$32/user/mo | Teams used to Excel/project data environments. |
| Airtable | Database-like system; great for connecting marketing data and tagging campaigns. | GA4, HubSpot, Meta Ads, Looker Studio. | Dashboards through interfaces or apps. | Simple collaboration and automations. | Free–$20/user/mo | Analysts managing datasets + project tracking. |
| Databox | Pulls metrics from 70+ sources into dashboards. | GA4, Facebook Ads, HubSpot, SQL, etc. | Beautiful dashboards, goals, alerts. | Comments, scheduled reports, Slack alerts. | Free–$23+/user/mo | Data visualization and performance monitoring. |
💡 Summary:
If you’re managing data-heavy dashboards and campaign KPIs, Databox + ClickUp or Airtable + Asana is a strong pairing — depending on whether you prefer dashboard-first or workflow-first setups.
2.3.2 Digital Content–Heavy Teams
These teams focus on creative production, content calendars, campaign coordination, and client approvals.
| Tool | Strengths | Content Calendar Features | Collaboration Tools | File Management | Pricing (approx.) | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monday.com (Marketing Suite) | Highly visual timelines, automation, creative review templates. | Prebuilt campaign & content calendar boards. | Integrated chat, notifications, automations. | File storage + version control. | Free–$12/user/mo | Agencies managing multiple content campaigns. |
| Notion | Customizable pages, databases, and kanban calendars. | Flexible editorial calendar templates. | Comments, mentions, real-time editing. | Centralized asset library with embeds. | Free–$10/user/mo | Small content teams, brand storytelling. |
| Trello | Simple Kanban with drag-and-drop and calendar power-ups. | Calendar & timeline add-ons. | Lightweight collaboration via comments. | Attach files via Google Drive, Dropbox. | Free–$10/user/mo | Solo marketers or small content teams. |
| CoSchedule | Native marketing calendar integrating with WordPress and GA4. | Unified blog + social calendar. | Comments, approval workflows. | Syncs with cloud storage. | $29+/user/mo | Social media and content scheduling teams. |
| Airtable | Database + gallery views for content tracking, visuals, and deadlines. | Content & asset calendar templates. | Real-time collaboration and approvals. | Attachment support for media. | Free–$20/user/mo | Visual-heavy teams needing flexibility. |
| Wrike (Creative) | Proofing, approvals, version tracking for creative assets. | Gantt and list views. | In-app feedback on visuals. | Full digital asset management (DAM). | $24–$36/user/mo | Larger creative teams with multi-channel assets. |
💡 Summary:
If your focus is content production and approvals, Monday.com or Wrike Creative are top choices for structure. For lightweight content strategy and writing workflows, Notion + CoSchedule pair beautifully.