You've seen them. The videos of women sitting in their kitchens talking about how they made £3,000 last month selling digital products. Part of you thinks — I want that. But another part thinks — I've absolutely no idea what any of this actually means.
If that's you, this guide is for you.
I'm not going to sell you a dream. I'm going to tell you the truth about digital marketing — what it actually is, how it actually works, what to watch out for and how to start without wasting hundreds of pounds on a course that teaches you nothing.
Because I learned most of this the hard way. And you don't have to.
So what actually is digital marketing?
Digital marketing is simply the process of promoting and selling products or services online.
That's it. No mystical formula. No secret club. Just using the internet — social media, email, websites, content — to find the people who need what you offer and show them why it's worth buying.
For most women getting started in this space it means one of two things. Either building a personal brand and selling your own digital products — guides, courses, workbooks, templates. Or promoting someone else's products as an affiliate and earning a commission on every sale.
Both are legitimate. Both take work. And neither is the overnight success story the TikToks suggest.
The digital product world — what nobody tells you
Here's the part most people skip when they're selling you the dream.
Digital marketing isn't passive. Not at the beginning. You have to show up consistently, build trust with an audience and create content that connects before any of it starts to feel easy.
The women making consistent income from digital products aren't doing so because they found a shortcut. They're doing so because they spent months — sometimes years — showing up, learning, adjusting and building something real.
That doesn't mean it isn't worth it. It absolutely is. But going in with realistic expectations means you won't give up in month two when it hasn't gone viral yet.
My honest mistake — and what it cost me
When I first discovered digital marketing I did exactly what most people do. I bought a course. And before I'd even finished it — before I understood what I was selling or who I was selling it to — I tried to resell it.
I hadn't figured out who I was. I hadn't worked out what the course would help people with. I had no idea who my ideal person was. I just knew other people seemed to be making money from it so I jumped straight in.
It didn't work. Because you can't sell something you don't understand to people you haven't defined yet. That lesson cost me time, energy and confidence.
Before you sell anything, get clear on who you are and who you're helping. Everything else comes after that.
The truth about course prices
This one is important so I want to be really direct.
The price of a course doesn't reflect the quality of its content.
The first course I bought cost £393. It was hard to follow, poorly structured and I learned almost nothing from it. I never earned a single penny from it.
The courses that actually moved me forward — the ones that gave me real insight, real direction and real results — were between £70 and £120.
Don't assume expensive means better. And don't let a low price make you dismiss something before you've read what's inside. What matters is whether the person teaching it actually knows what they're talking about and whether it's relevant to where you are right now.
Where to actually start
If you're brand new to digital marketing here's the honest, no fluff version of where to begin.
Get clear on who you are first. Before you choose a product, before you pick a platform, before you spend a penny — spend time understanding what you stand for, what you know and what makes you different. That's your brand. Without it nothing else works.
Choose one platform and learn it properly. Not five. One. Whether that's Threads, Instagram, TikTok or Facebook — pick the one where your ideal person spends time and show up there consistently before going anywhere else.
Start with free before you go paid. There's so much genuinely valuable free content available that'll give you a solid foundation. Use it. Learn from it. Only invest in something paid when you're clear on what you need to learn next.
When you invest, invest carefully. Read everything before you buy. Price isn't a measure of quality. Make sure what you're buying is relevant to where you are right now, not where you hope to be in a year.
Build your audience before you try to sell to them. This is the mistake I made. Trust takes time. Show up, add value, be honest and be consistent. The sales come when the trust is there.
The bottom line
Digital marketing is a real and genuinely life changing opportunity for women who are willing to do the work, stay consistent and build something real rather than chasing shortcuts.
It's not passive. It's not overnight. And it's not as complicated as the internet makes it look.
You don't need to spend hundreds of pounds to get started. You need clarity, consistency and a genuine desire to help the people you're building for.
Start there. Everything else follows.
Find Your Unfiltered Voice is a free 30 minute exercise that helps you get clear on who you are — the essential first step before anything else.
Get it free →Jo Rudge
Founder of Finally Me. Helping women find their real voice, build an unmistakable brand, and create content that converts.