Digital Marketing & Web Design: Certifications & Applied Projects

Writer and editor combining professional communications experience with digital marketing, content strategy, SEO, and AI-assisted content creation

Building on a Professional Communications Foundation

Building on my professional foundation in writing and editing, I have expanded my skills into digital marketing, content strategy, SEO, and AI-assisted content creation. Structured training in digital marketing and web design complements this experience and provides a basis for continued applied work.

Through this training, I earned professional certifications and certificates of completion, with focused coursework in digital marketing foundations, social media marketing, SEO and generative engine optimization (GEO), content strategy, generative AI, and WordPress web design.

My training has emphasized hands-on, applied learning. I have developed marketing campaigns, created audience and content strategies, worked with industry-standard tools, and produced portfolio projects that connect marketing objectives with creative execution. My recent work also explores how generative AI can support campaign development while keeping strategic, creative, and editorial judgment human-led.

This website serves as a live example of how I apply my digital marketing and web design skills. I built it in WordPress using a template and continue to develop and optimize it for SEO, applying principles of site structure, content clarity, and search visibility.

Training, Certificates & Certifications

Professional certifications earned

IBM Digital Marketing and Growth Hacking with GenAI professional certificate earned by Michael Bleau

IBM — Digital Marketing & Growth Hacking with GenAI Certification

A formal training certificate from Visible Edge Institute certifying that Michael Bleau has completed coursework in Digital Marketing and Web Design. The certificate lists completed courses including digital marketing, content marketing, AI and marketing automation, portfolio development, and WordPress Essentials. It features the Visible Edge logo, a subtle background illustration of a humanoid robot and mechanical components symbolizing technology and innovation, and is signed by the President of Visible Edge. The certificate is dated January 6, 2026, and includes an official certificate ID and the institute’s contact information.

HubSpot — Content Marketing Certification

Visible Edge training certificate awarded to Michael Bleau for completing courses in Digital Marketing and Web Design, dated January 6, 2026.

Visible Edge — Digital Marketing & Web Design Training Program (Certificate of Completion)

01.

Digital Marketing Foundations

Training in Digital Marketing, Social Media Marketing, E-Commerce, and Marketing to Younger Generations, and more.

Platforms include Coursera, HubSpot Academy, Udemy, and LinkedIn Learning.

02.

SEO & Content Strategy

Training in Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) for AI-driven search, SEO, AI SEO, and SEO and Content Marketing.

Platforms include Coursera and Udemy.

03.

Web Design & WordPress

Training in WordPress Essentials, and Web Design Essentials, incl. basic HTML and CSS.

Platforms include Udemy.

Applied Projects & Portfolio

FEATURED CASE STUDY

AI-Assisted Marketing Campaign Develop­ment

In the Adobe course Generative AI Content Creation, I developed three fictional marketing campaigns using Adobe Firefly to create product and hero/lifestyle images. For each campaign, I defined the target audience, positioning, communication objective, and visual direction before developing and refining prompts. I used a consistent human-directed process across all three campaigns while giving each fictional brand a distinct visual identity and marketing approach. ChatGPT assisted with prompt development, planning, documentation, and preparation of the final report, while I directed the strategy, creative decisions, evaluation, and final selections. I documented the process, including problems encountered, refinements made, and lessons learned, and developed the work into a professional case study demonstrating campaign planning, prompt engineering, visual evaluation, editorial judgment, and responsible AI use.

READ THE FULL CASE STUDY

Gen AI hero image for fictional Play Beverage, a premium sparkling beverage positioned around social connection and refreshing moments.

Gen AI product image for fictional Spice Essence, a premium spice collection designed to inspire creative and confident home cooking.

Gen AI hero image for fictional Velvette, a sustainable women’s fashion brand centered on timeless style and thoughtful clothing production.

01.

Capstone Campaign Project

Designed and planned a full-funnel digital marketing campaign as a capstone project, including audience definition, persona development, channel strategy, SEO considerations, and performance measurement planning.

Key competencies:

  • Campaign strategy
  • Audience segmentation
  • Messaging alignment
  • Creative concept development
  • Social media content planning and scheduling
  • Optimization strategy
  • Performance analysis

Tools: Canva, Shopify, Adobe Firefly, ChatGPT, analytics dashboards.

02.

Project Presentation (PPT)

Developed a professional presentation summarizing the campaign strategy, execution plan, and supporting materials for the capstone project.

Key competencies:

  • Synthesizing project work
  • Slide design
  • Visual storytelling
  • Structuring a clear narrative
  • Presenting complex information effectively

Tools: PowerPoint; screenshots from Shopify and Canva; AI-generated visuals (Adobe Firefly, ChatGPT); PDFs.

03.

Website Build & Optimization

Built and customized a WordPress website using an Astra starter template and Elementor, with a focus on on-page SEO and foundational technical optimization.

Key competencies:

  • Domain and hosting setup
  • WordPress installation and configuration
  • Plugin management
  • Theme customization
  • Page building with Elementor
  • Content and image integration
  • SEO-aware site structure

Tools: WordPress, web hosting platform, Astra, Elementor, ChatGPT, Leonardo.ai.

A HubSpot Academy certificate certifying Michael Bleau as Content Marketing Certified. The certificate confirms demonstrated knowledge in content strategy, content creation, promotion, and performance analysis. It includes the HubSpot Academy logo, official certification details, and validation dates.

The PetsRPals marketing campaign SMART goals, KPIs, and personas.

Data analysis slide showing campaign performance metrics and channel comparison.

PowerPoint includes highlights of the capstone project, e.g., strategy, creatives, and data analysis.

Screenshot of the Vital Editorial & Writing Services homepage design

WordPress homepage for my freelance editorial & writing services website. Optimization is ongoing.