A curious pattern has emerged in digital nomad travel vlogs: ask a software developer what they do, and you'll get a detailed explanation of their tech stack. Ask a freelance writer, and they'll describe their clients and niche. But ask someone who does "digital marketing" - a title claimed by roughly 60% of nomads in popular destinations - and the answers get surprisingly evasive.
The observation, shared on r/digitalnomad, has sparked debate about what remote workers in this massive category actually do all day - and whether "digital marketing" has become a catch-all term for work that doesn't fit traditional categories.
"Been going down a rabbit hole of travel vlogs where people interview nomads in places like Thailand and Mexico about their work," wrote the poster. "Like 60% of them claim they do digital marketing but when pressed for details they get super vague about it. Meanwhile the software developers and freelance writers have zero problem explaining exactly what they build or write about."
The vagueness isn't necessarily nefarious, according to experienced nomads who weighed in on the discussion. Legitimate digital marketing work includes SEO consulting, paid advertising management, email marketing campaigns, social media management, and content strategy - all of which can be done remotely and pay well enough to sustain the nomad lifestyle.
However, the term has also become a convenient umbrella for less traditional income streams: dropshipping operations, affiliate marketing websites, course creation, and - yes - selling "how to become a digital nomad" courses to aspiring remote workers. These ventures aren't necessarily illegitimate, but they operate in a different business model than traditional client-service relationships.
"Starting to wonder if digital marketing is just code for something else when nomads say it," the poster mused. "Are these people actually running Facebook ads for clients or are they selling get rich quick courses and calling it marketing."
The distinction matters for aspiring nomads trying to build sustainable remote careers. Client-based digital marketing work - managing ad campaigns for established businesses, handling social media for brands, running SEO strategies - provides stable, recurring income and builds transferable skills. like dropshipping or affiliate sites can be lucrative but involve more risk and often require upfront capital.
