The Internet has evolved to become perhaps the most significant disruptive force influencing consumer behavior, marketing practice, and marketing education. Not surprisingly, numerous industry (Theoharis, 2018) and academic (Crittenden & Crittenden, 2015; Harrigan & Hulbert, 2011; Wind & Mahajan, 2001) sources have highlighted the digital challenge facing marketing practice and academia as educators struggle to maintain pace with the rapid technological changes influencing the marketing field. Regarding consumer behavior, Crittenden and Crittenden (2015) argue that "The 21st century is experiencing a communications revolution, and digital and social media marketing is changing the way consumers receive and use messages" (p. 71). To remain competitive, companies today require practitioners who are marketing, technologically, and analytically savvy (Grewal, Roggeveen, & Shankaranarayanan, 2015). Unfortunately, however, topics such as content marketing, search engine optimization, social media, and online audience development strategies are consistently undertaught at the university level (e.g., Frederiksen, 2015). In brief, an overhaul of the marketing curriculum is due. This article provides guidance for marketing educators by describing the successes and challenges of the development of a digital-first marketing program called the M-School. The challenge facing both industry and academia becomes especially apparent when considering the significant disruptions taking place over the past two decades with the emergence of digital pioneers such as Amazon, Apple, Facebook, and Google. Consumers today-particularly those digital natives (Prensky, 2001) born after 1995-communicate, shop, and access content in a technology-rich environment. This environment is defined by 24/7 access to online stores, services, and social media, illustrating what Sultan and Rohm (2005) refer to as the brand in the hand phenomenon. In response, some of the world's most prominent "traditional" companies (e.g., General Electric, Federal Express, IBM) have been reinvented as they disrupt their respective industries through digital-intensive business models and operations. IBM, for example, is positioning its Watson platform as a leader in artificial intelligence and machine learning. The risks to companies who do not adapt fast enough to the digital 798086J MDXXX10.

The rapid pace of technological change taking place today makes it even more important for marketing educators to incorporate relevant technical and higher level meta-skills in their digital marketing courses. We review the pedagogical literature on skill development and project-based learning and detail two live course projects designed to help students develop technical skills related to digital marketing in addition to important meta-skills involving creativity, critical thinking, collaboration, and communication. We evaluate the impact of the projects through a direct and indirect assessment process. Findings suggest that live project–based learning can support the development of the technical and meta-skills necessary for students to adapt to uncertainty and ambiguity and become future proof and real-world ready as they enter the workforce. We discuss the benefits and challenges associated with moving digital marketing education from conceptual to real-life projects and highlight pedagogical recommendations for educators who want to integrate live project-based learning into their courses.