Marketing

Salary information and career progression

Opportunity

The Marketing industry has consistently grown in recent years, largely due to an increase in data-driven, and measurable marketing techniques, often encapsulated by the term Digital Marketing.

Furthermore, industry experts say that the marketing industry will never be strongly affected by economic downturns as companies usually continue to invest in the acquisition of new customers and retention of legacy customers via marketing measures.

• Popular industries for Marketing and Communication roles

  Marketing and Communications roles are present in some form in every company on earth. Businesses do not exist without potential customers or clients being made aware of their products or services. Some organisations have huge marketing teams, for others it may just be a small part of one person’s job. We can all relate to an advertisement or a campaign that has been run by a big global brand to increase our awareness of them.

  Some companies use marketing, advertising and PR agencies so there are many roles that are “agency-side” as opposed to “client-side”. There is also a relatively large number of not-for-profit organisations, which depend on talented marketers, such as educational institutions and charities.

• Recent changes in the industry

  With the growing importance of digital, companies have complemented most traditional marketing channels with digital ones, such as email and search marketing. The consumer purchase behaviour has also become more complex. Nowadays consumers tend to inform themselves about products online by reading reviews and comparing different brands, before coming back at a later point to purchase the product. On top of this, customers now favour exclusive and personalised experiences both in-store and online. Since marketing is paramount in influencing consumers at all the brand touch points, it is crucial that specialists in this field have a knowledge of all digital marketing channels to combine them in an integrated way.

• Future prospects

  Compared to other industries, the percentage of unemployed Marketing Professionals is extremely low in the United Kingdom. The future prospects for professionals within this field depend on the size of the company. In large agencies, you usually start off in an assistant or junior position but have the chance to climb up the career ladder within three to five years and get a senior role in your specialist field.

• Salt’s advice for getting a Marketing & Communications role

  Employers’ requirements

  Employers will expect Marketing Professionals to be tech-savvy and up-to-date on marketing trends. Candidates will also be expected to have strong communication, teamwork and content creation skills, the ability to plan, implement and manage marketing campaigns, and evidence of using resources in a creative way. More technical Marketing roles like SEO and PPC also require an understanding of specialist tools and Google Analytics.

  CV requirements

  CV requirements for Marketing jobs depend strongly on the area or specialism that you work in. There are a couple of core competencies which should not be missed on any marketing CV, such as the capability of managing multiple campaigns at the same time, creative talent in order to come up with innovative ideas, attention to detail and the ability to work under high pressure. Besides that, hiring managers prefer CVs with analytics and presentation experience. Qualitative and quantitative market research is considered as a big bonus as well.

  Interview preparation

  In no other industry is it so crucial to market yourself in an interview and establish the right chemistry with the interviewer as in marketing. Not only does this demonstrate your confidence and communication skills, it also shows you are able to market products or services in the right way to a target audience.

  Almost every marketing interview consists of a behavioural interview aspect. In this part the hiring manager asks the jobseeker a few questions to evaluate if they are in line with the company culture and if they are suitable for the role. Commonly asked questions include:

  1. What challenges are you looking for in this role?
  2. What is your biggest strength / weakness?
  3. What do you know about our business?
  4. Can you work effectively and efficiently within budgetary constraints?
  5. Please give an example of a successful marketing campaign that you have run in the past.

  Educational requirements

  In most cases the educational requirements for an entry-level Marketing position is a bachelor’s degree. Degrees in digital marketing, marketing, media and communications, advertising, business or journalism are often considered advantageous. However, relevant experience is sometimes just as a valued as a university degree.