When it comes to digital marketing, it’s rare to find a role that can be proudly named after yourself. Few jobs can boast such personal branding opportunities. When we at M&C Saatchi UK discovered the #Uwishu campaign, we were immediately reminded of a very happy employee who had gone above and beyond in his role as online marketing manager.
Inspired by the strength of this individual and the positive impact he had on our business, we decided to look into the state of digital marketing managers around the world and what makes them special.
The Importance Of A Strong Online Presence
In the ever-changing landscape of digital marketing, the importance of a strong online presence can’t be stressed enough. To engage with customers and potential customers online, you need to have a platform to stand on. Having a strong digital presence means that your business can be found wherever customers look online. Sound good? Let’s check out the stats.
According to HubSpot Blogs research, “95% of marketers said strong digital presence is important to them, as compared to only 69% who said the same about a well-established brand.”
The importance of a thriving online presence shouldn’t come as a great surprise. After all, when customers search for your product or service online, they’re either intrigued enough to click on your website or landing page to learn more or they find it and become frustrated when they can’t immediately find the information they need.
Letting your customers down easily is something you don’t want to do. When a potential customer arrives at your site and doesn’t like what they find, you’re losing out on a sale. Instead of causing frustration, ease the pain by having a website that’s easy to use and explains all the details a customer might need (such as the terms and conditions).
A strong online marketing manager will be responsible for creating and maintaining a powerful web presence, which includes establishing online habits in customers.
The Indispensable Skillset
The digital marketing manager is a jack of all trades, someone who can take on a variety of responsibilities yet knows how to deliver a consistent level of excellence. In order to succeed as an online marketer, you need to be sure that you’re equipped with the skillset to succeed.
According to MarketingCharts, the average marketing job seeker will have a background in digital marketing, social media marketing, email marketing, and website development. While the number of roles within digital marketing is constantly changing, these five areas always prove to be popular.
Establishing and Growing Your Audience
One of the most important responsibilities of a digital marketer is to grow and establish an audience. This entails getting your name out there via online platforms and discovering new ways to engage with your audience. Established social media users often refer to this as “broadcasting” because it’s similar to how traditional broadcasters spread the news – only in our case, the news is marketing-related tips and tricks, company updates, and more.
Getting your name out there is one of the most challenging aspects of digital marketing. You need to find the right platform for the job seekers in your audience, build a community of engaged users, and create content that will keep them coming back for more.
Your customers, potential customers, and other stakeholders (such as employees and partners) will all have an impact on your business. When considering the web hosting costs alone for this site, let’s just say that you could be wasting a lot of money without even realizing it. With web hosting costs rising as fast as they are, it’s no surprise that businesses are looking for ways to save. Consider using a free web host which offers limited features. While it might not sound like a wise investment, it could save you a significant amount of money in the long run.
Making Decisions Using Data
The information explosion in digital marketing is causing many headaches for business owners who aren’t prepared for the deluge of data streaming into their websites. With every passing day, the amount of data collected grows exponentially. As a busy digital marketer, you might be tempted to throw caution to the wind and dive headfirst into analysis, pulling relevant data at the click of a button.
While it’s important to keep abreast of emerging trends and statistics, you need to be careful not to lose track of the big picture. When making marketing decisions, always keep in mind that you’re working for a business – a business that relies on customers to survive. Without customers, there’s no business. Ultimately, it’s your job as a marketer to keep the business goals in mind and make the right decisions for the company.
Responsibilities Of A Digital Marketer
In the grand scheme of things, your daily responsibilities as a digital marketer will vary. Depending on your specific role and position, your responsibilities will be somewhat different. However, you’ll always have the overarching goal of driving sales and generating revenue.
According to HubSpot Blogs research, about 80% of marketers said that their primary responsibility is to drive traffic to the site or app.
The other 20% of respondents said that they’re primarily responsible for creating awareness about the brand or product within their target audience. Either way, you’re certainly responsible for the success of your business.
As you can see, the responsibilities of a digital marketer can be fairly extensive. Whether you’ve got the title of online marketing manager or not, your daily responsibilities will be similar. The only difference is that some of your tasks will be more specialized.
The specialization doesn’t end there. Depending on your role, you might also be tasked with various other responsibilities, including analysis, product marketing, creating campaign plans, and more. Having a clear understanding of your responsibilities within the company will help you hit the ground running when you start your new job. Be sure to check out the job description for any possible responsibilities that you might need to take on.
Why A Career In Digital Marketing Is On The Rise
With the emergence of digital marketing, the demand for top quality, in-demand digital marketers is expected to grow by 17% year-on-year, according to Enomaly. Furthermore, MarketingCharts projects that by 2021, around 80,000 new job openings will pop up for busy digital marketers wanting to grow their careers.
Whether you love writing, graphic designing, or you simply want to be able to contribute to a business that you believe in, a career in digital marketing is a great opportunity to shine. Moreover, with the right training, you could find yourself in a position of authority within your industry. Imagine what your skills and experience could be worth to a business – you’ll be able to propose and dictate ideas and plans, and make critical decisions for the company.
The rise of digital marketing also means that there’s a huge variety of roles available to those interested in a career in the field. If you’re looking for flexibility, you could consider a career in digital marketing as a freelancer or consultant. Ultimately, it’s your decision what path you want to take, but with so much opportunity, it’s certainly a worthwhile decision.