As kids, when you were asked what you wanted to be when you grow up, you probably answered somewhere along the lines of doctor, lawyer, teacher, veterinarian, and the like. While these jobs are all noble and good to aspire for, chances are, you might not have pursued what you dreamt of as an adult.
Today, kids are a little more experimental and imaginative with their dream jobs. After all, they’re exposed to a lot of tech and media. It’s common to hear things like video game designer, movie director, artist, and even blogger. Those jobs were not accessible or available back then, which opens up the topic of the evolution in the modern job market.
Case in point: digital marketing is a relatively new concept as a career path. It’s likely that many digital marketing professionals today were not even taught about the subject in school; instead, they acquired knowledge from other fields. Digital marketing isn’t the only industry where this happens—according to Dell, 85% of jobs in 2030 haven’t even been invented yet!
If you’re interested in crafting content marketing strategies, deepening your knowledge about social media trends, and acquiring new skills relevant to the evolving job market, then this post is for you.
The infographic below shows various industries and how you can apply skills from those fields in digital marketing. Further, the roles will be discussed so you can see if any of them sparks your interest.
Top Jobs and Skills Expected for 2019
These days, many people are more experimental towards their career paths. It’s both challenging and rewarding to get into a new industry and sharpen yourself for a new skill. Plus, there are just so much more opportunities available now.
There’s also the matter of staying relevant and employable for years to come as the job market continues to change. Job trends help people watch out for viable career paths they may want to take in the future.
Below are the top ten roles with the largest hiring growth across multiple industries, followed by the top skills employees are now expected to have, according to the 2018 LinkedIn Emerging Jobs Report.
- Software Engineer
- Account Executive
- Realtor
- Account Manager
- Recruiter
- Project Manager
- Marketing Specialist
- Real Estate Agent
- Product Manager
- Data Scientist
If you’ve noticed, digital marketing jobs such as account executives, project managers, and marketing specialists make up 40% of this list. It just goes to show the fast-growing industry of advertising firms and digital marketing agencies today, and how many job opportunities are available in this sector.
- Oral communication, such as public speaking and presentation skills
- People management, such as supervisory skills and personnel management
- Programming tools, such as knowledge in Java, C++ and the like
- Social media know-how, including analyzing trends and social media content creation
- Business management, strategy, and consulting
- Time management and multitasking
- Leadership
- Graphic design, whether for photos, web, promotions, etc.
- Data science, statistical aptitude, data forecasting
- Web development
From this list alone, one can infer that a modern-day recruiter is looking for talent who have been exposed to a few other industries and is therefore versatile and can give fresh ideas to the table. Much of these can be applied to careers in the different functions of digital marketing as well.
Remember: You don’t have to have all of these skills to jumpstart your digital marketing career. Instead, your previous experiences will be seen as an asset by recruiters who are looking for new talent.
Digital Marketing Roles
There are many exciting job functions in digital marketing that provide both an intellectual and creative challenge for most people in this line of work. Here are some of the most common ones you can check out, and why they might interest you.
- Account managers – An account manager usually has a dual function in digital marketing agencies: they plan and manage their clients’ digital strategies to reach their goals while they maintain relationships with these clients and make sure they’re happy. It requires a lot of strategic and analytical thinking, as well as presentation and social skills. Account managers go to meetings and pitch decks, too.
- Brand strategist – Developing a brand is the primary concern of a brand strategist. They’re responsible for providing the direction a brand, product, or service needs in order to have a firm and solid footing in the market. This includes analysis and research of market data and trends, and a course of action for implementation.
- Creative director – The leader of the creative team crafts the overall artistic direction of a brand via their promotional assets. Creative directors are in charge of the designers and copywriters and frequently collaborates with the sales and marketing teams to have a cohesive campaign in place.
- Sales specialists – A digital marketing agency has a lot of services to offer their clients, like content creation, web design, graphics, social media management, and more. It’s the job of sales specialists to work with their marketing and accounts teams and make sure they can close deals with interested clients.
- UX Designer – A user experience manager balances the most crucial elements of a digital project: stunning visuals and ease of use. It’s their job to make sure that users can navigate through websites, apps, and the like without hiccups. They map out the flow and functionality of each page so that the user finds information easier or performs the desired action naturally. This is crucial because if the UX is a failure, users will not likely interact with the product anymore (or at all).
- Content strategists – Content marketing is a diverse aspect of every digital marketing plan. Strategists identify the best topics, platforms, and executions for the different types of content relevant to the clients’ industries. The goal is to present them as authoritative experts on the subject matters and positively impact their readers while satisfying the metrics and KPIs they need to hit.
- Content writers – Some writers specialize in short-form content (ads, promotional material) or long-form content (blog posts, research papers), while others can do both. For the former, writing styles are usually direct and sales-focused, while the latter is backed up by research with the intention to help the reader or plant valuable information.
- Social media managers – Digital marketing also spans social media marketing and analytics. If you want to take a look at how people are influenced by the things they see on social platforms, creating different campaigns and strategies for different channels, engaging in online communities, and more, this might be the new career path for you.
Final Words
Many industries are going digital nowadays, and digital marketing jobs are becoming hotter than ever. If you want a chance to experience what it’s like, now is the best time to switch and learn the tools of the trade in this industry. There will be many exciting changes and developments from here on out.
Every field gives an individual a different set of skills. Should you wish to shift careers, know that these skills will not go to waste and instead help you take on new learnings in your next career path. There will always be time to develop new skills on the job as well.
Are you ready to take a new path in your career? Check out our careers page for available digital marketing positions!
