So, what skills and specialisations are in high demand this year, and how are they changing the way we think about the average digital marketing job?
1. Marketing Technologist
Average salary: £51,000
Given the dependence of the average digital marketing job on new technologies, it’s no surprise that the role of the marketing technologist has grown exponentially over recent years. The use of artificial intelligence within the day-to-day duties of marketing specialists grew by 186% in the three years between 2018 and 2021, whilst a 2023 report on the global MarTech market size has shown that the sector generates over $389bn, which is expected to grow by 19.8% by 2030.
The marketing technologist bridges the gaps in knowledge and practice between a company’s IT and marketing skills, allowing emerging technologies to inspire marketing strategies and vice versa.
Marketing technologists can be found at all levels of organisations, in marketing manager jobs as well as C-suite roles. They often incorporate several aspects of each of the roles in this list, bringing expertise in operations, brand growth, analytics, and software engineering to bear on the complex problems that their clients present. These have been referred to as the “4 roles” of the marketing technologist.
At the same time, the growth of software solutions and the general migration from internal IT infrastructure to cloud solutions and SaaS has meant that digital marketers must understand how to manage a diverse number of channels and responsibilities, from web apps to emails, digital asset management to interactive, personalised advertisements.
As a result, the role of the marketing technologist remains incredibly important—with these professionals making certain that all marketing and communications team members are aligned on their digital strategies
2. AI Marketing Specialist
Average salary: £39,000
As the media attention that OpenAI’s ChatGPT product has experienced, the widespread adoption of emerging, artificially-intelligent technologies within the workplace is well underway. AI is helping to transform roles within the marketing sector, speeding up go-to-market strategies and helping to enhance audience experiences. Due to this, the demand for AI marketing specialists is growing.
Knowing how to effectively prompt natural language processing chatbots, utilise predictive analytics and personalisation to accurately target demographics, and automate repetitive tasks is quickly becoming necessary for any niche within the marketing industry. AI marketing professionals often fill the role between tech evangelists, content strategists, and marketing practitioners, with this specialised digital marketing job helping to enhance the productivity of all internal departments.
These experts will also be vital in addressing ethical considerations and biases in AI content moving forward, ensuring fairness, transparency, and the responsible use of these technologies when producing campaigns that build authentic connections with target audiences.
3. Content Strategist
Average salary: £48,000
Focused on optimising content and devising strategies that lead to conversion, content strategists ensure that marketing departments are aligned on their plans for publishing new blog articles, insight pieces, and gated content to drive marketing-qualified leads (MQLs). In short, they typically hold the keys to an entire campaign and understand the channels that get their clients the best results.
Content strategists will typically have spent time within another content-production role or digital marketing job, whether that’s copywriting, design, or as a marketing generalist—building the expertise and adaptability necessary to control the direction of an entire brand’s communication strategy. As a result, these professionals must be comfortable setting guidelines and delegating work, stepping in where required to ensure consistency and quality.
Alongside these duties, content strategists will be expected to offer their insights when troubleshooting why MQLs aren’t converting to customers. Whether it’s poor website design that makes it difficult for users to find the services they want to purchase, or copywriting that isn’t hitting the right note and is turning readers away, the content strategist will help business leaders understand where friction is entering the equation.
4. Influencer Marketing Manager
Average salary: £56,000
Influencer marketing manager jobs focus on nurturing how content creators share their products and services across multiple channels, from social media to video and streaming platforms. These professionals must keep a meticulous calendar, ensuring that content activities are planned alongside their company’s go-to-market strategy.
Alongside this, they’ll often work closely with social media marketing specialists to make certain that brand messaging is aligned across all platforms and websites. Influencer marketing managers will be expected to measure ROI with the help of their colleagues in marketing analyst jobs to make data-informed choices that enhance their ability to drive conversions. Typically, they'll use specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and timely—or SMART—goals to track their campaigns' impact and how engaged audiences are.
These marketing manager jobs are ideal for candidates that understand how valuable a community can be in boosting sales. Still, they need to be adept at navigating relationships, reporting, and recruiting new influencers to ensure that they can continue to improve their overall marketing strategies.
5. Marketing Analyst
Average salary: £42,000
Marketing analysts are responsible for providing their businesses with data-driven insights that allow them to predict future sales trends, better understand the key demographics they serve, and evaluate the effectiveness of outreach and branding strategies.
These experts have historically been found working within management, scientific, and technical consulting services. However, with the growth of big data and the widespread adoption of artificial intelligence-empowered analytics tools, marketing analysts are becoming an invaluable resource for organisations in any field, from finance to FMCG.
With the number of marketing analyst jobs set to grow by over 163,000 by 2030, this cross-functional role is quickly becoming critical when it comes to product development and long-term business vision. Able to understand and articulate programme performance and key statistics on customers, analysts are crucial to the overall health of the marketing department.
The Bottom Line
This guide explored the ever-evolving landscape of marketing jobs and the skills required to thrive in this rapidly-digitising industry. With the advancements that the emerging technologies discussed here are presenting, professionals have a wealth of opportunities to connect with audiences and drive sales, but they need to adapt to stay competitive.
These increasingly popular jobs in marketing often require candidates with unique expertise, meaning that they’ll need to understand how to articulate their non-standard career experience in a way that is attractive to marketing hiring managers.