Navigating the endless professions and job titles in marketing is increasingly complicated. For enthusiasts, for recruiters, and especially for managers and entrepreneurs who need to hire competent professionals, whether in-house or external, to manage communication, advertising, and PR channels.
We have compiled a list of the most important jobs in marketing, with descriptions and some interesting facts. From entry-level positions to executive roles. We hope it helps you find your way through this jungle!
Advertising and Analytics
Market Research Analyst
As a market research analyst, you are responsible for reporting and providing long-term insights to help the company achieve maximum impact on sales and other business objectives. You also gather intelligence on competitors: pricing, sales, and marketing and distribution methods, employing search marketing tactics, analyzing web metrics, and developing ad hoc research and comparison strategies for each organization. You are also the expert on sources, metrics, and data. You have a very solid foundation in data analysis and statistics.
You will be increasingly interested in machine learning and Artificial Intelligence innovations, as long as they involve numbers and quantitative and qualitative trends. Not in terms of content generation.
Advertising Manager
The advertising campaign manager is responsible for the planning and execution of advertising actions across multiple channels, collaborating with creative, research, and sales teams to create effective initiatives that meet business objectives and align with the marketing manager's requirements. They must also be able to manage budgets and monitor metrics to measure campaign success.
This position obviously requires a deep knowledge of technical tools and digital marketing techniques and/or the logic of editorial offices and advertising space sales departments, as well as the ability to think strategically and creatively to create efficient and effective campaigns.
A similar role is that of the campaign manager. Given the development of digital marketing, over the past ten years the role of digital advertising manager has taken center stage. That is, the advertising professional specialized in the digital world.
Media Buyer
A Media Buyer is responsible for purchasing advertising space in bulk on behalf of their clients. They conduct market research and analyze target audience demographics. They use information provided by advertising platforms and media outlets, psychographics, and purchasing patterns to define the target audience and determine campaign requirements and which spaces to buy on which media. They then negotiate the price of media space and purchase it within newspapers, magazines, television, digital, radio, and other platforms.
In addition to negotiating media space, media buyers are consultants in the development of advertising campaigns and in the supervision of daily operations. The media buyer tracks spending and optimizes KPIs. Ultimately, their job is to ensure that their clients' marketing efforts are effective and at the lowest possible cost in terms of cost per impression and cost per click.
For some inexplicable reason, in Italy an advertising specialist focused on social media advertising is called a "media buyer." This is clearly a misnomer. The media buyer almost always works in a large media center, with a high budget, negotiates in bulk, and is rarely at the forefront of active campaign management.
Client Relations
Account Manager
The Account Manager is an essential role in any marketing team. They are responsible for managing client relationships and coordinating activities. They must have extensive industry knowledge and be able to develop creative solutions to complex problems.
Additionally, they must possess excellent communication skills and be able to build strong relationships with clients. The Account Manager must be comfortable working with budgets, have an eye for detail, and be naturally inclined to analyze data to achieve better results.
Marketing Project Manager
In simple terms: the senior version of the account manager.
A project manager in marketing is responsible for the planning, coordination, and supervision of all projects, interfacing with all professionals and work teams.
They collaborate with clients to determine the scope and requirements of the project, then align the marketing strategy with objectives. They work very closely with the marketing director to structure an actionable plan and with the creative department. The marketing project manager is tasked with mapping projects and supervising all activities to execute the strategy.
Additionally, they must ensure that all objectives and requirements are met in a timely manner. This role requires an excellent degree of marketing and negotiation knowledge, as well as outstanding organizational, interpersonal, and communication skills.
It is among the most senior professions, although it is not technically a top decision-making role. However, it is probably the most important profession on this list because at the end of the day, it is the Project Manager who delivers results even when budgets, timelines, and resources are always facing headwinds and problems seem never-ending.
A role not for everyone. Rightfully, among the best-paid positions, alongside that of marketing director.
CRM Manager
The CRM Manager is responsible for managing customer relationships and ensuring that interactions are smooth and effective. CRM managers are responsible for developing, executing, and refining multichannel programs and campaigns for consumer retention and often upselling. They work with customer service, marketing staff, and operations to maintain a customer-centric attitude and create profitable relationships with key customers.
They are also responsible for updating accounts and clients in the CRM system to reflect accuracy, analysis, and monitoring of key performance indicators (KPIs) and CRM actions.
The greatest contemporary challenge for CRM managers is certainly omnichannel management, meaning the collection of customer information from every source and the aggregation of data in a clean way, with few false positives, and capable of providing actionable business insights.
Management
Marketing Assistant
The marketing assistant is an integral part of the team and provides essential support to the initiatives of the marketing and communications department. They are responsible for planning, executing, and monitoring programs, as well as carrying out daily administrative tasks to ensure the functionality and coordination of the department. Marketing assistants (not to be confused with PAs, i.e., personal assistants to executives) must also work closely with colleagues from other teams, such as sales, production, and distribution. Another name for this profession is "communication officer."
This is certainly a critical role, for analytical and precise people, one that connects marketing to administration and management control.
Brand Manager
The Brand Manager is responsible for developing and overseeing the implementation of a successful brand strategy. They are tasked with creating a recognizable identity for the company that is consistent across all platforms, including digital media, print, television, and radio.
The Brand Manager must have an in-depth knowledge of the target market and be able to identify trends in order to develop effective operations and ensure that branding remains relevant over time. They must also possess strong communication skills to collaborate with other departments such as advertising, marketing, and public relations.
Not infrequently, the brand manager interfaces with external entities and, for licensee companies, is the figure that connects them to the companies that own the brands.
Digital Marketing Manager
The Digital Marketing Manager is responsible for overseeing the execution of campaigns, technological developments, and digital advertising strategies. You clearly need to have a solid knowledge of search engines, all digital channels, excellent communication skills, and the ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously.
You absolutely must have a degree in marketing or a related field. Your role requires a global vision and an extraordinary accuracy in understanding metrics, trends, tools, and channels. Whether it is digital advertising campaigns, content writing, SEO optimization, social media strategies, and more. You will also be tasked with analyzing data to ensure that all campaigns are successful and that your team achieves its goals.
Typically, a DMM coordinates some of the roles seen in this list and reports to the marketing director. In some contexts, they operate as a Project Manager.
Marketing Director
The marketing director is the professional responsible for the entire marketing (and often communications) department of the company. The Digital Marketing Manager and the PR manager usually report to them. They manage all marketing campaigns and strategies to acquire new customers, direct and implement the organization's advertising and promotional activities, create and maintain relationships with the most important B2B clients, and analyze relevant market trends for a brand or client in the case of an agency. The marketing director also provides direction, guidance, and leadership to the marketing department to ensure the successful production and implementation of the entire marketing mix and long-term strategy.
They usually interact with the CEO, the board of directors, and stakeholders. This is almost always an extremely senior role.
We have often noticed the irresistible urge of some Italian companies (even fairly structured ones) to assign the title to middle management or people with insufficient experience. Either to save money, or to reward someone's fame or their proximity to the upper echelons. Unfortunately, this is always a suicidal idea. Simply put, talent and seniority cannot be improvised. And when you hold the company's fate in your hands, as is the case with a marketing director, there is no room for convenient or ill-considered choices.
Creative
For those who want to combine writing and marketing skills, a career as an editor may be the ideal choice. An editor's job is to create compelling and engaging content that drives customers to take action, such as making a purchase or signing up for a newsletter. The editor role requires creativity, an excellent understanding of language, and the ability to write clearly and concisely. They must also know how to effectively use digital channels, such as email, blogs, and social media, to maximize their reach.
This role is going through a controversial period. Both because of its devaluation by trainers who exaggerate its importance, effectively increasing the supply of personnel enormously, thus lowering compensation. And because of the advent of generative neural networks from OpenAI, increasingly capable of replacing low- and mid-level editors.
Note that in Italy this role is often confused with that of the copywriter. Do not ask us why.
Copywriter or Content Manager
The copywriter is an extremely senior editor who typically handles defining the macro content strategy of a company, the payoff, positioning, tone of voice, and the final review of the most important and strategic content with primarily commercial aspects. They are usually found only in structured agencies and large companies. As mentioned above, in Italy there is a tendency to confuse the editor (i.e., 99% of people who write texts) with copywriters, i.e., an apex-level editor who is uncommon in traditional organizations.
The content manager defines a more operational copywriter who is less involved in developing brand names, payoffs, and long-term strategic platforms. However, in the real world, they are often synonymous.
Art Director
The creative director is one of the most important roles in marketing. They are responsible for defining the creative vision of a brand or project, and bringing it to life through digital, print, video, and other media. They must have an almost encyclopedic knowledge of commercials, marketing, and advertising, and must always stay up to date with industry trends.
They must possess a simply excellent graphic eye and an obsessive mastery of all image creation tools, both raster and vector. The art director often also handles the production of individual campaigns and supervises photo shoots and commercial production.
Digital
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Specialist
Search engine optimization (SEO) specialists are responsible for optimizing websites and content for search engines. They must be well-versed in data analysis, keyword research, and best practices. As an SEO specialist, you must understand the importance of optimizing not only for Google but also for other search engines like Bing, as well as developing operations to ensure that the website's design, layout, and code are optimized for search engines. You are obviously responsible for monitoring website content performance and making necessary changes to ensure high rankings in search engine results pages.
In general, you are expected to have a thorough knowledge of on-site, on-page, and off-site SEO and to be able to coordinate all other professionals to raise a website's ranking.
Recently, there has been a subtle but growing overlap between this role and that of online PR, particularly due to link building activities.
Email Marketer and Workflow Expert
An Email Marketer is responsible for executing email campaigns to engage customers, promote products and services, and increase brand awareness. They create effective email marketing strategies, plan campaigns, write copy, and design images tailored to the target audience. Email marketers must be familiar with mailing software and analytics tools to measure the success of their campaigns and optimize results.
A specific type of email marketing professional is the workflow expert. This figure has a deep knowledge of marketing automation software, nurturing processes, and designs conversion steps. Sometimes they are a master in the art of remarketing.
Yet another Italian peculiarity is confusing marketing automation work with that of the "funnel creator." A role that does not exist in any minimally serious agency or company. In fact, funnels originated as educational tools and for supporting sales teams with the AIDA model. The actual "funnel" can only be found in large organizations and is usually a structure developed by the highest ranks of the marketing department in conjunction with the conversion process expert. And it is certainly not called a funnel. At best, "customer journey stages."
E-commerce Manager
The E-commerce Manager oversees the launch of new services and products on online shops. They are involved in monitoring sales and ensuring a seamless customer experience. They must have experience in managing monthly revenue targets, digital marketing, key account management, and must be able to coordinate with other departments to ensure the best service to customers.
Sometimes the role is equivalent to that of the Digital Marketing Manager if e-commerce is the most important digital channel. But these are actually quite distinct roles with clearly different objectives. The shop manager is in the commercial sphere, while the digital marketing manager focuses on branding KPIs and much broader metrics.
Social Media Marketing Manager
The role of Social Media Manager is today one of the fastest-growing positions (for better and for worse) in the marketing world. It encompasses the development and execution of tactics to increase a brand's online presence and customer engagement, as well as the creation and management of content for social media accounts. Social media managers must have a deep understanding of the target audience, the ability to stay up to date with the latest industry trends, and decent skills in creating copy and visuals. This is an ideal job for those who are creative, outgoing, organized, and passionate about the idea of continuously communicating and engaging fans and customers with what the company offers.
PR Specialist or Manager
A PR specialist or manager is responsible for maintaining relationships with PR firms globally and developing relationships with key media, journalists, and publishers to promote the company's message and news. They are also responsible for managing influencer lists and lists of "important" figures and creating brand awareness through social media, press releases, and other traditional and digital marketing campaigns. Not surprisingly, they often work in conjunction with social media managers.
When working for an agency, they also handle the client relationship alongside a Project Manager or Account.
Event Manager
An Event Manager is responsible for the planning and execution of events. Event managers conceive themes for events, coordinate vendors, manage costs, and ensure the right people are present. On some occasions, they may develop budgets and marketing plans, as well as evaluate objectives and KPIs for their events. An Event Manager also oversees the design, setup, and execution of events while they are live. They make sure to tailor these occasions to the needs of the target audience.
Event Managers often work with various teams, such as vendors and other coordinators, to make sure the event runs smoothly.
If working in marketing is generally an extremely stressful life choice, the event manager sits, alongside the marketing manager and director, at the highest stress levels.
As with project managers, in our experience you simply "are born" an event manager. The level of emotional self-control and resistance to burnout is simply innate.
Influencer or Content Creator
Here we refer to professionals who use their own image to share information related to a certain field connected to their profession or passion. While it is evident that there are influencers who are "famous for being famous" and dedicated to sharing their personal life and morbid details with the public, these are clearly communication modes that are difficult to professionalize and will probably be less and less rewarded as the era of Instagram dominance comes to an end.
True influencers (today more correctly called content creators) more closely resemble passionate educators who then sell exposure to their followers to brands willing to pay them or make deals through PR professionals. It is a much more demanding and less lucrative job than it might seem, because it involves a large dose of luck. But even when the wave is good, the content creator must be a tireless producer of content.