A recent surge in salaries suggests it’s a great time to be in marketing.
Marketers work for companies, but they also work for themselves. As we upgrade our skills, we create more value, we move up and our responsibilities grow. Hopefully, our titles and salaries grow, too.
A year and a half ago, Orbit Media created a marketing salary guide for seven different marketing positions. With the 2016 data as the benchmark, we repeated the process and were surprised at the changes: It’s a good time to be in marketing. The chart below shows what marketers made at the end of 2017.
The Marketing Salary Guide
These marketing job salaries aren’t starting salaries. They are median total compensation numbers based on several data sources that comprise reports from 67,736 individuals with these marketing job titles.
Compensations Rise 19%
Compensation increased for each of the positions over the last 18 months. They all exceeded the 3% baseline set by the U.S. Salary Increase Survey. That’s good, but the average across all of the positions went up 19%. That’s amazing. This increase suggests strong competition for top marketing talent. Companies are placing high value on team members who can drive demand.
Mid-level positions saw the strongest growth, and compensation for one position overtook another: Content strategists now make more than marketing managers. Content strategy is a key skill that cuts across digital marketing disciplines. It’s no surprise that these people are in demand.
For job descriptions and salaries for the titles listed above, check out Orbit Media’s swipe file.
The Marketer’s Career Path
A career in any field is rarely a straight line, but there is a progression in job titles from junior to senior. The job titles in the diagram at right are listed in order of seniority.
Marketing Is a Growing Field
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, marketing employment should increase 10% from 2016 to 2026. That’s right in line with the national average of all fields, but judging from the jump in pay, demand for marketing experts exceeds the supply.
Andy Crestodina is the co-founder and CMO of Orbit Media. He’s an international keynote speaker and the author of Content Chemistry: The Illustrated Guide to Content Marketing.