There are so many different types of Marketers; different jobs, different skills, and tasks people just call Marketing. Because it’s such a large, over-arching industry, it means that job titles can get confusing. Especially if you’re looking to hire someone to do something specific.
Not to be confused with the titles companies have used like “customer wizard,” “creative guru,” or some other ‘fun’ name (that applicants have trouble finding and applying to by the way). The following titles will refer to what people are actually trained to do and know. One other caveat, these are only for digital marketers…there are also event marketers, print and TV media marketers, and Public Relations consultants but that’s all a bit of a separate category.
This list should give you a more precise picture of who you’ll truly need to bring onto your team. It will also help you communicate a bit more clearly with Marketers regarding your needs.
Marketing Strategist
This will be the person to look for if you’re just starting and need a Marketing plan. Another opportunity to utilize their skills are when you’re looking to re-vamp your current plan. Their specialties are seeing the big picture because they have usually performed at least one other of the following jobs. In order to understand the big picture, you should have seen the details as well (in my humble opinion).
Your strategist will be able to help you determine what your overall goals are. They should also help you get granular down to what days/times you should post on social media. This is because in order to maintain your branding, they’ll help you identify where you should be spending your time.
UX and UI
These stand for User Experience and User Interface, respectively. Interestingly enough, while they are often lumped together this way because they work together, they perform very different tasks:
UX design is “the process of developing and improving the quality of interaction between a user and all facets of a company. User experience design is, in theory, a non-digital (cognitive science) practice, but used and defined predominantly by digital industries (Career Foundry).” In other words, it’s researching and understanding how your customers experience your brand, company, website, etc.
UI design, on the other hand, is only digital. It’s the aesthetics of a brand going into a product to create an intuitive digital experience for the user. Think of it as all of the tiny details you may not notice: typography, button colors and sizes, location of the menu, etc.
SEO/SEM
Ah the holy grail of Marketing…SEO. But wait, is it?
Ranking at the top of a Google search is often something businesses want. But any good SEO/SEM person will tell you that Search Engine Optimization is not the end all/be all of marketing, but one important piece of a large puzzle. Their focus, however, is very important as well, of course. They’ll help you determine things like:
- What you should or shouldn’t include in your website
- How to optimize it best for the people you want to find you
- Who can help you get there (with back links and/or guest posts)
- Much more…
Your SEO Marketer will help you find a way to be closer to the top of a google search! As long as all of the pieces of the puzzle work together…
Account Manager
Often times this is the title given to people who manage a certain list of clients. This can work the same way for an agency where they manage several clients for their marketing. You’ll want this person to be a bit of a salesperson as they’ll be in contact with the clients regularly.
They will be the point of contact for the customer in all things marketing for their company. Presenting results, receiving feedback (being a sort of middle man), and developing relationships with company contacts will be their key skills.
Graphic Designer
A good designer is your Marketer best friend.
They will help you create custom images for your website, logo updates, brochure design, color palettes, or social media designs. Each has their own style and portfolio and their own experience on which type, of course. Personally, I envy their drawing and creation skills!
Give them your branding guidance and let them fly. See what they come up with and trust their knowledge and you’ll be all the better off for it.
Email Marketer
Here is the person who will help you build an email list. They’ll then create and send appropriate emails to the right people at the right time. They are often copywriters (See position below) and can create the text to go with them. They’ll often be able to also design an eye-pleasing email for recipients to engage with.
Your Email Marketer will be able to create sequences that can be automatically sent to your list(s) in the right cadence. They can design a workflow that matches your customers’ needs and best suits your company’s goals.
PS. We/they cannot physically prevent emails from going into recipients’ spam. As a business (and a Marketer), you can only control so much and gmail is not one of them 😉
Social Media Marketer
You’ll want a Social Media Marketer if you want to be seen across platforms like Facebook, TikTok, and Instagram. Contact a specialist if there is just one you want to focus on. There are people that specialize in Pinterest, LinkedIn, etc. If you want a bit of all of them, find someone who has experience with at least 3-4.
Your Social Media Expert will be able to dig deep into who your audience is and learn about what they actually want. Facebook Insights may be their best friend. Knowing the numbers will be vital in this skill because that’s the only way content will improve – understanding the customer.
Ad Specialist
Advertising is definitely its own animal.
There are many different places you can advertise these days, and some Marketers have their own specialty(ies). Oftentimes it is separated into social media ads versus Bing or Google ads. Depending upon your budget and target audience, your specialist can help you decide where, when, and how much you should be advertising.
They should also be able to provide you reporting on what they’re running and why, including the copy for your ad (not the visuals/graphics). You’ll want regular management of these ads as well. These things don’t run themselves unfortunately. They must be constantly updated because you’ll be constantly learning from their results.
Market Researcher
Marketing Research is the foundation of your Marketing Plan. A researcher often does a few other things like perhaps Strategies or User Experience (see above). Research is the core of your plan because it provides the insights the Strategist needs to design a great plan.
You should ensure you receive all data, sources, context (like dates), and summaries from this person. They will help you dig deep into what the needs and desires are of your ideal target market. Ensure you understand every part of their research and what their findings mean for you and your business.
Community Builder
Yep, especially this year of 2020, this is an incredibly full job in itself. This is especially true if you’re looking to truly build a community around your brand. A Community Manager does so much more than creating posts or emails stating your readers are in a community.
Not only are they someone who can manage a Facebook group, Slack channel, or in person meetup, but they evaluate what’s working within the community and what’s not. A Community Builder is constantly learning what people need, what they’re not getting, and showing how you and your company can help. They also do this in an authentic to the brand way which has become and is becoming even more important in communities and brands alike.
Web Developer
This position is here because a lot of people are unsure if Marketers can do web developing. In short, we generally can’t. I’ve met one person in 9 years who knows both. A developer knows coding and technologies while marketers know writing and people (super generally speaking).
While they are very different skill sets, they often work together because the website or app are part of the overall Marketing Plan. Sometimes this will need – depending upon desires or custom requests – a custom code written by a programmer/developer).
Copywriter
Even I was confused about this term when I first heard it. It’s very well-versed these days that a ‘copywriter’ is not a ‘copy right-er’. In other words, copywriters write copy, not copyright (c) things, ideas, or words. This is the person that will help you create content in writing!
From articles or blogs to daily social media posts, you’ll need a Marketer that can help you stay true to your brand with consistency across all platforms. Your website, your social media, your brochures, everything should be aligned with your brand identity and voice. Contact me to see how I can help you do just that!
Determine the Best Marketer for You
No matter the task at hand, there will be someone who knows their stuff. Finding them is your next challenge, but knowing your branding style is the first one. If you don’t know what your company is all about, what its ‘personality’ is, and what drives the people and products, how will anyone else?
This will also help you know exactly what your customers need and want in reference to your industry. Narrowing down the specifics on both sides help you reconcile the right mix of solving a problem and standing out from the crowd. Only then will you be able to hire the right person.