Companies that require outreach to consumers and target markets need digital marketers on their teams, as they play an essential role. Their vitality stems from their ability to strategize inbound marketing, search engine optimization, and conversion rate optimization, and shape the experiences of a company’s actual customers. For those interested in the digital marketing career path, it is important to know the difference between junior vs senior digital marketers.
The career progression for a junior digital marketer will lead you to a senior role, but what exactly is the difference between these two positions? In this guide, we will help job seekers discern the difference between junior vs senior digital marketers, the salaries of these individual roles, and what the job entails. As well, we’ll discuss how long it takes to become a senior digital marketer.
What Is a Digital Marketer?
A digital marketer does social media marketing and strategic creation of material that will promote the company’s brand on platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn. They understand typical direct and traditional marketing methods and utilize inbound marketing to foster long-term relationships with customers and outbound marketing to grab their attention.
Digital marketers are skilled in understanding search engine optimization best practices and data-driven marketing where companies use gathered data to create customer profiles and tailor their digital marketing campaign to whom is most likely to purchase.
Junior vs Senior Digital Marketer: Areas of Responsibility
There are several key differences between junior digital marketers and senior digital marketers, but there are some crucial similarities that are fundamental to their success. Both are required to know the ins and outs of content marketing, analytics tools, conversion rates, and digital marketing. For a more in-depth review of the differences in their responsibilities, the lists below outline their job descriptions.
Junior Digital Marketer Job Description
- Analytics. Junior digital marketers monitor Google Analytics and spreadsheets to analyze website traffic. Then, they present their findings and offer recommendations on-page optimization to the rest of the marketing team.
- Community Management. Junior digital marketers manage and create content for the company’s social media platforms. They answer potential customers’ queries and use customer relationship management to oversee customer relationships.
- Email Marketing. Junior digital marketers help with email marketing campaigns and decide what to write and how to reach more customers. Digital marketing strategies must be utilized during these email campaigns.
- Marketing Campaign Management. Junior digital marketers make sense of the campaign life cycle and assist in creating new marketing techniques. They also research marketing trends and help the company build its brand to reach its marketing goals.
- Content Writing. Junior digital marketers write content for the company’s different digital channels. These channels may include the company’s own website through blog content and their social media channels keeping prospective customers in mind.
Senior Digital Marketer Job Description
- Digital Marketing Strategy. Senior digital marketers develop strategies that help the company to understand economic indicators, track changes in supply and demand, and identify customers and anticipate their needs. They also monitor any competition.
- Content Strategy. Senior digital marketers approve content that is distributed through digital channels and digital marketing campaigns. Overseeing the marketing team, they decide what content circulates, including blog posts, emails, websites, and social media.
- Marketing Leader. Senior digital marketers lead subteams within the department, the marketing coordinator, and junior marketer to ensure productivity and efficiency in getting the work done right and meeting their deadlines.
- Customer Experience. Senior digital marketers set meetings with the team and use analytical tools to check customer experience in different channels. Through the data collected, they create strategies to have higher conversion rates.
- Social Media Marketing. Senior digital marketing, being experts in the field, build, design, and maintain social media presence. In other words they are social media managers. They direct the team to implement techniques for social media campaigns.
Junior vs Senior Digital Marketer Salaries
Since junior roles and senior roles in digital marketing have different responsibilities, that means their salary grades differ, as well. Senior managers have more experience and responsibility, meaning they receive a higher salary than junior digital marketing job titles. Below is a breakdown of each of these roles’ salaries.
Junior Digital Marketer Salary
The average junior digital marketer’s salary is $69,098 a year, while the base pay for this job position is $57,047 a year. The annual salary of a junior digital marketer compensates for all the tasks the job entails. This includes the challenging feat of executing digital and social media campaigns while following current social media trends, and acting as a source of content and strategy for ensuring campaign success.
Senior Digital Marketer Salary
The average senior digital marketer’s salary is $81,260 a year. A senior digital marketer’s salary encapsulates the responsibilities of the role. Senior digital marketers shed light on the trajectory of the company’s goals and vision, while directing the team to fulfill their purpose. They meet with the management team regarding updates on new strategies.
How Long Does It Take to Become a Junior Digital Marketer?
How long it takes to become a junior digital marketer depends on your experience, education, and the company you work for. Some companies have a more extensive promotion or hiring process and are precise with the qualifications necessary for the job. Typically in this case, you are likely to be promoted within one or two years, given you have the appropriate qualifications.
How Long Does It Take to Become a Senior Digital Marketer?
How long it takes to become a senior digital marketer also depends on your level of experience and expertise within the field, and typically requires you to have worked as a junior digital marketer for some time. It could take between three to five years to become a senior digital marketer with an acute understanding of the company’s mission and brand culture.
Career Path and Progression from Junior to Senior Digital Marketer
1. Show Leadership Skills
Becoming a senior digital marketer requires you to show leadership and take responsibility. Positively influencing others, showing professionalism, and taking ownership of your duties when things get challenging are all ways to become a senior digital marketer. Further, you should take initiative, consider your team members, and encourage your coworkers to meet their deadlines.
2. Enhance Your Technical Skills
Becoming more knowledgeable and upskilling are excellent ways to showcase your ability and willingness to grow and learn, regardless of whether you’re in a junior role or a senior role. Stand out by enrolling in a digital marketing bootcamp. As well, you can attend a social media marketing bootcamp, which will give you the knowledge and skills to properly market on social media.
3. Finish Your Tasks on Time
To succeed in this career path, showing your employer you are a reliable and valuable employee is key. Meeting your deadlines and ensuring your work is done properly is the best way to prove your reliability and demonstrate that you’re spending your time wisely during work hours. Your superiors will see your efforts and may choose to promote you.
4. Go the Extra Mile
On top of finishing your tasks on time, employers like to see that you are going the extra mile to ensure your job is done right. Whether it be providing recommendations for the next campaign or discussing strategies with your team, employers like to see their employees going above and beyond.
5. Get a Graduate Degree
Getting a graduate degree in marketing is another way to prove to your employers you’ve got the proper qualifications for a promotion. A master’s degree program will teach you important theoretical concepts that can be used to solve marketing problems, while giving you the opportunity to learn from other people’s digital marketing experiences.
Should You Become a Digital Marketer?
Yes, you should become a digital marketer as there are plenty of opportunities for growth. According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, the job outlook for digital marketing shows a growth of 10 percent from 2020 to 2030.
Aside from the high demand, the job shows great career development internally, as in promotional opportunities. Become a digital marketer in 2022 if helping companies with their branding and online presence are things that interest you.
Junior vs Senior Digital Marketer Salaries FAQ
Yes, typically digital marketers are paid well. The average full-time annual salary for workers in the US is $71,465. This means that the salary of a digital marketer is oftentimes lower than the national average.
A digital marketer’s average salary is $61,646 a year. Part of their job is to help manage social media platforms and execute digital campaigns. They help out the team to get informative content that will catch customers’ attention.
The highest paying job in marketing is the marketing manager. A marketing manager’s average annual salary is $99,469 a year. A marketing manager plans digital strategy and content marketing, oversees marketing analytics and digital marketing budgets, and even conducts interviews.
First, you must understand the company’s policies regarding salary increases. You may ask for a higher salary when you have enough experience and the appropriate skill level. Enroll in a bootcamp or graduate degree program to enhance your skills and build credibility.
About us: Career Karma is a platform designed to help job seekers find, research, and connect with job training programs to advance their careers. Learn about the CK publication.
