3 years ago

How to Get a Job in Marketing

Whether you just graduated from college or are looking for a career change, a world of opportunity awaits you. What are you going to do now?

Like many others on the job hunt, you might be feeling a bit overwhelmed. There’s endless amounts of information to look through, but don’t worry—I did all the research for you!

Find the Right Job

It feels nearly impossible to make a clear-cut list of what jobs are available in marketing, because every job title has a variety of different descriptions. Some job positions require you to know everything from content and SEO to analytics and social media. While other times, a job position can be extremely specific. However, through my research I found a few very common marketing jobs:

A job in ads is exactly how it sounds. Ad positions require you to run search, social, and/or display ads. You have to be comfortable with handling large budgets and working collaboratively with design and content teams.

Skills: Analytical, Detail Oriented, Communication, Teamwork

Analytics

To really exceed in analytics, you need the drive to constantly learn and adapt to changes while thinking about the bigger picture. A job in analytics involves optimizing the company’s ROI and assessing best practices based on market conditions. This requires a lot of time spent analyzing data, trends, and strategies.

Skills: Detail Oriented, Analytical, Time Management, Communication

Content

Do you have a knack for writing? Content marketing might be your top choice! A content marketer’s key job function is building brand awareness by providing their audience with valuable content through creative copywriting. This could be anything from blog posts and newsletters to videos and podcasts. You need to be excellent with time management and detail oriented, because content requires a lot of research and time.

Skills: Time Management, Detail Oriented, Writing and Grammar Skills, Project Management, Communication

Design

Design covers a variety of different skill sets—web design, graphic design, animations, and more. This job requires a lot of knowledge in design programs, including Adobe, HTML, CSS, and Javascript.

Skills: Detail Oriented, Creative, Time Management

Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

SEO plays an extremely important role in driving traffic and brand awareness for a company. This position would be great for people who are detail oriented and driven. Along with strong writing skills, SEO positions can require knowledge of many programs. This includes SEMRush, Moz, Screaming Frog, Search Console, Google Analytics, and HTML/CSS.

Skills: Analytical, Problem Solving, Detail Oriented

Social Media

While a lot of us spend many hours scrolling through social media, being a social media marketer takes more than just the ability to write a witty caption (although that definitely helps!). Working in social media includes creating content, engaging with your audience, developing paid advertisement campaigns, and more.

I asked our Social Media Director, Taylor Kincaid, what she thinks makes a good social media candidate:

“I tend to look for people that show an entrepreneurial spirit. Like even if your experience is limited or there isn’t a lot of opportunity to learn digital marketing, you look for how to create that yourself. It’s easy to just have the cookie-cutter things crossed off your list, but it’s harder to show yourself as someone that really is hungry to learn and will go the extra distance in whatever they do.”

Because social media is constantly changing, it’s important to be able to stay on top of trends and be extremely flexible.

Skills: Self Starter, Strategic, Creative, Writing Skills, Flexibility, Communication

Try out our quiz to see what job fits you best!

Build Your Resume

Cover Letter

A cover letter is an opportunity to showcase how your skills fit in with the position you are applying for. Use this letter to the hiring manager as a way to express your specific interest in the company and outline the ways in which you will be an asset to their team.

Certifications

Certifications can either be extremely important or completely unnecessary, depending on the position you are applying for. Most job descriptions express what certifications they look for in a candidate. Earning certifications prior to a job show that you are willing to put in the effort and learn.

Experience

Experience often plays a major role in whether you’ll get the job or not. However, it’s not necessarily how or where you got the experience. Explain how your role and experience can apply to the qualifications the company is looking for. For example, working as a waiter builds communication and teamwork skills that will help when working collaboratively on a project.

Gain Experience

Most jobs require 1–3 years of experience, but how can you gain the experience necessary to get a marketing job if you can’t get a marketing job without prior experience? There are actually quite a few creative ways to gain experience!

Freelance

Freelance work allows you to work for yourself, demonstrating a go-getter attitude, project and time management skills, and entrepreneurial spirit. It also gives you the chance to work with a variety of different clients in many industries. Not only will it look great on your resume, but also it can help you ultimately decide what industry you want to work in. Try websites like Upwork to find available jobs or Fiverr to post a listing offering your expertise.

Internship

Internships are the most common and well-known way to gain experience, but the competition can be incredibly tough. As someone who has done it before, my best tip for landing an internship is to do your research on the company itself and tell them how you can be an asset to their team. It helps you stand out from the rest of the applicants when you’ve done your research on their values and what they expect from you.

Pro Bono

Volunteering your expertise not only helps your community, but can also be a major resume boost! If you are able to, volunteer to work for your friends’ and family’s businesses or find a local non-profit in need of your services. Many pro bono positions can be found on job search websites as well.

Your drive and initiative to find work and continue to expand your skills are the most important aspects in gaining experience. When I asked our Search & Content Director, Sam Olmsted, what exactly he looks for in an applicant, he stressed this exact point:

“The most important thing that I look for in applicants is drive and initiative. These can be difficult traits to quantify, but the best way to determine someone’s initiative is to see what they’re doing to improve themselves and learn more about the marketing field. Have they built a website to show off their portfolio? Have they gotten certified in relevant courses that could help my department? Do they educate themselves about digital marketing in their free time? I look for applicants that have a passion for professional development and a willingness to learn.”

Look for Jobs

The most helpful and easiest place to look for jobs is right online. Here a few websites to get started:

However, applying to job listings isn’t the only way to get a job. Start attending networking events to meet professionals in your field. We created a convenient calendar of New Orleans online networking events to aid in this process.

Begin Your Job Search

Before you go and conquer the job market, I want to leave you with one final piece of advice from one of our current interns (who we call Specialists, due to the nature of their work), Stephanie Gutierrez:

“The best advice I received when I started applying for jobs was from my dad. He said, ‘Don’t feel pressured to find whatever job you can find right after graduation. You didn’t work this hard to settle. There’s no rush, because a rush implies you’re nearing the end. And this is only your beginning.’”