digital marketing career guide

YOUR DIGITAL MARKETING CAREER GUIDE | 2016

WEBGROWTH | YOUR DIGITAL MARKETING CAREER GUIDE 2016 2

WelcomeSo you’re interested in Digital Marketing?

The world of digital marketing

is fast-paced and constantly

changing - but don’t worry,

we’re here to guide you through

every step of the way.

The prominence of the

traditional marketer is

diminishing as companies and

brands begin to look to the

digital marketer for actionable

insights into their consumers’

behaviour and the integrated

online marketing strategies

which align with them.

Technological advances now

allow us to more accurately

measure and track how well

certain brands or products are

doing online and make changes

accordingly - it’s the upper

hand that digital has to offer.

Digital marketing is a world

in which analytics and

creativity meet and we can’t

wait to introduce you. Digital marketing is a world in which analytics and creativity meet and we can’t wait to introduce you.


5 HOURS A DAY

In-demand skills

Digital marketing has taken South Africa

by storm following the exponential surge

in internet and mobile phone usage rates.

THE END OF 2015 SAW JUST UNDER 25 MILLION INTERNET USERS IN SOUTH AFRICA - THAT’S ALMOST 47% OF OUR TOTAL POPULATION.

What’s more, South Africans are now

relying more and more on their mobile

phones as their first screen to access

the internet. In 2015, 61% of all web

traffic in the country was accessed

via mobile phones. This isn’t unique

to South Africa though, the entire

continent is experiencing a boom in

both internet and mobile phone usage.

On average South Africans are spending just over 5 hours a day accessing the internet from computers, and over 3 hours a day from mobile phones.

Digital Marketing in South Africa

This is the ideal climate for the digital

marketing industry to thrive. More than

ever before companies and brands,

both large and small, are marketing to

and interacting with their consumers

online. I’m sure you know by now that

you can do very little online without

being advertised to - and most of the

time you aren’t even aware of it.

While we’ve covered a lot of technological

ground lately, we are still an emerging

market economy and a couple steps

behind the industry leaders in the

US and the UK. This creates an even

greater urgency for us to keep an

eye on those ahead of us and the

trends and developments of internet

marketing strategies globally. 3 HOURSA DAY


2017 SOUTH AFRICAN CONSUMERS WILL BE SPENDING A TOTAL OF

R59.6 BILLION ON INTERNET ACCESS..

...A MASSIVE LEAP

FROM 2014’S

R19.8 BILLION*

11.8 MILLION ACTIVE SOCIAL MEDIA ACCOUNTS

10.6 MILLION ACTIVE MOBILE SOCIAL ACCOUNTS*

79.1 MILLION MOBILE CONNECTIONS

Digital Marketing Statistics

SOURCES* WeAreSocial

* Pricewaterhousecoopers

5

Agency Alex

• Works in a creative workspace

• Works within teams across multiple disciplines

• Focuses on client strategies & campaigns

• Mostly hides behind the safety of a laptop screen, but team interaction cannot be avoided - eek!

‘The nine to five’

What we find most exciting is

that no day in the life of a digital

marketer is the same. Whether

you work for a corporate in a

snazzy office or freelance from

the comfort of your own home -

it’s going to look very different.

Take these guys for example:

A DAY IN THE LIFE OF A DIGITAL MARKETER

Freelancing Frank

• Freedom to work anywhere and anytime

• The ability to work on international clients

• Independent from any senior management

• Usually found in the local coffee joint - their natural habitat.


We’ve put together an easy to use job-checklistand salary guide to help you navigate the seemingly overwhelming digital marketing scene.

It’s not that scary, we promise...


WHO’S WHO #1

Does what: Develops and implements

strategies to optimise websites for search

engines in order to increase organic traffic.

Knows what:

• Google analytics

• Keyword research

• On-page optimisation

• Content strategy

• HTML/ coding

Uses what:

• Google Analytics

• WebCEO / Moz

• Screaming Frog

• Google’s Keyword Planner

• Buzzsumo / Ahrefs

Does what: Develops and coordinates

content production across all digital

platforms in order to drive traffic, create

leads and encourage engagement.

Knows what:

• Content Marketing

• SEO

• Social Media

• Copywriting

Uses what:

• Buzzsumo

• Gather Content

• Brandseye

• Content Management Systems (Wordpress)

THE SEO STRATEGIST THE CONTENT CREATOR

EARNS WHAT

• 0-2 years: R8 000 - R15 000

• 2-5 years: R15 000 - R25 000

• 5-9 years: R25 000 - R35 000+

EARNS WHAT

• 0-2 years: R8 000 - R15 000

• 2-5 years: R15 000 - R25 000

• 5-9 years: R25 000 - R40 000+


Does what: Responsible for the overall development

and implementation of an integrated online paid

advertising campaign across all channels.

KNOWS WHAT:

• Google AdWords

• Facebook advertising

• Twitter advertising

• Integration of SEO, Content and Social Media

• Reporting on business objectives

USES WHAT:

• Adespresso

• Facebook Power Editor

• Google Adwords

• Wordstream (optional)

• Twitter Ads

Does what: Executes a company’s content strategy

online while being ‘the voice’ of the company.

Listens and manages online communities,

ensuring they are engaged and ultimately turning

communities into satisfied and loyal customers.

KNOWS WHAT:

• Content creation

• Content distribution

• Social optimisation

• Copywriting

USES WHAT:

• Hootsuite or similar

• Buzzsumo or Ahrefs

• Brandseye

• Socialbakers

WHO’S WHO #2

THE CAMPAIGN MANAGER THE COMMUNITY MANAGER

EARNS WHAT:

• 0-2 years: R10 000 - R20 000

• 2-5 years: R20 000 - R32 000

• 5-9 years: R32 000 - R45 000+

EARNS WHAT:

• 0-2 years: R12 000 - R18 000

• 2-5 years: R18 000 - R30 000

• 5-9 years: R30 000 - R40 000+

9

Does what: Keeps an eye on the quantitative metrics

which indicate how well a business/ marketing

campaign is performing online. In doing so, pulls

the valuable information from the raw data and

translates it into possible future campaign decisions.

KNOWS WHAT:

• PPC

• SEO

• Reporting & insight

• User behaviour

• Website architecture

USES WHAT:

• Google Analytics or similar

• Paid advertising platforms

• (Google Adwords & Facebook)

• A/B split testing tools

• Heatmapping

• Spreadsheets

Does what: Oversees the development and

implementation of the entire digital marketing

strategy for a company - managing the

likes of SEO, PPC, Social Media, Website

Design and Content developers.

KNOWS WHAT:

• PPC

• SEO

• Content Marketing

• Social Media

• Email Marketing

USES WHAT:

• Brandseye

• Google Adwords

• Google Analytics

• Hubspot or equivalent marketing automation tool

• Trello or equivalent project management tool

WHO’S WHO #3

WEB ANALYST THE DIGITAL MARKETING MANAGER

EARNS WHAT:

• 0-2 years: R8 000 - R15 000

• 2-5 years: R15 000 - R30 000

• 5-9 years: R30 000 +

EARNS WHAT:

• 0-2 years: R8 000 - R18 000

• 2-5 years: R18 000 - R35 000

• 5-9 years: R35 000 +


What jobs are most in-demand?

That’s right! The positions of Marketing Manager, Campaign Manager and SEO Specialist are most in-demand in South Africa today.

There is no denying that digital

marketing skills are increasingly

in demand as companies

begin to digitalise in keeping

up with international trends

and consumer needs. Some

positions within the digital

marketing scene are however

more in-demand than others.

Keeping this in mind will

ultimately equip you to make

the the best career decisions

and place you on a trajectory

that both elevates your skillsets

and satisfies your pocket.

MARKETING MANAGER

CAMPAIGN MANAGER

SEO STRATEGIST

The Upper Hand

We checked out all the digital

marketing job listings on

indeed.co.za and calculated

the number of listings per

job title (such as ‘content

manager’ or ‘SEO specialist’).

We then figured out which

positions are currently most

in-demand in South Africa

and aligned these results with

the results of an Ad Talent

salary survey. Here are some

of our findings, but you can

view the full report here.


The T-Shaped Marketer

Digital marketing is one of

the few careers in which

your professional trajectory

is completely in your own

hands. As a digital marketer

you can choose to specialise in

certain skill-sets, have a broad-

based approach, freelance

from home or work for an

agency. Up-skilling yourself

and taking your career in the

direction of your choice is quite

literally at your fingertips.

These days there is an increasing

demand for what has been

coined a ‘general specialist’ –

having a broad knowledge of

the industry but a specialist

skillset in one specific area.

Companies will increasingly look for rounded individuals who can combine analytical rigor with the ability to apply this knowledge in a practical and creative context.

THE GUARDIAN

Be the best

This is also commonly referred

to as a T-Shaped marketer. Think

of digital marketing as a “T”.

The horizontal line relates to

your broad-based knowledge

across all the digital marketing

disciplines whereas the tail of

the “T” (the vertical line) is the

skillset that you specialise in.

A general knowledge and understanding

A deep understanding and knowledge in one or a few of these fields

Email PPC Social ContentSEO

On-Page Best Practices

Keyword Research &Competitive Analysis

Design & Architecture

Site Optimization& Best Practices

Link-Building

SEO for Local Search

Conducting SEO Site Audits

Critical Algorithm Updates

SEO Tracking

SEO Tools


Not everyone is a natural born

marketing manager and most

certainly not everyone has the

creative mind-set required of

a content manager. Whether

you are already in the industry

or not, it’s vital to recognise

your strongest skillset and

pursue it – and it’s never too

late to change direction.

Technical skills can be readily

learnt for each specialisation

within digital marketing,

however each specialisation

inherently requires specific soft

skills from an individual – such as

personality traits, interpersonal

skills and thought processes.

Before pursuing your ideal

specialisation, consider if you

have the necessary soft skills.

Every job under the digital marketing umbrella requires a unique combination of both analytical and creative skill-sets. As some would say, it’s the marriage of

the left and right brains.So what are your skills?

SEO would require both

analytical and creative skill-sets

with an inkling toward research

and a proactive personality.

Campaign Managers on the

other hand require a more

strategic mind-set while also

needing broad-based creative

and analytical skills. As with

any management position,

leadership skills and the ability

to effectively work within a

team-based environment is key.

Those in Social Media need to

first and foremost be brilliant

communicators, able to bring a

persona to an online platform.

A Content Manager needs to

be able to easily think outside

of the box in terms of new and

cutting edge content strategies.

It’s all about you

For example: A Content Manager would be about 80% creative and 20% analytical.

www.webgrowth.co.za

Whether you’ve just finished high school or graduated from university upping your digital marketing skillset could be the necessary step in positioning yourself for

the career of your dreams.

Our Certificate in Advanced Digital Marketing

could do just that:

Find us on

and kickstart your career in digital marketing today.

So what’s the next step?