Marketing industry calls for hands-on digital experience, simply using social media isn't enough

LONDON, 17 May – According to Michael Page Marketing, the UK’s largest marketing recruiter’s 2012 Salaries and Insight Report, 80% of marketing departments have indicated they have experienced a shortfall of digital expertise. When faced with this shortfall, hiring an external agency is considered the best solution. 

Paul Sykes, Managing Director, Michael Page Marketing said that there are significant opportunities in the digital space for both agencies and digital marketing candidates. 

“Half of our clients already outsource digital expertise through an agency or by hiring an interim. We believe the appetite for digital expertise will continue to grow, in particular, the demand for niche skills in pay per click and mobile,” Mr Sykes said. 

When it comes to recruiting for digital roles, respondents rank hands-on digital marketing experience as the most critical factor, while one third consider that social media experience through personal use is not important or not relevant. Mr Sykes warned that candidates looking move into the highly competitive digital arena need to be ready to prove themselves. 

“Simply using social media in your own time isn’t enough. Our clients are seeking not just digital marketing knowledge, but crucial hands-on experience and proven successes in the area. 

“However, this doesn’t mean traditional marketing skills are not important. The best digital candidates will be able to show how they can apply digital campaigns or knowledge to real business objectives to add to the bottom line,” he said. 

Another key finding of the research was that a surprisingly high, 61% of marketers believe their company is not doing enough to retain top talent. 

“In the current market, companies need to seriously consider their retention strategies. We are seeing more and more gaps in marketing departments, where companies have misjudged the importance of being engaged in the recruitment market, in particular understanding the availability of talent and skills and how long it takes to replace good marketers,” Mr Sykes said. 

The good news for marketing companies is that while large salaries are always going to be attractive, nearly half of marketers would choose their next employer based on its brand precedence in the market. 

“Our research has revealed that the perception of a company’s brand to potential employees is as important as the candidate’s skills are to the employer. So much so, that we have place significant importance on employer branding for our clients’ recruitment advertising strategies with onus on social media and search optimisation,” he said. 

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For a number of years Michael Page has been producing salary survey reports which are based on robust client and candidate data updated daily by its recruiters. Michael Page Marketing’s Salary and Insight Report is a snapshot of information collected from candidate placements in 2011/2012 in conjunction with a qualitative survey of more than 500 senior marketing professionals which took place in March 2012. 

Michael Page Marketing is the largest specialist marketing recruiter in the UK. With 12 offices across the UK offering expertise in 13 industries ( agency, business to business, digital, energy/utilities, financial services, FMCG/consumer, IT & telecoms, leisure & travel, media, not-for-profit/charity, professional services, public sector and retail) it is also UK’s only true national marketing recruiter.