With businesses from all industries across the board relying on social media advertising to connect with their target audience, this career option is one of the most lucrative of 2021. Digital marketing ensures that companies develop and maintain communities on social media platforms to interact with customers, learn about their preferences, and provide excellent services and support, along with valuable industry-related information that they can use.
It will interest you to know that CNN has recognized social media advertising as one of the top 100 career options for 2021, with a staggering rise of 1,347% in the number of jobs since 2010. Savvy social media experts are not limited to roles that include the words “social media” in the job title. Your sought-after skills prepare you for a variety of careers in the field of digital marketing. Here are some of the job categories where you can excel.
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) or Search Engine Marketing Specialists (SEM)
Search Engine Optimization specialists are trained in helping businesses stay up to date with the latest search engine algorithms. SEO jobs require in-depth expertise in search platforms like Google, Bing, Yahoo!, Mozilla Firefox, and Safari work. You will be responsible for growing the company’s online presence so that the website gains maximum traffic.
SEO experts develop detailed and complex strategies combined with digital marketing for steady growth. These jobs are especially critical for e-commerce businesses that rely on internet traffic for maintaining sales, profits, and sustainability. SEO careers for introverts are a great idea since these professionals can work from remote locations providing services over the internet.
The projected average salaries for SEO specialists in 2021 are $54,144 a year, which works out to around $26.03 an hour.
[See relate post: 6 Benefits Of Organic Search Engine Marketing]
Pay-Per-Click Advertisers
You’ve used social media and search engines, so you know what these ads look like. Text or pictures appear on the edges of your screen, enticing people to learn more or snag a great deal. Pay-Per-Click (PPC) advertising is a large and growing industry. You’ll be crunching data while also trying to understand what tone and tactics catch the attention of human beings–often in one sentence or less.
There are PPC job opportunities for freelancers, part time workers, and full time folks. You might specialize in managing these advertising campaigns for many clients, or PPC could be just one part of your digital marketing job.
The projected average salary for a PPC specialist in 2021 is $52,343 per year, which works out to $25.16 an hour.
Email Marketing Professionals
Email marketing is a part of content strategizing, and professionals offering these services are adept at creating persuasive content that can get the maximum conversions. This section of marketing is also about building lists of email addresses for contacting potential customers and designing messages. Emails sent out regularly have images and information that readers may find interesting enough to make purchases.
Receiving emails from the company indicates that the clients are open to connecting with the company and staying updated with their latest products and services. All that remains now is converting the leads into actual sales, and that’s what email marketing professionals do.
The projected salaries for email marketing professionals in 2021 are around $52,266 per year, though locations may influence the wages you earn.
[Recommended reading: 5 Effective Email Marketing Tips To Grow Your Business]
User Experience (UX) Designers
The role of User Experience (UX) designers involves creating digital spaces that appeal to the users’ perspective. Writing copy, testing the functionality and usability of the products, and checking if promotional campaigns are effective are all a part of the job description. UX designers are also responsible for evaluating customer responses, which means their efforts are connected to those of any marketing personnel so that the company reaches its sales and profit targets.
The projected salaries for UX designers in 2021 range from $50,000 to $150,000 per year and are dependent on the professional’s experience levels.
AI (Artificial Intelligence) Specialists and Analysts
AI (Artificial Intelligence) specialists and data analysts are increasingly in demand because of the popularity of big data and its applications in developing advanced marketing strategies. If you have technical qualifications and expertise in computer science, you could consider a career in this field. You’ll also need degrees in computer programming and languages, data optimization, and machine learning.
AI specialists are essential for social media advertising since they develop programs that teach computers to think like humans. Recognizing customer preferences, interpreting the information collected over social media platforms, and analyzing the factors that influence buyer’s decisions are a part of your job description. With the Internet of Things dominating the digital landscape, you can expect that this sphere will snowball in the coming years.
The projected salaries for Artificial Intelligence (AI) professionals and data analysts in 2021 average at $74,980 per year.
Digital Marketing Managers
Depending on the organization’s size, companies may choose to have in-house digital and social media advertising teams headed by a Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) to develop and oversee their strategies. Alternatively, businesses may hire digital marketing companies to manage their presence on social media platforms. Once you acquire adequate experience, you could take a position as a CMO to develop and implement projects from start to finish. Though, you would need training in handling both internet promotions and the business aspects of the company.
CMOs are responsible for evaluating financial forecasts and planning their promotional strategies and projects accordingly. They typically work with a team to guide their efforts, assign tasks and roles, and execute company decisions to achieve their objectives.
The projected salaries for digital marketing managers in 2021 are $68,927 a year, which works out to around $33.14 per hour.
Digital media is one of the fastest-growing spheres today, considering the importance of these platforms for marketing and sales. Companies increasingly rely on specialists to remain competitive and promote sales. You can take your social media expertise and build on those digital media skills to build a number of successful careers.
[Recommended reading: How Can Millennials Use LinkedIn As A Marketing Tool To Advance Their Careers?]
[Images – Main Photo by fauxels from Pexels; SEO: Photo by Zach Reiner on Unsplash; Email marketing: Photo by fauxels from Pexels; Millennials: Image by Ana_J from Pixabay; other images from their respective websites and/or social platforms]
Since 2016, Seth Hymes has helped thousands of people acquire in-demand skills in digital marketing and get into high paying and fulfilling careers, no matter where they start.