How to write a marketing executive job description

Hiring the wrong marketing executive can lead to ineffective marketing strategies that drain your budget, derail your brand’s momentum, and erode your competitive edge in the market. It’s a mistake you simply can’t afford to make. 

Creating a good job description is the first step to finding the right person for your marketing executive role. However, writing a precise job description for a broad role like this can be tricky and lead to applications from unqualified individuals.

In this article, we'll show you how to tackle these issues and write a great job description that brings in the best candidates for your marketing executive position. 

What is a marketing executive?

A marketing executive is a professional who plays a crucial role in supporting a company's marketing initiatives. Their responsibilities typically include:

• Executing detailed marketing strategies, including digital campaigns, email marketing, and event promotions.

• Running marketing campaigns across emails, search engines, social media platforms (e.g., Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn), and more – ensuring consistent brand messaging.

• Analyzing market trends and consumer behavior to develop and improve marketing and branding strategies.

• Producing marketing materials – from website content and blog posts to brochures and email newsletters.

Overall, marketing executives support the marketing team in increasing brand visibility, engaging potential customers, and driving sales.

Key skills to look for in marketing executives

Marketing executives need both technical and interpersonal skills to succeed. Below are the top skills to look for in your candidates.

Hard skills

• Data analysis to interpret market data and consumer behavior trends. This enables marketing executives to create, assess, and refine marketing strategies – for example, using Google Analytics to track campaign performance.

• SEO (Search Engine Optimization) and SEM (Search Engine Marketing (SEM) knowledge helps marketing executives optimize content for better visibility on search engines like Google. 

• Content creation and management to produce compelling marketing materials – e.g., blog articles, social media posts, and video content – that resonate with the target audience.

• Email marketing skills, including using MailChimp, HubSpot, or other platforms to create effective email campaigns that engage subscribers, promote offerings, and drive conversions.

• Digital advertising for setting up, managing, and optimizing online ad campaigns – including pay-per-click (PPC), social media advertising, and other strategies.

Soft skills

• Creativity for ideating and producing innovative marketing campaigns that stand out and capture the target audience.

• Communication skills ensure clear verbal and written messaging across all marketing materials and effective coordination with team members and stakeholders.

• Adaptability to changing market trends, consumer preferences, and new technologies. This enables executives to adjust their marketing efforts swiftly and effectively.

• Problem-solving and design thinking skills help individuals proactively identify challenges within the marketing domain and provide unique and innovative solutions to address them.

• Team collaboration to facilitate productive teamwork and integration of ideas, which is crucial for executing cohesive marketing strategies.

How to write an effective marketing executive job description 

Follow these best practices to write a marketing executive job description that accurately captures your needs for this position. 

1. Highlight specific marketing channels and tools

Specify the marketing channels and tools the candidate will be expected to use or manage. For instance, you could write, "Experience with Facebook Ads Manager and Google Analytics required." 

This specificity helps candidates understand the technical demands of the role and self-select based on their proficiency with these tools. In turn, it prevents the risk of hiring a marketing executive who lacks expertise in platforms essential to your company’s marketing efforts. 

2. Include measurable objectives and expectations

State clear and measurable objectives for the role, like "Increase web traffic by 20% within the first year" or "Grow social media engagement by 30% over six months." 

Providing specific targets gives candidates a concrete understanding of what success looks like in this position. It also deters applicants who may not be able to meet these goals.

3. Specify the company's products or services

Detailing the company’s products or services in the job description lets candidates assess their interest and passion for what the company offers. For example, let candidates know if they’ll be working with cutting-edge tech products, luxury goods, sustainable services, and so on. 

This helps to attract candidates who are genuinely enthusiastic about your offerings, which is crucial for creating authentic and engaging marketing campaigns.

4. Spotlight the need for storytelling skills

As Seth Godin, author and marketing expert, has said, “Marketing is the generous act of helping others become who they seek to become. It involves creating honest stories – stories that resonate and spread.”

In your job description, you should highlight the need for the candidate to lead strategic storytelling efforts and craft compelling brand narratives that resonate with audiences and align with long-term brand goals. This will help you attract candidates with a creative mindset and a knack for branding and storytelling, both of which are crucial to the position. 

Marketing executive job description template 

Here’s a job description template to help you get started with your marketing executive job listing. 

Company introduction

Introduce your company and its vision. Outline your core products and services and how the marketing team contributes to company goals. Finally, discuss why your company is outstanding in its field and mention any awards or recognition it has garnered. 

Benefits of working with [your company]

Emphasize the perks your company offers employees, such as an attractive salary and benefits package, flexible working, and career development programs.

Tailor this section to marketing executives. For example, you might highlight “the opportunity to join an innovative and proficient marketing team, with direct engagement in shaping marketing strategies and campaigns.”

Marketing executive job brief

[Company name]

Job title: [Marketing Executive]

Reports to: [For example, Marketing Manager]

Position type: [Full-time or part-time]

Location: [Remote, hybrid, or on-site (include address if applicable)]

[Salary and benefits details]

Responsibilities and duties

• Develop and implement comprehensive marketing strategies to increase brand awareness and drive sales.

• Manage and oversee our marketing campaigns across multiple channels, including social media (Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn), email, and SEO/SEM.

• Analyze market and consumer behavior trends to adjust our strategies and campaigns for better engagement.

• Coordinate with our sales team to align marketing strategies with sales objectives.

• Produce and manage engaging content for our website, blogs, and newsletters.

• Track the effectiveness of our marketing campaigns and report findings to the senior marketing team.

Skills and qualifications

Required skills and experience

• Bachelor’s degree in marketing, business administration, or a related field – or equivalent experience or training

• Proven experience in digital marketing, including SEO/SEM, email marketing, and social media management.

• Proficiency in Google Analytics, Google AdWords, and CRM software such as Salesforce.

• Excellent analytical skills for interpreting marketing data and making informed decisions.

• Solid project management skills and the ability to oversee multiple campaigns simultaneously.

Preferred skills and experience

• Master’s degree in Marketing or a related subject – or equivalent training or work experience.

• Familiarity with graphic design tools such as Adobe Creative Suite.

• Certifications in digital marketing – for instance, the HubSpot Content Marketing Certification or the Facebook Blueprint Certification.

4 mistakes to avoid when writing a job description for marketing executives 

Avoid these common pitfalls when crafting a marketing executive job description to ensure you attract the right candidate for the role.

1. Underestimating digital skills

Today’s marketing executives need a robust set of digital skills to effectively navigate the complexities of online marketing landscapes. 

Underestimating the importance of these skills in a job description can lead to hiring candidates who may be competent with traditional offline marketing strategies but lack essential skills in digital marketing, data analysis, SEO, content marketing, social media strategies, and digital advertising.

2. Ignoring cultural fit

Imagine your company promotes a “fail fast” culture that encourages experimentation with marketing campaigns. Not mentioning this in your job description can lead to you mistakenly hiring a candidate with a more cautious approach. 

Additionally, marketing executive roles are highly collaborative. Hiring a candidate who doesn’t gel with their colleagues and your company culture can hamper team efforts and create a negative working environment for everyone. 

Therefore, you must highlight aspects of your company culture upfront so you can  attract candidates who share your organization’s values and working styles.

3. Not highlighting work-life balance 

Marketing executives often work in fast-paced environments, juggling multiple projects and deadlines, which can lead to stress and even burnout. 

In your job description, highlight your company’s commitment to work-life balance initiatives such as flexible scheduling, remote work options, or wellness programs. This helps you attract top talent and set clear expectations about the support available for maintaining a healthy work-life balance.

If you neglect to address this, you risk losing qualified candidates who prioritize balance and well-being, ultimately impacting the effectiveness and longevity of your marketing team.

4. Overlooking the importance of continuous learning

Marketing is continuously changing as new trends and technologies emerge. However, job descriptions often focus only on current skills, forgetting the need for continuous learning.

If you don’t emphasize the importance of staying updated on industry trends and new technologies, you might attract candidates who get stuck in old ways and struggle to keep up.

So, ensure your job description highlights the need for candidates to be committed to learning and development – and how your company supports this. Note any training and professional development opportunities employees have available, and show how your company creates a culture that values innovation.

Next steps: Assessing marketing executives 

A well-written job description can help you attract qualified candidates for your marketing executive role. But you’ll still need to screen and evaluate them thoroughly to ensure you pick the right one. 

The quickest and most effective way to do this is through an online talent assessment platform like TestGorilla. You can choose from hundreds of tests that evaluate candidates on multiple levels, including hard and soft skills, personality traits, and more. 

Consider using the following tests to assess your marketing executive applicants. 

Role-specific skills 

• Our TikTok Marketing test, Instagram Marketing test, and other social media tests evaluate if applicants can effectively use these platforms to create and run marketing campaigns. 

• The Email Marketing test assesses candidates’ ability to plan and implement email marketing campaigns. 

• TestGorilla’s Marketing Analytics test helps to ensure that candidates can analyze, interpret, and use data insights to drive marketing decisions.  

• Our Branding Strategy test examines how applicants define, position, and build your company’s brand across multiple channels.

Soft skills and cognitive abilities 

• Our Communications (intermediate) test checks if candidates possess strong written, verbal, and interpersonal communication skills required in business settings.

• The Problem Solving test examines applicants' abilities to identify and address problems using data-driven solutions.

Personality and culture tests 

• Enneagram, Big Five (OCEAN), DISC, and other personality assessments provide insights into candidates’ adaptability, creative inclination, and other attributes essential to marketing executive jobs. 

• TestGorilla’s Culture Add test helps you see how candidates might contribute to your company’s culture and values rather than just align with them. 

FAQs

Looking for more information? Check out the answers to these frequently asked questions.

What’s the difference between a marketing manager and a marketing executive? 

A marketing manager oversees the marketing department, creating strategies and guiding the team's direction. A marketing executive, on the other hand, works within this team and focuses on specific tasks like executing marketing campaigns and analyzing data. 

Essentially, managers lead and plan, while executives handle the day-to-day activities to bring those plans to life.

What is the average salary for a marketing executive? 

The salary for a marketing executive in the United States can vary widely depending on location, experience, and the company’s specific industry. According to Indeed, marketing executives make an average of $67,000 per year. 

Hire the best marketing executives with TestGorilla

Hiring the wrong marketing executive can slow down your company's growth and knock your marketing plans off track. Crafting a detailed and skills-based job description is the first step in avoiding this costly mistake and attracting the right talent for the role.

Once you have a pool of qualified candidates, you must identify those best suited for the job. TestGorilla can help you do this quickly and easily. Our platform offers an array of talent assessments that measure individuals’ job-specific skills, personality traits, and more so you can make well-informed hiring decisions for this high-stakes position.

Schedule a live demo or create a free TestGorilla account to get started today.