The skills gap is a familiar term in many industries, particularly in the realms of cyber security and STEM. However, one area that is starting to command more attention is the digital marketing skills gap (DMSG), particularly as research has revealed that skills levels in this sector have decreased by 4% since 2014.
By 2020, the UK digital economy is predicted to grow to 33% of GDP, adding up to £764 billion, and more than a third of CMOs say that digital marketing will account for 75% or more of their spending within the next five years. This clearly shows that the DMSG needs to be addressed sooner rather than later.
The DMSG can be defined as the disconnect between the capabilities CMOs require in their marketing staff to conduct effective digital campaigns, compared to the actual skills that graduates and more senior members of staff bring to the table.
Despite organisations continuing to invest heavily in talent and recruitment, we must consider the skills that a digital marketer needs to succeed in an always-on, connected world. Simply applying the consumer mind-set that tech-obsessed millennials possess is not enough to create and deliver a digital marketing campaign.
A report from the Digital Marketing Institute revealed that while 47% of UK respondents perceived themselves as very or fairly competent in digital marketing, their actual skill level when assessed achieved an average score of 38%. So, what are the biggest challenges when it comes to addressing the skills gap?
The greatest barrier to effectively adopting digital marketing is a lack of resources, and only 20% of organisations are reported to provide essential training support. As a result, more than two thirds of UK marketers feel they need to improve their digital marketing skills in order to remain competent in their current role, and into the future. A further 40% also expressed doubts around job security, with many believing that without change their current job or occupation would not exist in its current form in 30 years’ time.
When looking at how to solve the DMSG, first we must dispel the myth that hiring a millennial immediately brings the requisite digital skills that many marketing departments are expecting. While the millennial generation has grown up with technology at its fingertips, and as such have a good working knowledge of channels and trends, it is still the job of seasoned marketers to equip this generation with the skills to quickly and easily translate this knowledge into digital campaigns.
This isn't about upskilling everyone to know everything, even though there are some lesser-known skills such as coding that are quickly becoming critical to all digital marketers. It's about ensuring that those with technical digital skills can work effectively with those who are stronger when it comes to strategy and creative planning.
It’s important to remember that the skills gap is not just applicable to those on the front line either. Senior management must lead by example, creating an environment where marketers can, and are encouraged, to learn new skills and have the opportunity to execute them. We can no longer just pay lip service to the potential of digital marketing.
While this may not be what digital marketers want to hear, we must think carefully about whether there's a role for the all-encompassing digital marketing specialist. It’s a role comprised of many things, from AdWords to copywriting, and we don't have the luxury of knowing each skillset intricately. This increases the need for CMOs to structure digital marketing teams around complimentary skillsets.
In the current landscape we also need to be more agile and responsive to changing circumstances. The fundamentals of a marketing campaign remain the same, but we're not applying these to a real-time digital environment. As such, decisions need to be made faster. We must feel comfortable in the knowledge that we can shift plans almost immediately based on what our data is telling us. Previously we could get by just looking at benchmarking data and results once or twice a year. Now, it must be done simultaneously.
Despite our best efforts, there will always be a perceived digital marketing skills gap to some extent. Everyone is pushing to be the best, using the latest software and experimenting with new cutting-edge ideas. This means that there will always be some level of playing catch-up, but what is critical is that we, as marketers, regularly take stock of what we do and don't know. Analysing what worked and what didn’t is crucial moving forward, and we need to continue having honest conversations with ourselves and our clients to agree where our efforts are best-placed for next time.
By Omar Janabi, director of marketing at Mapp Digital
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