Learn about different roles you can pursue if you're interested in launching your marketing career.
A career in marketing can be a great option if you enjoy being creative, strategic, and innovative, as well as using technology to reach consumers. There are many different areas of marketing in which you can build your career. With multiple pathways to enter the profession, it’s common to start in a junior or entry-level position to gain experience and transition to a more senior role.
In this article, we'll go over entry-level marketing jobs you can explore. Afterward, develop your marketing skills by enrolling in the Adobe Marketing Specialist Professional Certificate, where you'll about core marketing principles, social media, graphic design, and AI.
Marketing is the work of promoting and selling a company's products (or services) by attracting customers. The term is broad and includes market research and analysis, advertising, as well as delivering a message through digital channels. Marketing can be further broken down into the following types:
Social media marketing: Using social media to promote and introduce products and services
Influencer marketing: Collaborating with credible individuals who endorse products through social media, links, and online content
Content marketing: Creating and sharing material online with blogs, videos, articles, and social media posts to promote products and services
SEO marketing: Optimizing the on-page and backend elements or a website or web page so that it ranks at or near the top of a search engine results page
Affiliate marketing: Collaborating and compensating a third party to promote products and services
Email marketing: Promoting products and services via email by creating a mailing list
Telemarketing: Marketing products and services via the telephone, either with warm leads or cold calling
Public relations marketing: Building a public company image to facilitate marketing activities
Now that you know the different types of marketing, it’s time to think about roles that might be a good fit. Consider the following entry-level marketing jobs, which span various areas, and use the details included in each description as a starting point for conducting your own marketing career research:
*All salary data is sourced from Glassdoor as of January 2025 and only includes annual base salary (not additional pay, such as commissions, tips, profit sharing, and cash bonuses).
Salary: $54,040
A marketing coordinator supports the marketing department's projects and goals. Tasks may include coordinating marketing and community events, assisting with different campaigns, creating content, conducting research, and monitoring campaign performance. Depending on the company, you may be expected to have a bachelor's degree (in marketing, business, or a related field), plus one or two years of experience.
Salary: $44,620
As a social media assistant, you support the social media manager and team in delivering marketing campaigns across social media platforms. Your job will involve tracking ad results, interacting with followers, and working with content creators to grow a company’s audience. You may need a bachelor's degree in marketing, business, or related field, along with experience using social media to promote brands.
Related job titles: social media specialist, social media coordinator
Salary: $73,470
As an entry-level copywriter, you might work in-house for a media agency or company. Responsibilities include writing content across blogs, social media, ads, and websites, as well as collaborating with creative, product, and other teams within a company to generate winning messaging.
Related job titles: content creator, content writer
Salary: $50.305
A PR assistant will assist in writing content to maintain a company’s reputation and ensure the media portrays the facts accurately. Someone in this role may also identify media opportunities and build a network of media contacts. To get a job in this role, you may need a bachelor's degree in journalism, communications, marketing, or related field, along with some experience in PR or corporate communications.
Related job titles: public relations coordinator, public relations intern
Salary: $65,036
An SEO specialist compiles keyword data for search engine optimization, creates SEO-friendly content, monitors site traffic, and stays up-to-date on SEO trends and best practices. To get a job in this role, you may need a bachelor's degree in marketing, English, or a related field, as well as familiarity with SEO strategy.
Related job titles: SEO analyst, SEO consultant
Salary: $77,150
A media planner determines which platforms can best advertise a brand or product. In this role, you may collaborate with other teams to maximize the campaign's performance on different media outlets, such as television, billboards, radio, or the Internet.
Related job titles: media supervisor, media buyer
Salary: $75,982
A market analyst examines market conditions and monitors trends in order to help companies market their products effectively. In this role, you may help to identify marketing opportunities and analyze campaign performance.
Related job titles: business analyst, market researcher
Entering the marketing industry involves gaining some experience and qualifications. You can start your career path by choosing from many entry-level marketing roles and then later transition to more senior positions. To maximize your chances of being awarded an entry-level position, consider taking the steps below.
Entry-level marketing positions are competitive, and even though they are an entry point into a profession, they typically require a certain level of education. Some companies may accept someone without a degree, but having one is usually a minimum requirement, especially if you’re looking to progress to senior roles.
A degree in marketing, public relations, communication, or a similar field will typically be advantageous; however, employers are looking for relevant skills and experience, so other degrees will often suffice. Since marketing is broad, you may go into a more technical career, such as analytics, where a computer science degree would be a good match.
If you don’t have a degree, or your degree is in an unrelated discipline, taking a marketing course, whether accredited or otherwise, will show your interest and knowledge.
Read more: What Can You Do with a Marketing Degree? 11 Job Paths
As you conduct your job search and gain experience and education, build the marketing skills that today's employers are looking for. A good way to stay informed about skills that are in demand is to monitor job listings on sites like Glassdoor, Indeed, ZipRecruiter, or LinkedIn and sign up to receive job alerts. Prioritize the skills that are mentioned often for the job title you most want to fill. Also consider building versatile marketing skills that you can apply to a variety of roles, such as digital marketing, social media marketing, building email campaigns, content creation, using different marketing channels, and marketing analytics.
According to ZipRecruiter's Career Keyword Mapper, which analyzes actual job descriptions and resumes for specific roles, the top skills for a marketing coordinator include [1]:
Social media
Collaboration
Project management
Marketing campaigns
To determine the kind of experience that’s most valuable to you, think about the area of marketing that interests you the most. For example, you might enjoy writing, designing, advertising, or analytics. Ways to gain experience include:
Internships with businesses, organizations, or charities to gain on-the-job experience
Taking on freelance or contract work
Completing projects on your own, including starting a blog, creating an interest-based Facebook group, or hosting a fundraising event
Earning certificates and digital badges in marketing can enhance your ability to qualify for promotions or change jobs as you progress in your field. You'll find many different ways to learn about the different marketing areas on Coursera or the Chartered Institute of Marketing (CIM) offers internationally recognized certificates.
A number of other certifications are available that can add weight to your resume and demonstrate your skills in a particular area. Great examples include:
Digital Marketing Pro (DMI x AMA Dual Certification)
Google Analytics Individual Qualification
OMCP Digital Marketing Certification
Hootsuite Academy Marketing Certification
Google Ads Marketing Certification
HubSpot Content Marketing Certification
Read more: 7 Industry-Recognized Social Media Marketing Certifications + How to Get One
Networking is very valuable for connecting with other professionals in the marketing industry. Knowing someone in the field could help you gain an internship, a volunteer role, a freelance project, or even your first entry-level marketing job. You can network with people you already know, sign up for networking events, network online with websites like LinkedIn, or join social media business groups.
Read more: How to Use LinkedIn: A Guide to Online Networking
After you've gained a few years in an entry-level marketing job, you can advance to other opportunities, including:
Senior marketing coordinator or lead marketing coordinator
Marketing director
Vice President of digital marketing
Chief marketing officer
Develop your marketing skill set by enrolling in the Adobe Marketing Specialist Professional Certificate. Over five courses, you'll learn marketing fundamentals and important skills, including how to develop multichannel campaigns that leverage emerging trends to deliver impactful results.
ZipRecruiter. "Marketing Coordinator Must-Have Resume Skills and Keywords, https://www.ziprecruiter.com/career/Marketing-Coordinator/Resume-Keywords-and-Skills." Accessed January 24, 2025.
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