Which IT Skills are current in the marketing job market?

Not so long ago job adverts perennially stated that candidates were required to be “computer literate”. As I remember, people used to interpret this nebulous phrase to mean everything from “can type” to “knows how to program” and, of course, everything in between.

By the end of the 1990s, the interpretation had standardised on “can use MS Word and Outlook” or, if your skills were rather more enhanced, “can use the whole MS Office suite”. This remains the bread and butter of anyone’s computer skills and having MS Office on your CV is more of a comfort factor for the reader these days: if you are going for any role that may involve the use of a computer, you will have to be able to use programs like Word and Excel and you may as well say you can.

However, as we have become more reliant on our computers, so the requirements of employers have become more complex. Of those which are more widespread, SharePoint is practically essential if you are in an information-led business, just as it has long been unthinkable to go for most market research roles without a grasp of statistics software SPSS.

Digital marketing skills in demand

The marketing profession has now fully entered the digital domain, and recruiters often struggle to find job candidates with the right digital skills and experience. A recent report from Econsultancy showed that, although businesses recognised the importance of digital marketing to their success, many have struggled to develop effective processes and find the resource needed to maximise their digital potential.

In the survey, only 43% of respondents rated the digital knowledge in their organisation as good or excellent. Although 87% said digital training was a high or medium priority for the digital marketing team, 61% said that digital training remains a low priority for their company in general.

With many senior marketing managers looking to further embrace digital channels and populate their teams with the specialist knowledge required, it can be tricky to find marketing professionals with the skills and proven track record to add immediate value.

According to the Econsultancy report, companies are seeking experience in social media, digital CRM, content marketing, mobile marketing/apps development and web analytics. Building up these digital skills could really help your job application look good.

The truth is, every trade has its tools and the tools of any office-based trade today will include a range of computer skills which are specific to it. If you find that to get the job you want, the ability to use particular programs – perhaps email management systems, or Google Analytics – is a must, make sure that you have it and if you don’t, acquire it. There is rarely any way around this, especially in a competitive market when such matters of fact can be used as a pass/fail decision when choosing candidates to interview.

What is probably more interesting at the moment is the rise of social media and its manipulation for business purposes. In their recent study, The Economics of the Socially Engaged Enterprise, the PulsePoint Group and the Economist found that more than 80% of executives said they believed that social engagement had increased their sales and market share. As a result, expect to have to use social media skills – and I don’t mean messing about on Facebook when you’re bored.

Social media part of every role

With the key narrative of marketing strategies currently being “content”, the ability of people in all parts of a business to make the most of appropriate social media channels is becoming paramount. It is no longer enough to leave this to someone else.

Content may include blogs, tweets, video, presentations and the like. The trick is to make them attractive and engaging and also appropriate. Such is the thirst for this material that you cannot expect your marketing communications department (presuming you have one) to create it all.

A blog may be created by a practice leader. A range of people may be handed the reins of the corporate Twitter account. Where once video was highly polished and professionally produced, there is an increasing amount which is “of the moment” – self shot and maybe even self-edited. A sales presentation may go straight from the team meeting to the company Slideshare account.

Some of this content may be rougher round the edges than the carefully produced content we’ve been used to, but according to a recent white paper from McKinsey (Six social-media skills every leader needs, by Roland Deiser and Sylvain Newton, McKinsey Quarterly, February 2013), “Too much perfection is actually a barrier to collaboration and co-creation, as it disinvites participation”.

As a result, I predict that it won’t be long before confidence using a variety of social media is prevalent among the skills required for many jobs. You will need to show you understand the channels that are right for your business and that you are confident using them. You will need to demonstrate that you understand what is appropriate, not only to post, but also in terms of how to moderate, and when to reply, remembering that a false move can undo a hard-won reputation and, as we have recently seen, may even lead to legal action being taken.

Of course, recruiters and hiring managers will not only be judging your aptitude from your CV. They will look online. Increasingly, they are using LinkedIn as a channel to source new candidates, while others seek to attract candidates through Facebook pages. And even if they do not find you through this route, you can bet that they will turn to your social media as part of the assessment process.

Either way, they are plugged into your social media presence from the word go and how your profiles look and what you post will be among the things they judge. We may joke about the downfall of someone’s career asp irations being compromising photographs of them after a big night on the town. However, having smart accounts which are regularly updated with thoughtful and professionally-relevant material may be just as important, as the ability to make the most of social media becomes important for employers.

Heidi Nicholson

Partner

Richmond Solutions

heidi.nicholson@richmondsolutions.co.uk

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