Digital Marketing Salary in India: Navigating Your Worth

The Rising Demand for Digital Marketing Roles in 2024

With a rapid rise in ecommerce and remote work, digital has become an overnight reality for millions of businesses. Consumers in most parts of the world have been staying indoors, while most businesses had to shut their physical doors and get their employees to work from their homes. This means that brands and consumers alike are now faced with online being the top, if not the only option to transact. According to the latest CMO Survey, 56% of businesses are changing their go-to-businesses models to capitalize on digital opportunities. 

Clearly, traditional marketing is taking a backseat, with brands relying more than ever on their digital strategies. This shift has put enormous demands on digital marketing. How is this change impacting the digital marketing career? 

As an industry teeming with opportunities, digital marketing has been creating career options that didn’t even exist ten years ago. But today, with businesses thrust into this new environment, the demand for professionals with digital skills who can help them successfully navigate this new landscape is soaring. According to a report by Burning Glass Technologies, four out of 10 job positions in marketing demand professionals to have digital marketing skills. 

As such, the future outlook for careers in digital marketing is extremely bright, especially for those with the expertise and background in marketing or those willing to invest the time and effort into learning new skills. 

Why Get Into Digital Marketing?

Digital Marketing is developing into one of today’s fastest-growing and most in-demand careers. It is easy to see what makes the digital marketing industry appealing to many. With so many benefits and the opportunity to work on fun and substantial projects, deal with prospective businesses, collaborate with like-minded people, discover new opportunities by networking with clients, and work from anywhere in the world, there is not just one reason to get into digital marketing. 

Benefits of Becoming a Digital Marketer

1. Diverse Roles to Choose From

Depending on your set of skills, you can choose to target a variety of roles such as:

• PPC Specialist – An entry-level specialist role focusing on producing, managing, and optimizing digital advertising campaigns.
• SEO Specialist – An entry-level specialist role focusing on producing and executing organic search campaigns.
• Digital Marketing Specialist – A generalist role focusing on executing digital marketing campaigns across multiple marketing channels.
• Social Media Specialist – An entry-level role that focuses on creating brand awareness and engagements and driving conversions through social platforms.

2. Compensation is Good

The world of digital marketing provides plenty of opportunities to earn great compensation for your work. According to ZipRecruiter, entry-level jobs’ annual digital marketing salary can start at $50,000 – $60,000. Many include health care and other benefits depending on the company you are working for. After your knowledge and experience grow, you may have the opportunity to be promoted into a management role where you can earn $60,000 – $80,000 or more. You could even aim to get into the lucrative Director of Marketing or Marketing Executive roles. 

3. Room for Upward Mobility

Finding upward mobility in conventional industries can be very challenging. Organizations that have solidified their business models and streamlined processes can function with lean management, leaving little or no scope for internal promotions. However, this isn’t the case when it comes to digital marketing. There is plenty of room for promotions because of rapid job growth within the industry as companies expand their digital marketing operations and even create new leadership and executive roles for digital marketing specialists.

4. Be Your Employer

With the skill set of a digital marketer and an entrepreneurial streak, you can skip employment altogether and choose to work for yourself instead. You can launch your digital brand, products, or services online, market them yourself, and reap all rewards. It’s plenty of work at first, but it’s worth seeing the fruits of your labor.

What Components Affect Your Digital Marketing Salary?

According to McKinsey, 83% of global CEOs look at marketing to be a major driver for most of the company’s growth plans. LinkedIn also reported a 33% hike in digital marketing jobs. And today, there are more than 280,000 digital marketing jobs listed on LinkedIn. In that, 12,000 are added each week. 

The digital marketing salary depends on various factors. A few of them are:

Educational Background

According to LinkedIn, a bachelor’s degree is a must for becoming a digital marketer. It can be in communications, business administration, advertising, or journalism. Many digital marketing professionals have started their careers without having a college education in the present era. Based on specialized courses, like SEO, SEM, data analytics, and more, they have initiated their marketing career. However, you must know that more educational qualifications will help you command a better salary. 

Experience

If you have more than five years of experience as a digital marketer, you can expect more than your previous digital marketing salary. The more years you work, the more the salary you will get. However, the number of years is not the sole reason for gaining experience. If you work in a specific industry or deal with specific tools, you might make more than a marketing copywriter. The same is true for people who work in the AI and machine learning industries.  

According to LinkedIn, a senior digital marketing director earns $105,000, a mid-level digital marketing manager earns $70,000, and a fresher digital marketer earns $52,000 per year. 

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Skills

If you possess both hard and soft skills, such as knowledge of technical SEO, link building, strong interpersonal skills, and communication, there’s a possibility you’ll be paid higher than your challengers. You must acquire the most in-demand digital marketing skills, such as SEO, social media marketing, project management, audience building, data analysis, and copywriting. 

Geography 

Location plays an important role in determining your digital marketing salary. According to Indeed, a digital marketing manager gets $76,477 in New York, while the same gets $67,170 and $66,248 in Chicago and Denver, respectively. The remote location is becoming more commonplace these days, which is reflected in the digital marketing salaries.  

Company 

The top tech companies provide handsome salaries to their employees. There is no exception in the digital marketing salary as well. Startups provide the best salaries to skilled and experienced candidates who add value to the company. According to Payscale, the average salary of a digital marketing specialist is $51,209 in the US. Various top companies that offer lucrative digital marketing salaries are Accenture, Deloitte, IBM, Fortira, Apple, Intel, Meta, etc.

Digital Marketing Salary Trends for 2024

Digital Marketer Salary in India: An average salary for a digital marketing executive is 2 LPA, and as you gain experience, your salary can rise to 6 LPA. In contrast, the salary package of a digital marketing analyst ranges from 3.6 LPA to 9.4 LPA on average.  

When it comes to pay, many companies are deciding the pay hikes based on the employee’s digital skills. 

It’s not hard to see why professionals with digital skills are commanding higher salaries. Another report by Burning Glass Technologies found that job roles that list digital skills as a requirement pay 29% more than those that do not. 

Even with the current year putting a dampener on increments, reports find digital marketing to be one of the skills for which employers are willing to pay a premium. 

Undoubtedly, the career opportunities in digital marketing look promising in the coming year. 

That said, let’s take a look at some digital marketing jobs that are expected to be the hottest in the industry and are showing positive salary trends in the coming years. We’ll breakdown digital marketing salary by job role as well as by geography. 

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1. SEO/Digital Marketing Specialist

LinkedIn has listed ‘digital marketing specialist’ as one of the top 10 most in-demand jobs, identifying SEO as one of the most desired skills.

A digital marketing specialist wears multiple hats and must possess skills to perform techniques like search engine optimization (SEO), pay-per-click (PPC), social media, conversion optimization, digital analytics, content, mobile, and email marketing. The job involves driving search results, managing online campaigns, tapping into various digital channels, and ensuring a company’s digital marketing initiatives are aligned to their overall strategies and objectives. 

An SEO specialist is more laser-focused on getting clients to rank high in search results to drive more traffic to a website through organic as well as paid strategies. 

Digital marketing specialists and those specializing in SEO are some of the highest earners in this field. One of the reasons is that the search engine algorithms and best practices change faster than seasons. Staying on top of these changes requires constant learning and keeping up with the trends while generating results takes knowledge, skill, and persistence. 

Digital Marketing Specialist Salary by Geography:

In the United States, the average digital marketing specialist salary is $50,139 /year.

In the UK, the average salary of a digital marketing specialist is £25,755/year.

A digital marketing specialist’s average salary in India is ₹4, 69,000/year.

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Social media usage is growing in leaps and bounds, and it shows no signs of slowing. With buyers hanging around in social media platforms more than ever (over 3 billion social media users are predicted by 2021), there’s a massive incentive for businesses to strengthen their social media presence. Today, businesses use social media channels to engage their audience, expand their network, generate awareness about their products and services, and build their brands, in general. 

Social media managers help businesses reach fans and followers on social media platforms with the aim to gain traction and build revenues. 

Social media managers are not only highly paid professionals but also enjoy the opportunity to quickly ride up the ladder to reach sought-after positions like that of a communications manager. 

Social Media Manager Salary by Geography:

In the United States, the average salary of a social media manager is $44,160/year.

In the UK, the average salary of a social media manager is £32,310 / year.

A social media manager’s average salary in India is ₹5,00,000/year.

3. Content Strategist

Content is an integral part of the digital strategy for all types of businesses as nearly every level of marketing these days requires content in some form or another. After all, it is content that buyers consume, and brands compete over.  

Content strategists not only have the skills to create compelling content themselves but play a much bigger role by managing teams of writers, developing editorial calendars, contributing to online campaigns, using analytics to determine the effectiveness of campaigns, and more. 

As professionals who carry out a whole gamut of activities related to content strategy, they are valuable assets for companies that hire them. 

Content Strategist Salary by Geography:

In the United States, the average salary of a content strategist is $61,289 /year.

The average salary of a content strategist in the UK is £40,369 / year.

In India, a content strategist’s average salary is ₹7,43,000 / year.

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4. E-commerce Specialist

E-commerce Marketing Specialists are in charge of managing the overall development and maintenance of e-commerce websites and portals to maximize their sales and revenues. It’s also a part of their job to establish standards for product and content management, collaborate with sales and marketing teams, and identify growth opportunities using web analytics, among others. 

With a boom in e-commerce and online purchases taking over in-store shopping, e-commerce specialists have become indispensable for the retail businesses. Hence, it is not surprising that it is one of the most well-compensated roles in digital marketing.

E-Commerce Specialist Salary by Geography:

The average salary of an e-commerce specialist in the US is $56,482 / year. 

An ecommerce specialist in the UK has an average salary of £40,369 / year.

In India, an ecommerce specialist gets an average salary of ₹6,64,000 / year.

5. Digital Marketing Analyst

There’s hardly an industry untouched by big data and the Internet of Things (IoT), and digital marketing is not an exception. With an emerging focus on customer data and personalization to drive sales, delight customers, and reduce costs, this field is ripe for professionals skilled in analytics. 

A digital marketing analyst is responsible for performing market analysis, identifying online marketing trends, and extracting value from customer data to develop strategies that match business goals. They also work closely with the sales and marketing teams to help them drive more leads and revenues using data-driven insights. 

Not surprisingly, data and web analytics are some of the highest-paid employees in organizations.

Digital Marketing Analyst Salary by Geography:

The average salary of a digital marketing analyst in the US is $52,166/ year.

In the UK, digital marketing analysts earn an average salary of £ 32,930 / year.

For a digital marketing analyst in India, the average salary is ₹4,12,000 / year.

6. Content Marketing Manager 

A content marketing manager in a company is responsible for increasing brand awareness and web traffic through online marketing. They are the ones who create ‘shareable’ content that increases the market activities. You must be an expert in social media analytics, analyze the shortcomings of each platform, and understand the nuances and advantages of every campaign strategy. 

If you become a content marketing manager, you will be responsible for the following roles:

• Drive traffic and engagement in the form of sales and brand promotion
• Measure the results of marketing activity 
• Manage a team of data analysts, illustrators, and copywriters
• Know which platform is different and which one is the best suited for a particular role

Content Marketing Manager Salary by Geography:

In the US, a content marketing manager earns $75,900 per year. 

The average salary of a content marketing manager is ₹1,004,875 per year. 

7. Marketing Automation Specialist

A marketing automation specialist is a tech-savvy content curator. They possess great communication skills and set up workflows. Many often have a misconception that the job profile of a marketing automation specialist is easy. It’s not. It takes a lot of time, work, and specialized skills to see the maximum benefit from a tool. 

If you become a marketing automation specialist, you will be assigned the following roles:

• Understand your platforms that automation will help you solve
• Build your marketing automation blueprint
• Build the marketing automation engine
• A/B test to optimize
• Report and revamp
• Repeat 

Marketing Automation Specialist Salary by Geography:

The average salary of a marketing automation specialist in the US is $62,147 per year.

In India, a marketing automation specialist earns ₹800,973 per year.  

8. Digital Marketing Manager

A digital marketing manager is a professional who maintains the brand’s sales and online presence on various marketing campaigns. You must have a strong grasp of various digital marketing tools and strategies to become a digital marketing manager. You must know how to lead integrated digital marketing campaigns from planning to execution. 

If you become a digital marketing manager, here are the responsibilities that you need to handle:

• Maintain social media presence across various digital platforms
• Measure, analyze and report the performance of all digital marketing campaigns
• Plan digital media campaigns, such as SEO/SEM, social media, and display advertising 

Digital Marketing Manager Salary by Geography

In the US, the average annual salary of a digital marketing manager is $123,899. 

In India, a digital marketing manager earns ₹700,000 per year. 

To become a paid media specialist, you need to understand advertising and social media. A paid media specialist brings traffic to your web portals via online advertising from Google, Facebook, Instagram, etc. 

If you are hired as a paid media specialist, you will have the following responsibilities:

• Conduct in-depth analysis of keywords and website 
• Analyze the effectiveness of PPC and ROI
• Develop, implement and optimize digital campaigns
• Oversee and manage the social media budget 

Paid Media Specialist Salary by Geography

The average salary of a paid media specialist in the US is $70,537 per year.

In India, the salary of a paid media specialist is ₹4,93,901/yr. 

10. Pay-Per-Click Analyst

Many professionals are eying to become pay-per-click analysts as the role is one of the emerging digital marketing careers in 2024. You must have the right knowledge and ability to obtain profit greater to or equal to the investment. You must also have an in-depth understanding of campaign creation and its psychology. 

If you get selected as a pay-per-click analyst, you will have the following responsibilities:

• Understand Google Analytics
• Correct the keyword bids
• Monitor daily/monthly/weekly/annual budget
• Manage paid ad campaigns and other networks
• Manage advertising platforms, such as Facebook, Instagram, Quora

Pay-Per-Click Analyst Salary by Geography

The average salary of a PPC analyst in the US is $49,312 per year.  

In India, a PPC analyst earns ₹328,997 per year. 

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11. Email-Marketing Specialist 

An email marketing specialist is a digital marketing professional who focuses on creating email lists, producing emails, and nurturing leads through written communications. They work with email automation software, initiating email blasts and newsletters to enhance brand awareness and establish a solid presence of the brand in the competitive market. 

The responsibilities of an email marketing specialist differ from one company to the other. However, there is an established list of tasks all email marketers can expect. It includes initiating and monitoring email marketing campaigns, optimizing the design and layouts of emails, proofreading key messaging in and out of email templates, compiling and purging email lists, saving email databases for future campaigns, and following up on the sent emails.

Digital Marketing Salary Guide: 10-Year Plan

The digital marketing salary varies from years of experience to the job location. The salaries of professionals working in different designations under a digital marketer saw a rise of 15%-50% over a year. With the boom in the social media world, it is expected to grow more abruptly in the upcoming years. 

The tables below demonstrate the top job profiles that grab the highest digital marketing salaries, the job locations, and digital marketing salaries based on experience. 

For more details on the salary trends of digital marketing jobs, you can also check out this salary calculator.

FAQs

1. How to get a job in digital marketing?

The roles and responsibilities of a digital marketer include analyzing digital data to draw key recommendations around website optimization, conducting social media audits to ensure best practices are being used, maintaining a digital dashboard of various accounts, collaborating with the sales team to create marketing campaigns, create and maintain online listings across e-commerce platforms. Like any other career path, to get a job in digital marketing, you need to follow a certain road map. 

1. Get a professional degree
2. Sign-up for some internships to gain knowledge while studying 
3. Create your professional portfolio, add your best works to it
4. Research well about the company you apply for
5. In the interview, highlight skills that match with their job description.  

2. What is the starting salary after a Digital Marketing Course?

The first step of a digital marketing journey is in the role of a fresher junior digital marketer. According to Payscale, the Digital Marketing Manager (entry-level) in India is ₹5,48,755 per annum in 2024. According to Glassdoor Analysis, the starting digital marketing salary after the digital marketing course is completed in the US is around $60,000 annually. However, based on location, the average salary ranges from $39,281 – $55,000 per annum in the US. With an increase in skill and experience, the salary increases too. With the right skills in digital marketing, you can get an opportunity to work in top-notch companies such as Google, Accenture, TCS, and cognizant.

What Is the Future Scope of Digital Marketing?

Digital marketing is one of the fastest-growing professional fields worldwide currently. As companies and organizations continue to transform digitally, there has been an increment in the worldwide expenditure on digital marketing channels that amounts to billions of dollars every year. Globally, digital advertising expenditure in 2018 amounted to $282 billion – a figure that increased to $331 billion by 2021 and is expected to cross $500 billion by 2024. As organizations continue to invest their resources and money in digital marketing initiatives, this will translate to more job opportunities in digital marketing for entry-level, management-level, and executive roles.

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Businesses are rushing to ride the digital wave. To rise above in this competitive landscape, they have recognized the need for marketers with digital skills and are paying premiums to get these professionals onboard. Act now to become one of these sought-after candidates that companies across the world are scrambling to hire. 

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