Imagine the frustration of entering a store with no clear signage, disorganized shelves, and no staff to guide you. How long would you stay? The same applies to website navigation.
A good marketing team is one in which all members work together to create a coherent brand image. It is not easy to build such a department, but when you manage to do it, you will see an improvement in sales and relations with your customers! So what is the ideal marketing team structure in 2023? What does a marketing department do?
Organizing marketing department – is there only one method?
When it comes to building a successful marketing team, it is hard to talk about one correct way of doing it. There are many possibilities, and it is not easy to pick one marketing department structure which will work in every firm. Completely different arrangements might be needed depending on the industry, the chosen method of communication with your target audience, as well as the overall structure of your organization. There are different marketing team structures to meet different needs.
Many startups initially have only one or two people comprising the entire marketing team, but as the company grows, the digital marketing department needs to expand to match the size of the company. Remember that not all roles need to be filled with full-time employees. Nowadays, it is very easy to hire freelancers or other subcontractors in order to outsource some of the marketing activities. So what should the modern marketing organizational structure look like?
Marketing department structure – best practice
The ideal marketing team structures are made up of people with different sets of skills. Contrary to some beliefs, not all of them are the so-called “creative people” who can come up with interesting content and catchy advertising slogans. Some of them are specialists from technical fields. In the digital marketing era, technical skills are as important as creative minds. This should not come as a surprise! Even the best articles and posts will be useless if no one is able to publish them and implement a good-looking graphic design. What are the marketing department specialized roles that you need to fill?
Marketing department structure and responsibilities
We will now walk you step by step through all important positions in the marketing department and discuss their separate responsibilities so that you can easily identify who you need in your team to build an effective marketing team structure.
Marketing manager
This is the most important person in terms of the marketing department roles. This is the starting point. The person in this position manages the marketing budget, develops effective plans and tactics that other team members use in their further work. The marketing manager has to be extremely creative, adept in trends and knowledge about growth marketing, and also be a visionary who is able to forecast what will be important in the future. The position also requires a deep understanding of the market landscape. Technical and soft skills are a must-have, they will come in handy when managing various crises – those related to employees and the marketing campaigns. Therefore, it can be safely stated that the marketing manager is the most important and the most demanding role in the marketing department hierarchy.
Copywriter
A copywriter is a person who is responsible for content creation. A good “writer” is an extremely valuable asset in the structure of every marketing department. Why? A well-thought-out content is one of the best ways to improve sales and the relationship with the clients. Storytelling is very important. Your target audience loves to know the history behind a brand or a specific product. Interesting narratives can improve business results, increase brand influence and nurse the relationship with customers. This is the job for copywriters. They create blog and social media posts, product descriptions, sponsored articles, internal and external messages, product names and advertising slogans.
The marketing departments in larger companies may have a whole content creation team with team leads and specialists. In a small company, the content creation team can also act as the product marketing team.
Content marketing specialist
This marketing department is responsible for content creation in all forms – videos, graphics and, of course, various texts. Content marketers take care of this part of the firm’s strategy. They plan what, when and why should appear on specific communication channels. The content marketer is therefore responsible for scheduling when a Twitter post and Instastories will appear, decides about releasing company content on given marketing channels and rejecting certain possibilities of communication. You can kill two birds with one stone if you hire a copywriter for this position, but you must remember that if you want to produce a lot of content, it is worth separating these functions.
Social media manager
A social media manager works closely with the content manager, determines what and when will appear on various social media platforms such as Instagram, Facebook, Twitter or TikTok. People in this position keep an eye on the publication schedule, assign individual people to prepare the content, and also deal with any cooperation or contact with the technical department of the given portal if something goes wrong. The person is responsible for leading the social media team in creating a social media strategy to achieve business objectives.
Social media assistant
A social media assistant (or a community manager) is a must-have for your digital marketing team structure. Regardless of whether you have a small company or a large corporation, a trusted and committed person who will watch over your brand’s image in social media is a treasure. Strong presence in social media is a key to success. The people we “meet” there are called “influencers” for a reason. The person who will take care of social media interactions for you must be competent when it comes to your offer, they must be kind and patient. Marketing channels, for example on Facebook or Instagram, can very often turn into a part of the customer service sector, and thus every person that contacts us there must be properly looked after.
Webmaster / Front-end developer
A good website is the foundation of every business. Every store that has only its stationary outlets loses a huge part of the market, and any service company, without even a simple business card, is perceived worse by the target audience. If you need a simple website or a blog, you can hire a freelancer who will set it up in a matter of a few days. However, if you want to have an extensive ecommerce site or if the content and functions on your website will need to change frequently, it is worth having someone in your marketing structure of an organization to manage it. Additionally, with a developer at hand, you do not have to worry that your site will suddenly stop working, and you will have to wait a long time for someone to fix it – which is often the case when you hire freelancers. A programmer is also necessary when creating a landing page or a product marketing one-pager, which is important in every business.
Graphic designer
When it comes to the important roles in the marketing department, the graphic designer (or the web designer) is definitely one of them. Nowadays, customers expect more than just a photo with some text. They want a story with beautiful, readable images or infographics that make sense. When creating any content on social media (or the company website and any other marketing efforts), you have less than a second to grab users’ attention, and the easiest way to do it is with interesting, shocking or funny graphics or a well-edited photo.
Video and audio creators
Nowadays, when it comes to Internet marketing, companies use film and sound on a much bigger scale. You will certainly need a person, or even a few people, with great knowledge of the topic in the structure of your team in 2023. Especially if you plan to start a podcast, a YouTube channel or a series of webinars.
SEO (search engine optimization) specialist
People have been saying that search engine marketing is starting to lose its relevance for many years. Indeed, the ways in which you can position websites have changed, but it has not changed the fact that when you invest in search engine optimization, you invest in increasing your sales and brand recognition! SEO specialists are needed in every company because not only do they know the technical aspect of the job, but also understand what users are looking for.
The SEO team knows how to develop an SEO strategy, conduct comprehensive keyword research, optimize your website for organic search results and achieve optimal rankings for your target keywords. The roles that should be on your SEO team are determined by the size of your organization.
Analyst
An analyst is responsible for collecting all the data from analytics software provided by various marketing specialists and drawing conclusions from it. Other experts can plan their further actions only thanks to the information provided by the analyst. Marketing does not exist without analysis and you must remember that! The role of the analyst also includes finding ways to optimize the use of marketing automation software and tools, and supporting campaign planning with practical insights on how to obtain the best possible results.
Advertising specialist
Nowadays, it is difficult to reach potential customers through an organic reach. Running profiles and SEO activities that provide it are extremely important, but you need to also support yourself with all possible advertising platforms. The most popular ones are Facebook Ads and Google Ads, but virtually every platform has its own advertising system, so you can adjust the promotion of your products to their specifics. However, it is important that the person who conducts advertising under your brand knows not only the systems, but also the various possibilities they offer. To plan future campaigns they need to know where the ads will be displayed, select the target group, create the appropriate message and a briefing document for graphic designers and copywriters, and then analyze the results obtained.
Public relations specialist
You need to remember that marketing is not only about the digital solutions – although they are currently the most popular. Make sure that your team has a public relations manager or even an entire separate department dedicated to promoting your business traditionally. Shaping the image outside the Internet sphere is as important from the perspective of building a strong brand as all digital activities.
Ideal marketing team structure – additional members for your team
You already know all the necessary positions in the ideal marketing department structure 2023 and the marketing operations they are responsible for handling, but we are not done yet! It is worth considering hiring people for the roles listed below when you have some extra funds, as they can greatly benefit your business.
Project manager
A project manager can break down each task into its prime factors, and then delegate the work to the appropriate team members. This person manages the team, motivates its members and helps in solving problems – both technological and interpersonal. Thanks to them, you can be sure that the teams of creative and technical people can work together efficiently and consistently.
Technology expert
A person who will be both a consultant for new technologies and a professional who is able to implement any changes may prove to be extremely helpful in many companies. Thanks to the technical know-how, this team member can help your organization achieve the desired goals.
Event manager
Event managers are of great help to the public relations department. They take care of traditional, stationary events, e.g., meetings for influencers or with the press, but also the digital ones, organizing various online events, e.g., live broadcasts, podcasts with guests or meetings with authors on the Internet. Various types of events can help you nurture relationships with potential customers who are very close to buying something from you, as well as provide great value to existing customers you want to keep.
How to organize marketing department from the start?
You already know what a perfect team structure should look like. But how do you find people who really meet all the requirements?
1. Define your goals
At the beginning, you need to define the goals you want to achieve with marketing, your budget and how many people you can hire to work from the office. How many people will you employ, what competences will they need to have and what will they be doing?
Why is this initial analysis so important? A small marketing department structure differs significantly from those used in huge corporations. You have to keep that in mind when hiring new employees.
2. Create a marketing department organization chart
A marketing org chart is definitely worth creating. It will allow you to take a look at the entire structure and decide which roles are more important for the development of your company. Make sure to write down how many people you need from a given specialization to achieve your goals.
3. Decide which professionals you need in your marketing team structure
If you have a small budget, analyze the list we have prepared and think about which positions you do not need, which are a necessity, and which you can combine with others to save money. For example, a content marketer may initially write texts on his own or support himself with the work of freelance copywriters. You can look for a graphic designer who knows how to put video and audio together, or a developer who is well versed in new technologies and can provide great technical support.
4. Specify your exact requirements
Remember to prepare job advertisements very carefully and communicate your expectations to the candidates. Taking the time to specify the requirements will save you a lot of it during the recruitment process because people who do not have the experience or competence will not take part in it.
5. Focus on the expertise
When searching for employees, do not pay attention to the appearances, age or previous employers. Focus primarily on the skills, experience, and traits that interest you. For example, a copywriter should be creative, know the secrets of sales writing and have experience in creating SEO content. The project manager should have the education and skills to help him manage people and tasks. During the recruitment process, it is worth asking candidates to perform trial tasks in a given field, which will tell you a lot about how they use knowledge in practice.
How to structure a marketing team?
As we have mentioned before, you must remember that not every business needs a huge marketing department. Choosing the right marketing team structure depends on how your company needs to function.
Let’s assume that you have already selected people who will be working with you based on a contract of employment and that you have gathered a group of freelancers who will support some of the marketing activities. However, you need to know that even if you decide to work with a chief marketing officer or a marketing manager, at the beginning you will have to ensure that the team is harmonious and that its members are getting along. How to achieve that?
Communication is key in marketing teams
Without highly developed communication within a team, you will not be able to achieve spectacular results. Ensuring that the functional teams work closely together is important. If you want this aspect of the job to run smoothly, teach your employees that they can and should ask questions because they will always receive a calm and reliable answer. Encourage the exchange of ideas, expressing doubts or consulting various difficult situations. This way, the members of your team will grow closer relationships. Good communication can inspire and encourage employees to be more creative, more active, and more committed to achieving corporate goals. On our website, you will find a text about effective team communications best practices, which you need to know if you want a well-coordinated department!
Make sure that everyone does their part
If you see that an team member is trying to interfere in tasks not assigned to his position or tries to push his ideas at all costs, without being asked to do so in a given department, be sure to react. If the people on the team do not have strictly delegated tasks or do not understand their role, the structure will be disrupted, which will cause chaos in the workplace.
Set clear goals
Properly described goals with a defined time frame are an additional motivation for employees. Be mindful of the pace in which they should work. Do not set unachievable targets, but rather make sure that they know what they are working towards. That is why you need a marketing strategy as well as long-term and short-term goals.
Respect your employees and their needs
The boss should be an authority for employees, but this can only happen if they respect him. Respect comes from competencies or management, but also from how you address your staff. Remember to always listen, support and be understanding. Give them a lot of independence, allow them to make their own decisions, but always be available when you are needed. Of course, the point is not that employees should be able to do whatever they want without repercussions. You have the right to expect good results and point out mistakes, but you must do it in a civilized way, respecting the rights and feelings of the employee.
Encourage marketing team integration
Integration meetings, workshops for employees, as well as company events are always bringing team members closer together. Make sure they take place in your company! Remember that from time to time it is worth bringing together not only individual groups, but all employees of the company. Thanks to this, they will build relationships with each other, which should have a positive effect on the atmosphere in your company.
Offer adequate salaries
We work to earn money. Atmosphere, respect, meetings, or recognition are all nice extras that can make work more pleasant and strengthen the bond between the employee and the firm, but will not keep him or her if their salary is not appropriate. The salary should be adjusted to the responsibility of a given position, seniority, experience, and skills. It is also worth remembering about any extras, e.g., sales bonuses, Christmas gifts or increases resulting from the delivered results. This will help you keep your perfect team and its members in your company for a long time.
The ideal marketing team structure – summary
Having an in house marketing team that is efficient and delivers results is vital to marketing success. Now you know how to build the perfect marketing team structure. But remember that you do not have to do everything yourself! Our company can, for example, replace your web developers and create a CMS that will support the work of your marketers. We can convert your website into a custom WordPress website or conduct website consulting.
