How to become a marketing manager + salary & career guide
No marketing manager ever woke up one day and got hired into management. All marketing managers spent years working many marketing roles, like specialists and coordinators. If starting from the ground up, you can expect to be qualified for managerial positions after five to seven years, though the timeline can be shorter if you build in-demand digital skills fast.
You can also count on the number of available positions to keep growing into the future. Australia’s advertising and marketing workforce is projected to exceed 100,000 workers by 2028 as organisations invest more heavily in customer acquisition. More marketing positions means faster career progression as companies need more experienced professionals managing campaigns and proving that marketing budgets are some of the best dollars spent across the entire company.
What does a marketing manager do?
Marketing managers figure out how to get customers through the door and prove to leadership that their marketing budgets are helping generate new revenue. They bridge the gap between executives who demand more sales and the ones doing the work required to make that happen. This is one of those roles where you need to create a strategy, execute it and then measure the results to learn how to improve.
Australian business leaders get this. Over 80% of Australian CEOs consider marketing a driver of revenue growth rather than just a budget drain. Marketing managers are responsible for hitting these growth targets through campaigns that generate leads, build brand awareness and convert prospects into paying customers.
Key marketing manager responsibilities
Marketing managers have to handle contradictory demands all the time. They have to be strategic and creative at the same time, all whilst demonstrating clear ROI to upper management. These are the main responsibilities of a marketing manager:
Strategy and planning: Marketing managers turn company objectives into actionable marketing plans with target audiences and metrics leadership can’t ignore at quarterly reviews.
Campaign execution: Campaigns cover digital ads, social media, email blasts, content marketing, events and sometimes even billboards. Marketing managers coordinate all these moving pieces so customers see consistent messaging instead of contradictions.
Market research: They dig through industry trends, customer behaviour data and competitors to figure out what’s really working in the market versus what’s just a fad.
Project management: They stay on top of multiple product launches happening simultaneously with different deadlines whilst sales keeps requesting last-minute changes.
Performance analysis: Marketing managers track which campaigns are moving the needle versus which ones just generate likes and shares that don’t pay bills. They must kill underperforming campaigns quickly so they can move those budgets elsewhere.
Brand management: Every piece of marketing needs to look and sound like it came from the same company. Marketing managers police brand standards whilst updating executives, sales teams and other departments about what marketing’s doing and why it matters.
Team leadership: They lead internal teams, collaborate with sales complaining about lead quality, work with product teams launching new features and manage agencies that always promise more than they deliver.
How to become a marketing manager
Becoming a marketing manager takes roughly five to seven years from your first marketing job to landing a manager title. You don’t start as a marketing manager straight out of university or after finishing a diploma. Everyone has to work their way up through specialist and senior roles whilst building the strategic leadership abilities and track record of successful campaigns that qualify you to manage teams and budgets.
Education and training pathways
Marketing managers can come from diverse educational backgrounds from vocational diplomas to university degrees. There’s no single mandatory pathway, though certain qualifications speed up your progression and make you more competitive when manager positions open up.
Certificates and diplomas
Vocational qualifications give you practical marketing skills faster and cheaper than university degrees. Monarch Institute has many marketing qualifications that prepare you for entry-level positions:
Qualification | Code | Duration | What you’ll learn | Best for |
BSB40820 | 6 to 12 months | Foundational principles of marketing, communication strategies, conducting market research, managing campaigns | Complete beginners who need an introduction to marketing concepts and practice | |
BSB50620 | 12 to 18 months | Managing campaigns, strategic market planning, communicating with stakeholder, integrated marketing communications | Career changers or junior marketers who want broader marketing knowledge | |
10931NAT | 12 months | SEO, SEM, content marketing, email marketing, web analytics, conversion optimisation, digital strategy | Marketers focusing specifically on digital marketing and online customer acquisition | |
10904NAT | 12 months | Social media strategy, content creation, community management, paid social advertising, influencer marketing | Specialists who want to develop deep social media expertise as demand grows | |
11266NAT | 18 months | Advanced digital strategy, marketing automation, data analytics, performance marketing | Experienced marketers who want to pursue senior roles |
Bachelor’s degrees
You don’t need a bachelor’s degree to become a marketing manager, but having one does help you progress faster and qualify for larger organisations with formal education requirements. Bachelor’s degrees in marketing, communications, business, advertising, media or public relations give you the theoretical foundations that complement practical experience.
These degrees take three to four years full-time and include industry placements to connect you with potential employers. Larger organisations and multinational companies usually prefer candidates with degrees when hiring for management positions, whilst smaller businesses and agencies care more about proven results than credentials.
Optional postgraduate study
Most marketing managers don’t need postgraduate qualifications, but they can come in super handy if you’re looking to advance into senior leadership roles fast. These are the best postgraduate degrees for becoming a marketing manager:
MBA with marketing specialisation: Master of Business Administration programmes take one to two years and help you develop strategic business thinking and leadership capabilities. They’re expensive and time-consuming but can open the doors of many executive positions.
Master of Marketing: A specialised marketing master’s degree that takes two years to complete gives you advanced marketing knowledge and research skills if you’re targeting senior leadership careers.
Graduate certificates in digital marketing: You can also take shorter postgraduate programs that take around six months to update skills in specific areas like data analytics or marketing technology without having to commit to a full degree.
Professional certifications
Marketing is one of the most exciting careers if you’re someone who loves learning. Things change all the time, new tools come out and people interact with the internet in different ways. That’s why it’s so important to stay current with professional certifications for marketing managers:
Diploma of Artificial Intelligence: A great fit for managers, marketing managers, business owners and non-IT professionals who want to understand how to use AI responsibly in their workplace.
Paid Search (PPC): A globally recognised certification that will help you get a good grasp on getting more from your PPC spend and get a solid understanding of how PPC fits into a sales funnel.
Search Engine Optimisation (SEO): A globally recognised certificate that will show you how to get found on search engines and optimise your website.
Email Marketing: A globally recognised certificate that will show you how to capture a database and maximise this incredibly effective channel to increase engagement and sales with your audience or customers.
Google Ads and Google Analytics certifications: Free certifications that prove that you’re competent in search advertising and web analytics.
HubSpot certifications: Free courses that cover topics like inbound marketing, content marketing, email marketing and marketing automation.
LinkedIn Marketing certifications: Platform-specific training in LinkedIn advertising, content strategy and B2B marketing.
Meta Blueprint certifications: Facebook and Instagram certifications that teach you how to do paid social media ads.
Skills and experience required
To become a marketing manager, you’ll need many skills on top of just knowing how to post on Instagram or writing clever ad copy. Global research shows that over three-quarters of marketers say they need to master specialised or niche skills to stay relevant as AI changes the profession. Marketing managers can’t coast on basic skills anymore because the industry is changing faster than almost any other field.
These are the skills that separate coordinators from managers:
Strategic thinking and analytical skills: Marketing managers connect campaigns to revenue instead of celebrating vanity metrics like impressions or followers. They dig through data to figure out what’s driving sales, make tough calls about killing underperforming channels and think several steps ahead about marketing positions whilst competitors scramble retroactively.
Communication: You’ll pitch strategies to executives who don’t understand marketing, negotiate budgets with finance teams protecting every dollar, align plans with sales complaining about lead quality and manage team dynamics when creative and analytic personalities clash.
Digital marketing and social media expertise: Marketing happens mostly online now. You should have a firm grasp of SEO, paid advertising, email marketing, content strategy, social platforms and marketing automation even when you’re managing specialists who handle the daily work because you can’t lead what you don’t understand.
Creativity and problem-solving: Marketing managers come up with creative campaign ideas that cut through the noise, find innovative solutions when budgets get cut and adapt strategies when market conditions change. Pure analytical thinkers without creative capabilities produce boring marketing that nobody remembers or shares.
Entry-level roles that lead to marketing management
Nobody hires marketing managers without proven experience running successful campaigns. You’ll first have to spend three to five years in junior and mid-level roles building a successful track record to qualify for management positions.
The good news is that Australia’s digital marketing market was valued at $13.03 billion in 2024 and is projected to hit $25.39 billion by 2034. That means that joining a growing industry will give you more opportunities to progress. It’s also a great time to join the industry as almost one in four digital marketing professionals willingly switched jobs in 2024, generally jumping companies for higher roles or a better marketing manager salary.
This is how you can become a digital marketing manager from entry level:
Entry role | What you’ll do | Skills you’ll build | Best course |
Marketing coordinator | Support marketing campaigns, coordinate with agencies, manage marketing calendars, handle admin tasks | Project coordination, running marketing campaigns | |
Content or email specialist | Create marketing content, manage email campaigns, optimise content to improve conversion rates, analyse what performs versus what bombs | Copywriting, email marketing, content strategy, performance analysis | |
Digital marketing assistant | Handle paid advertising campaigns, manage social accounts, analyse web analytics, help with SEO | Digital marketing expertise, data analysis, managing platforms | |
Social media coordinator | Manage social media accounts, create content, engage with communities, report on performance to stakeholders questioning social media ROI | Social strategy, content creation, community management | |
Brand or communications assistant | Support brand campaigns, coordinate PR activities, manage brand assets | Brand management, communications strategy |
How to specialise in social media marketing
Social media marketing is now a massively popular specialisation that commands premium salaries because organisations struggle to find qualified professionals who actually get it. Around 20.8 million Australians use social media as of 2024, which is almost 80% of the population. Every business knows they need social media presence but most don’t know how to do it right.
This is what you need to do to become a social media manager:
Gain hands-on experience with social media platforms: You must be extremely familiar with Meta platforms like Facebook, Instagram and Threads, plus TikTok, LinkedIn, X, YouTube and even Reddit. Each platform has different audiences and algorithms, so what works on LinkedIn won’t work on TikTok.
Build skills in content creation and community management: Social media specialists create content people will want to share and respond to comments on the brand’s social media profiles. You should know how to do this effectively and how to analyse performance data to identify what’s working.
Learn paid social ads and influencer marketing: Organic reach keeps declining across platforms as algorithms prioritise paid content. Social media marketers need experience running paid campaigns and managing influencer partnerships that hit close to home with audiences who trust creators more than corporate accounts.
Create a portfolio: Employers want proof that you can drive results instead of just claiming that you’re good at social media. Build a portfolio with the campaigns you’ve created, engagement you’ve generated, communities you’ve grown or sales you’ve driven through social channels with real numbers to back your claims.
Work in junior roles to gain experience: Start as a social media coordinator, content creator, or digital marketing assistant managing accounts for smaller organisations or supporting senior marketers at larger companies. You’ll build capabilities and a solid track record whilst learning what does work in social media.
Marketing manager salary in Australia
Marketing manager salaries in Australia can go pretty high, exceeding $130,000 per year for experienced professionals in high-paying industries. How much money marketing managers earn depends heavily on their experience, industry, organisation size and whether they’ve built expertise in high-demand areas like digital marketing or data analytics.
Average marketing manager salary
These are the average digital marketing manager salaries in Australia by specific job and experience:
Role | Entry-level salary | Median salary | Advanced salary | Relevant Monarch qualifications |
Marketing manager | $64,000 | $89,000 | $131,000 | Certificate IV in Marketing and Communication and Diploma of Marketing and Communication |
$64,000 | $92,000 | $133,000 | Diploma of Digital Marketing and Advanced Diploma of Digital Marketing | |
$44,000 | $63,000 | $81,000 |
*All salaries sourced from Payscale AU
Factors that influence salary
Your marketing manager salary will depend heavily on more than just your job title:
Years of experience: Marketing coordinators with no experience will make much less than those with decades in the game. Executive-level marketing directors and CMOs can easily exceed salaries of $200,000.
Industry sector: Tech companies, financial services and SaaS businesses pay higher salaries for the right marketing talent. Retail, hospitality and non-profit organisations usually pay below market rates because their margins are tiny and their budgets are tight.
Organisation size: Startups usually come with lower base salaries but potentially equity upside. SMEs pay market rates for generalist marketers, whilst enterprise corporations and multinationals pay premium salaries for specialists managing specific channels or market segments.
Scope of role: Managing a team of five marketers pays more than individual contributor roles. The larger your team is, the higher your salary should be.
Digital and data expertise: Marketing managers with strong digital analytics, marketing automation, SEO or paid advertising skills are always in demand. Almost every organisation needs people who can prove marketing ROI through data rather than gut feelings.
FAQs
How do you become a marketing manager without a degree?
Start with vocational qualifications like Monarch’s Certificate IV in Marketing and Communication or Diploma of Marketing and Communication, then work through coordinator and specialist roles.
Is marketing management a good career in Australia?
Yes, marketing is a great career with good salaries and growing demand. Global data shows 76% of marketers report being satisfied with their jobs and Australia’s digital marketing market is expected to reach $25.39 billion by 2034.
How long does it take to become a marketing manager?
Expect five to seven years from your first job in marketing to your first manager position. If you study full-time, a Diploma of Marketing and Communication could be yours in as few as 12 months so you can start climbing the corporate ladder and landing roles with more responsibilities.
What’s the difference between a marketing manager and a digital marketing manager?
Marketing managers are in charge of all channels including traditional media like billboards, print, direct mail, events and PR along with digital efforts.
Digital marketing managers focus specifically on online channels like SEO, PPC, Google Ads, email marketing, social media and web analytics without managing additional campaigns.
Do marketing managers need to know social media?
Yes, even if you’re not posting daily. Marketing managers coordinate social media teams or agencies, approve content strategies, allocate budgets across platforms and report on social media performance to leadership.
Are marketing managers paid well in Australia?
The median marketing manager salary in Australia is $89,000 with the top 10% of earners making $131,000 or more per year.
What industries hire marketing managers the most?
Retail, tech, healthcare, education, government and professional services hire the most marketing managers. Tech companies and SaaS businesses usually pay the highest salaries and are constantly hiring.
Five years from now, you could be leading your own marketing team
Becoming a marketing manager is a great career goal with solid prospects across the board. Australia’s digital marketing sector keeps growing, so now’s a perfect time to join this career that pays well and mostly lets you work from home.
Monarch Institute offers fully online marketing qualifications from Certificate IV to Diploma so you can prepare for entry-level roles that progress into management positions. Speak with an admissions adviser about what the right path is for you.
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