How long does it take to become a Marketing Consultant?

It takes 6 years of professional experience to become a marketing consultant. That is the time it takes to learn specific marketing consultant skills, but does not account for time spent in formal education. If you include the normal education requirements to complete a college degree, then it takes 9 to 11 years years to become a marketing consultant.

What qualifications do you need to be a consultant?

The qualification to be a sales consultant is a bachelor's degree in a business-related degree. Common bachelor's degrees for sales consultants to hold include: Business Administration Business Management Marketing Advertisement Communications

What is a marketing consultant and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

5 min read

Quoted experts

Linda Goulet,

Michelle R. Eubanks

A marketing consultant is an individual who provides expert advice to companies on how to effectively market their products or services. They analyze market trends, consumer behavior, and competitors to develop strategies that increase sales and brand awareness. Marketing consultants work with businesses of all sizes, from startups to large corporations. They may specialize in various areas, such as digital marketing, social media, or branding. Their ultimate goal is to help businesses achieve their marketing objectives and grow their bottom line.

What general advice would you give to a marketing consultant?

Linda Goulet

Interim Associate Dean/Department Chair, Marketing, Davenport University

Stay as updated as you can. If you are looking for a job, join your local AMA chapter to network. Find a mentor who works in marketing and meet regularly (virtual now). There are also dozens of free certifications out there that you may take to hone your skills or create awareness around the content you don't have a lot of knowledge about (Hub Spot and Google both offer many free certification opportunities).

ScoreMarketing ConsultantUS Average

Salary

5.5

Avg. Salary $70,593

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

4.9

Growth rate 19%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

3.0

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.14%

Asian 10.84%

Black or African American 5.32%

Hispanic or Latino 12.74%

Unknown 5.04%

White 65.92%

Gender

female 54.00%

male 46.00%

Age - 34

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 34

Stress level

4.9

Stress level is manageable

7.1 - high

Complexity level

8.2

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance

4.6

Work life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

What are the pros and cons of being a marketing consultant?

Pros

Flexibility to choose clients and projects
Opportunity to work with a variety of industries and businesses
Potential for high income and ability to set own rates
Ability to work remotely and from anywhere
Opportunities for networking and building relationships with clients

Cons

Unpredictable income flow and lack of stability
Constant need to find new clients and projects
Potential for long hours and high stress levels
High competition in the industry
Clients may not always take your advice or implement your ideas.

Key steps to become a marketing consultant

Explore marketing consultant education requirements

Most common marketing consultant degrees

Bachelor's

75.2 %

Master's

13.1 %

Associate

7.3 %

Start to develop specific marketing consultant skills

Skills	Percentages
Customer Service	11.56%
Web Content	9.93%
Media Sales	9.64%
Digital Marketing	8.42%
Marketing Campaigns	6.05%

Complete relevant marketing consultant training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 1-3 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New marketing consultants learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a marketing consultant based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real marketing consultant resumes.

Research marketing consultant duties and responsibilities

Contact inbound leads using HubSpot.
Design, deploy and manage end-to-end marketing automate solutions (Pardot and Hubspot).
Work with a B2C transportation provider to manage the day-to-day tasks for web advertising campaigns.
Set and achieve target sales goals by utilizing sales strategies and CRM tools such as cold calling and Pardot.

Prepare your marketing consultant resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your marketing consultant resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a marketing consultant resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable marketing consultant resume templates

Build a professional marketing consultant resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your marketing consultant resume.