Marketing directors are responsible for their company's branding and image. This is a super-important job. The marketing directors hold the fate of the company in the palm of their hand. Without a marketing director, the company is sure to fail. Because how else is the public going to know about said company?
Using strategies, marketing directors are able to craft the image of a company. This enables that company to compete with other companies selling similar products. You know how coaches "scout" out the competition? Well, marketing directors do that and so much more. They want their team to win.
As a marketing director, employers are looking for people with at least a bachelor's degree. On top of that, you'll definitely need some experience walking into this position. As the company's lifeline, you need to know what you're doing.
What is a Marketing Director?
What Does a Marketing Director Do
There are certain skills that many marketing directors have in order to accomplish their responsibilities. By taking a look through resumes, we were able to narrow down the most common skills for a person in this position. We discovered that a lot of resumes listed analytical skills, communication skills and creativity.
How To Become a Marketing Director
If you're interested in becoming a marketing director, one of the first things to consider is how much education you need. We've determined that 75.7% of marketing directors have a bachelor's degree. In terms of higher education levels, we found that 12.5% of marketing directors have master's degrees. Even though most marketing directors have a college degree, it's possible to become one with only a high school degree or GED.
Marketing Director Career Paths
In addition to switching up your job search, it might prove helpful to look at a career path for your specific job. Now, what's a career path you ask? Well, it's practically a map that shows how you might advance from one job title to another. Our career paths are especially detailed with salary changes. So, for example, if you started out with the role of senior director of marketing you might progress to a role such as senior director of marketing eventually. Later on in your career, you could end up with the title senior director of marketing.
Average Salary for a Marketing Director
What Am I Worth?
States With The Most Marketing Director Jobs
Mouse over a state to see the number of active marketing director jobs in each state. The darker areas on the map show where marketing directors earn the highest salaries across all 50 states.
Number Of Marketing Director Jobs By State
Top Colleges for Marketing Directors
1. University of Georgia
Athens, GA • Private
2. University of Wisconsin - Madison
Madison, WI • Private
3. University of Minnesota - Twin Cities
Minneapolis, MN • Private
4. Purdue University
West Lafayette, IN • Private
5. Howard University
Washington, DC • Private
6. Ohio State University
Columbus, OH • Private
7. University of Texas at Austin
Austin, TX • Private
8. University of Southern California
Los Angeles, CA • Private
9. University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, PA • Private
10. SUNY at Binghamton
Vestal, NY • Private
Top Skills For a Marketing Director
The skills section on your resume can be almost as important as the experience section, so you want it to be an accurate portrayal of what you can do. Luckily, we've found all of the skills you'll need so even if you don't have these skills yet, you know what you need to work on. Out of all the resumes we looked through, 11.9% of marketing directors listed digital marketing on their resume, but soft skills such as analytical skills and communication skills are important as well.
Choose From 10+ Customizable Marketing Director Resume templates
Zippia allows you to choose from different easy-to-use Marketing Director templates, and provides you with expert advice. Using the templates, you can rest assured that the structure and format of your Marketing Director resume is top notch. Choose a template with the colors, fonts & text sizes that are appropriate for your industry.
Marketing Director Demographics
Marketing Director Gender Distribution
After extensive research and analysis, Zippia's data science team found that:
- Among marketing directors, 53.3% of them are women, while 46.7% are men.
- The most common race/ethnicity among marketing directors is White, which makes up 71.1% of all marketing directors.
- The most common foreign language among marketing directors is Spanish at 47.3%.
Work Experience Programs For Marketing Directors
Virtual work experience programs replicate work at top companies and help you gain the skills to be successful when applying and working there. In only a few hours, learn the relevant tools necessary to complete a typical work day at that company. Virtual work experience programs are 100% free, open-access, and self-paced. No experience or application is required!
Company: Standard Bank
Cost: Free
Duration: 4.5-5.5 hours
Company: Two Sigma
Cost: Free
Duration: 5-6 hours
Company: Accenture North America
Cost: Free
Duration: 4 hours
Company: JPMorgan Chase
Cost: Free
Duration: 4-5 hours
Company: Clyde & Co
Cost: Free
Duration: 4.5 hours
Online Courses For Marketing Director That You May Like
Product Marketing Strategy: Marketing New Product: Product to Market: Product Promotion: Product Owner Launch MBA...
Master your product marketing skills through practical examples and exercises...
MBA Marketing Strategy, Product Marketing, Product Marketing Manager, Product Management, Product Manager Marketing Plan...
Best States For a Marketing Director
Some places are better than others when it comes to starting a career as a marketing director. The best states for people in this position are California, Delaware, Connecticut, and Massachusetts. Marketing directors make the most in California with an average salary of $127,906. Whereas in Delaware and Connecticut, they would average $125,037 and $121,546, respectively. While marketing directors would only make an average of $121,055 in Massachusetts, you would still make more there than in the rest of the country. We determined these as the best states based on job availability and pay. By finding the median salary, cost of living, and using the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Location Quotient, we narrowed down our list of states to these four.
1. Rhode Island
$117,430
Avg. Salary
2. Connecticut
$121,546
Avg. Salary
3. New Jersey
$120,315
Avg. Salary
How Do Marketing Director Rate Their Jobs?
Top Marketing Director Employers
We've made finding a great employer to work for easy by doing the hard work for you. We looked into employers that employ marketing directors and discovered their number of marketing director opportunities and average salary. Through our research, we concluded that Chick-fil-A was the best, especially with an average salary of $53,098. World Financial Group follows up with an average salary of $145,081, and then comes Judson Enterprises with an average of $116,101. In addition, we know most people would rather work from home. So instead of having to change careers, we identified the best employers for remote work as a marketing director. The employers include Scholastic, FARO Technologies, and Datapeople
Most Common Employers For Marketing Director
| Rank | Company | Average Salary | Hourly Rate | Job Openings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Simon Property Group | $163,450 | $78.58 | 33 |
| 2 | Microsoft | $159,770 | $76.81 | 35 |
| 3 | Arrow Electronics | $152,579 | $73.36 | 46 |
| 4 | AIG | $151,746 | $72.95 | 30 |
| 5 | L'Oréal | $150,032 | $72.13 | 38 |
| 6 | AT&T | $148,911 | $71.59 | 69 |
| 7 | World Financial Group | $145,081 | $69.75 | 109 |
| 8 | HCR ManorCare | $142,921 | $68.71 | 33 |
| 9 | Salesforce | $142,542 | $68.53 | 31 |
| 10 | IBM | $141,979 | $68.26 | 31 |
Marketing Director Videos
Becoming a Marketing Director FAQs
How Long Does It Take To Become A Marketing Director?
It takes about 15 to 20 years to become a marketing director. Marketing directors must complete significant education and training before leading a marketing team. On average, most marketing directors spend four to six years in school and another eight to twelve years working in marketing and a management role.
How Much Do Marketing Directors Make A Month?
Marketing directors make $6,187 a month, on average. However, this can range from as little as $1,583 a month to as high as $10,750 a month. Factors such as location and the company all impact how much a marketing director can earn a month.
How Much Do Marketing Directors Make?
Marketing directors make $84,245 a year, on average. However, this can range from as little as $68,000 a year to as high as $140,750 a month. Factors such as location and the company all impact how much a marketing director can earn a month.
What Makes A Good Marketing Director?
What makes a good marketing director is the ability to maintain high standards and behave predictably and consistently. One example of being a good marketing director may include holding your team to a consistently high standard of work rather than being the leader by example.
What Qualifications Do You Need For Marketing?
The qualifications you need for marketing are the right combination of educational background and real work experience. Although most employers require a bachelor's degree, marketing specialists must possess an associate degree in marketing or related disciplines.
What Qualifications Do You Need To Be A Marketing Director?
The qualifications you need to be a marketing director include the right combination of educational credentials and work experience.
Most marketing directors have a bachelor's degree in business, marketing, communications, or related fields. Over 75% of marketing directors have a bachelor's degree, and 12% have master's degrees. In addition, at least 4-5 years of experience working in marketing and running a marketing team is also needed before having what it takes to serve as marketing director.
What Skills Do Marketing Directors Need?
Marketing directors need marketing expertise, management experience, and the right mix of soft and hard skills. A marketing director develops a brand's strategy, creates campaigns to improve brand awareness, and helps increase sales. Marketing directors lead marketing teams, guiding them to complete projects and meet marketing objectives.