- Types of Marketing Team Structures<\/a>
- Traditional marketing team structure<\/a><\/li>
- Small marketing team structure\u00a0<\/a><\/li>
- Enterprise marketing team structure<\/a><\/li>
- Integrated marketing team structure<\/a><\/li>
- Digital marketing team structure<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li>
- Challenges in Structuring a Marketing Team and How to Overcome Them<\/a>
- Acquiring (and retaining) talent<\/a><\/li>
- Budget constraints<\/a><\/li>
- Adapting to change<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li>
- How to Structure a Marketing Team<\/a>
- Decide the marketing roles<\/a><\/li>
- Analyze skill gaps<\/a><\/li>
- Finalize the process<\/a><\/li>
- Onboard new marketers<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li>
- The Essential Aspects of a Marketing Team<\/a>
- Online presence management<\/a><\/li>
- Media management<\/a><\/li>
- Search engine optimization and link-building<\/a><\/li>
- Copywriting for advertising<\/a><\/li>
- Enhancing customer experience<\/a><\/li>
- Analytics and data-driven marketing<\/a><\/li>
- Developing and implementing a marketing plan<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li>
- Build a High-Performing Team for Marketing Success<\/a><\/li><\/ul>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n
Types of Marketing Team Structures<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
The ideal marketing team structure depends on many factors, such as your company\u2019s size, go-to-market strategy, industry, and so on. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Here’s a breakdown of some common structures to give you some ideas for your own:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Traditional marketing team structure<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
This is a classic structure found in established companies with dedicated marketing departments. Teams are divided into \u2018functional areas\u2019 with clear reporting hierarchies. This sets a clear chain of command (which is especially important in large corporations). <\/p>\n\n\n
\nTraditional structures rely on marketers specializing in select fields rather than on marketing generalists.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Common teams and roles in such structures are:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
- \n
- Head of Marketing (or Chief Marketing Officer\/CMO):<\/strong> Leads the entire marketing function, setting strategy and overseeing all activities<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Brand marketing:<\/strong> Manages brand identity, messaging, and communication across channels<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Product marketing:<\/strong> Focuses on specific products or services, driving awareness and demand<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Public relations:<\/strong> Cultivates positive relationships with the media and public<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Creative services:<\/strong> Designs marketing materials such as ads, brochures, and website content<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n
Each of these departments will have further divisions. For example, the product marketing team can have roles like:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
- \n
- Director of Product Marketing:<\/strong> Leads the entire product marketing function, setting strategy, managing budgets, and overseeing all product marketing activities. They report directly to the CMO or the Head of Marketing<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Product marketing manager:<\/strong> Manages the go-to-market strategy for a specific product or product line. They may also manage a team of associate PMMs or marketing specialists<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Product marketing analyst:<\/strong> Focuses on market research, competitive analysis, and data-driven insights to inform product marketing decisions<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Technical marketing manager:<\/strong> Creates technical content (white papers, case studies) and facilitates communication between product marketing and engineering teams<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n
\nWhile most public companies and large organizations do seem to prefer this hierarchical method of structuring their marketing team, it\u2019s not without its minuses\u2014creating different teams for different marketing functions can lead to siloed work and less collaboration.<\/p>\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n
Such rigid structures also come with many operational processes and guidelines that can reduce the speed at which you run marketing campaigns or address updates.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Small marketing team structure <\/h3>\n\n\n\n
You might benefit from a lean marketing team if you\u2019re a startup (or a bootstrapped SMB). Unlike the traditional marketing team, a small marketing team is built around marketing generalists and fluid hierarchies. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Some marketing roles that you can hire include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
- \n
- Marketing manager:<\/strong> To oversee all marketing activities, potentially including content creation, social media management, and email marketing<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Content marketer:<\/strong> To create engaging content, write web copy, and handle all marketing communications<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Growth marketer:<\/strong> To measure marketing performance and handle marketing ops such as setting up campaigns and adding trackers<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n
\nBut when you choose a team of generalists, you might miss out on the nuanced advice and strategies that specialized marketers provide. You should complement your full-time marketers with freelance consultants and marketing agencies<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n
For example, an SEO consultant can be a great support for your content marketer, or outsourcing to a content marketing agency can help you ramp up your blog publication speed and volume. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Enterprise marketing team structure<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Enterprise marketing teams are a subset of the traditional structure. Here, the marketing team\u2014though hierarchical and consisting of specialists\u2014is also hyper-focused to address the unique behaviors of the enterprise market. <\/p>\n\n\n
\nEnterprise teams typically have longer sales cycles, heavy hand-holding, and in-person campaigns. This means you\u2019ll need subteams for sales enablement, field marketing, events, demand generation, and more\u2014depending on your GTM strategy.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n
Also, as enterprise marketing teams are quite large\u2014between 100 to 250 marketers at different career levels\u2014you need strong leadership and good processes to ensure collaboration, accountability, and transparency. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Integrated marketing team structure<\/h3>\n\n\n
\nThis structure breaks down silos and promotes close collaboration between marketing, sales, and other departments. Teams are organized around specific customer journeys or marketing campaigns rather than marketing functions.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n
For example, you might have sub-marketing teams for each module or product (in case you\u2019re selling a suite of tools), each with a separate set of product, content, and social media marketers. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
This can help you launch integrated marketing campaigns with ease. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Let\u2019s say an event management company is releasing a new website builder and has to promote it:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
- \n
- The product marketing manager <\/strong>leads the campaign strategy\u2014defining messaging and positioning, highlighting the value props, and launching the web page<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- The content marketer <\/strong>creates blog posts showcasing how the website builder helps event planners achieve success<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- The social media manager <\/strong>develops social media content, builds and manages industry influencer partnerships for promotion, and handles the social launch of the feature\u2014amplifying the message set by the product marketer and the blogs created by the content marketer<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- The PR specialist <\/strong>secures media coverage in relevant event planning and technology publications to generate buzz and get media coverage<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- The growth marketer<\/strong> tracks campaign performance across all channels\u2014landing page traffic, social media engagement, email open rates\u2014and provides insights for optimization<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
Some benefits of going the integrated marketing team route are:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
- \n
- Better collaboration, as everyone is working on the same campaign<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- More transparency as all campaigns are inter-related and have the same goal<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
Digital marketing team structure<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
While the previous team structures were broad and contained all marketing functions, this is a narrow one. <\/p>\n\n\n
\nWhether you\u2019re going with a traditional marketing team structure or an enterprise one, if you have a digital marketing function, here are some specializations that you might want to consider:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
- \n
- SEO specialist: <\/strong>Optimizes website content and technical aspects for search engine visibility<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- PPC specialist:<\/strong> Manages paid advertising campaigns on platforms like Google Ads and social media<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Web analyst: <\/strong>Tracks website traffic data and provides insights for website optimization and campaign measurement<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Growth marketer:<\/strong> Uses various marketing channels and growth hacks to achieve user acquisition<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- \u00a0Marketing operations specialist:<\/strong> Provides operational support to the marketing team, managing marketing platforms, campaigns, and workflows<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n
Larger teams might also have to add a \u2018digital marketing head\u2019 role to supervise the various specialists.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Challenges in Structuring a Marketing Team and How to Overcome Them<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Structuring a marketing team for success can be tricky. You have to find the right people, figure out how to pay them, and ensure everyone’s working together seamlessly. And it gets even more complicated with marketing trends and priorities in constant flux\u2014think AI workflows, automations, B2B TikTok marketing etc. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Here’s a breakdown of the common challenges you might face when setting up your marketing departments, along with some tips to overcome them:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Acquiring (and retaining) talent<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Most companies’ first challenge is finding the right marketers (especially in a competitive job market). Also, finding a skilled marketer is only half the battle. You need someone who matches your company culture, too. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Here are some tips to help you find the right marketers:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
1. Be upfront about your expectations<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
List the skills you need, elaborate on the day-to-day marketing responsibilities<\/a>, benefits, and perks, and most importantly, be transparent about your salary range\u2014this can help you set your expectations right at the beginning. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
2. Spread the word<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
Don’t just rely on job boards. Post job descriptions and calls for hiring on your social media channels, marketing job boards, and Slack marketing communities like Superpath to ensure the right people learn about your hiring plans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
3. Start a referral program<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
This can be especially great if you\u2019re just starting out. <\/p>\n\n\n
\nEven popular companies like Slack<\/a> built their first teams by leveraging the founder\u2019s network.<\/p>\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n
4. Build your employer’s brand<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
Employees also want to work for an authentic brand. So, be upfront about your values, mission, and work culture by highlighting them on your \u2018About Us\u2019 page, careers section, and maybe even your blog.<\/p>\n\n\n
\n![\"LinkedIn](\"https:\/\/clickup.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/image-333-1190x1400.png\")
via Instagram<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n Or take a leaf out of Google or LinkedIn\u2019s books. LinkedIn Life<\/a> is LinkedIn\u2019s fun employer branding Instagram channel with over 75K followers, while Life at Google<\/a> showcases Google\u2019s amazing employee-centric initiatives and employee stories in the most empathetic way.<\/p>\n\n\n
\n![\"Life](\"https:\/\/clickup.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/image-334.png\")
via YouTube<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n Budget constraints<\/h3>\n\n\n
\nWith inflation on the rise, marketer expectations regarding compensation are also increasing. According to the 2022 Performance Marketing World survey<\/a>, four out of every ten marketers stated salary as their most significant deciding factor when accepting new jobs.<\/p>\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n
On the other hand, limited funds can make it challenging to meet the expectations of top marketers. Here are some ways to build your dream team, even on a budget.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
1. Provide other forms of compensation<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
Salary is only one side of the equation. Other perks, such as employee stock options, health benefits, more autonomy, and even leadership training, can help you create a tempting package for potential employees.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
2. Consider freelancers<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
For specialized skills or temporary needs, outsourcing tasks to freelancers or part-time consultants can be a budget-friendly option. This allows you to access expertise without the overhead costs of full-time employees<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
3. Hire in phases<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
Start by hiring for the most critical marketing functions you need<\/strong>\u2014perhaps a content creator (if you\u2019re doubling down on SEO) or a field marketer (if you have in-person events). Once you demonstrate the ROI of these hires, you can build a stronger case for expanding the team further.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Adapting to change<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
The marketing world is forever evolving, so the marketers you hire should also stay updated. New platforms pop up overnight, and old ones die or get rebranded just as quickly (like Twitter), and yesterday’s trendiest marketing tactic might no longer be relevant today. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Take SEO, for example. The Google AI Overviews<\/a> feature means we might have to start optimizing for AI, not search engines.<\/p>\n\n\n
\nWhat you can do:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
- \n
- Create a culture of continuous learning within your entire marketing team<\/strong>, not just sub-teams. Encourage marketers to participate in online courses, attend industry conferences, and subscribe to marketing publications. Even better, you can sponsor them<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- The MarTech landscape is constantly evolving too! Stay informed about new marketing technology tools and explore their potentia<\/strong>l to enhance your marketing efforts<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Implement knowledge-sharing sessions<\/strong> within the marketing department. Let team members present new trends they’ve learned, sparking discussions and keeping everyone informed<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n
Remember, the key is to stay agile and adaptable. So, build a team that embraces lifelong learning, thrives on experimentation, and leverages the power of marketing technology.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
How to Structure a Marketing Team<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Whether you’re a startup looking to build your first marketing department or an established company aiming to revamp your current structure, you need to figure out how to structure your team.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A marketing tool like ClickUp\u2019s Marketing Project Management Platform<\/a> can help with this. It offers a flexible workspace for marketing teams, allowing you to brainstorm, plan, and execute your marketing programs. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
From multi-channel campaigns to global events, ClickUp provides features for visual project management, resource management, and collaboration.<\/p>\n\n\n
\nRecommended reading<\/strong>: Want some inspiration? Learn how ClickUp\u2019s marketing team uses ClickUp<\/a> to move fast and break things (in a good way!)<\/p>\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n
\n![\"ClickUp\u2019s](\"https:\/\/clickup.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/image-335.png\")
Create, plan, and execute your marketing plans with ClickUp\u2019s Marketing Project Management Platform<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n This tool allows you to:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
- \n
- Use ClickUp Brain<\/a>\u2019s AI assistance to create campaign ideas, content briefs, blogs, case studies, and emails<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Link marketing roadmaps directly to actionable tasks<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Seamlessly work across marketing workstreams using Docs, Whiteboards, and Proofing tools<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Monitor progress with team-wide transparency and visual dashboards<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Track marketing goals in detail and at a glance<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
Here\u2019s a step-by-step guide to help you set up your marketing departments using ClickUp:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Decide the marketing roles<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Think about your company’s unique goals, size, and budget to determine the ideal team structure. Consider including niche roles like email marketing specialist or community manager to fill specific needs based on your marketing roadmap<\/a> and GTM strategy. This customization ensures your marketing team is perfectly tailored to achieve your specific objectives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
You can use the ClickUp Marketing Teams Template<\/a> as your starting point. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
![\"Define](\"https:\/\/clickup.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/image-336.png\")
Download This Template<\/a><\/div><\/div>Define your marketing roles and responsibilities with the ClickUp Marketing Teams Template<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n This template allows you to elaborate on your marketing initiatives and indicate which team members are responsible for each campaign or channel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It comes with ready-to-use pages to help you define your brand guidelines and various processes, such as blog reviews and campaign management. You can also add more nested pages for other aspects of your hiring, like interview assignments and the steps in the hiring process.<\/p>\n\n\n
\nBy being clear about your marketing goals, you can get an overarching idea of the types of marketers to hire. For example, if you plan to go strong on SEO, your priority is a content marketing team. Similarly, a video-focused social media strategy might mean hiring video content creators and editors.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n
Download This Template<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\nAnalyze skill gaps<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Now that you\u2019ve defined your marketing goals and brainstormed possible roles, the next step is to drill deeper into what you\u2019re looking for in each role. If you\u2019ve decided on a content-led growth strategy, you need to set up a content marketing team. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
But what are the exact skills that you should look out for? Here\u2019s where the ClickUp Skill Mapping Template<\/a> comes in. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
![\"Ask](\"https:\/\/clickup.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/image-39.gif\")
Download This Template<\/a><\/div><\/div>Ask marketers to rate their skills using the custom form in the ClickUp Skill Mapping Template\u00a0<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n With this template, you can:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
- \n
- Create a \u2018skills database\u2019 to track the skill sets of current employees and potential hires<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Analyze employee skills across different roles<\/strong> to pinpoint areas of strengths and weakness<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Identify skill gaps within your team<\/strong> and use this information to hire the right people to complement your existing team<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
How does this work? Customize the available ClickUp Form<\/a> by adding questions on different marketing skill sets. Then, you can ask employees (or interview candidates) to rate themselves on those skills<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Save form submissions as a list, calculate the score, and make data-driven hiring decisions. Easy, right? Now, all that you have to do is use these scores to shortlist the marketing roles you need to hire.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Using this method, you can identify the gaps in your entire marketing team and hire the right people with the right skill sets and at the right career stages.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Download This Template<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\nFinalize the process<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Now that you know what roles you need to hire for and the skillsets for each role, the next action item is finalizing the interview process and compensation package. Your next steps would look like this:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
- \n
- Research average salaries for similar positions<\/strong> in your industry and location. Salary data can be found on websites such as Glassdoor and Salary.com or through industry reports<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Plan the interview stages, including phone screenings, initial interviews, take-home assessments, and final interviews<\/strong> with key decision-makers<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Select interviewers with the expertise and experience<\/strong> to evaluate candidates against the defined skill sets<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Set up your compensation package, including benefits<\/strong> like stock options, health insurance, and retirement plans<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
You can use ClickUp Docs<\/a> to draft job descriptions, document interview questions, track assignment scores, and collaborate with the hiring committee. It\u2019s a document processing tool that will enable your entire team to collaborate on the hiring process.<\/p>\n\n\n
\n![\"ClickUp](\"https:\/\/clickup.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/image-40.gif\")
Manage all your interview processes, share feedback, and keep everyone updated using ClickUp Docs<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n By creating a well-structured interview process and a competitive compensation package, you’ll be well-positioned to attract top marketing talent and build a successful team.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Onboard new marketers<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Once you\u2019ve completed the interview process, onboard your newly hired marketers onto your team. <\/p>\n\n\n
\nStart by sending them a welcome package with company swag, important documents, and information about the first day. You can also consider assigning them a mentor or work buddy to support them during their first few weeks.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n
Side by side, you can also start adding them to your internal communications tools, marketing tech stack, and even your organization chart<\/a> so they have access to all the information they need (and other team members also know about their joining).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
- Plan the interview stages, including phone screenings, initial interviews, take-home assessments, and final interviews<\/strong> with key decision-makers<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Analyze employee skills across different roles<\/strong> to pinpoint areas of strengths and weakness<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Link marketing roadmaps directly to actionable tasks<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n
- The MarTech landscape is constantly evolving too! Stay informed about new marketing technology tools and explore their potentia<\/strong>l to enhance your marketing efforts<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- PPC specialist:<\/strong> Manages paid advertising campaigns on platforms like Google Ads and social media<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- SEO specialist: <\/strong>Optimizes website content and technical aspects for search engine visibility<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- The content marketer <\/strong>creates blog posts showcasing how the website builder helps event planners achieve success<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Content marketer:<\/strong> To create engaging content, write web copy, and handle all marketing communications<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Product marketing manager:<\/strong> Manages the go-to-market strategy for a specific product or product line. They may also manage a team of associate PMMs or marketing specialists<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Brand marketing:<\/strong> Manages brand identity, messaging, and communication across channels<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Media management<\/a><\/li>
- Analyze skill gaps<\/a><\/li>
- Budget constraints<\/a><\/li>
- Small marketing team structure\u00a0<\/a><\/li>
- Traditional marketing team structure<\/a><\/li>
![\"Visualize](\"https:\/\/clickup.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/image-337.png\")