2026 Guide
What Does a Digital Marketer Do?
BrainStation’s Digital Marketing career guide can help start a career in marketing, including content creation, social media marketing, email marketing, and more. The guide provides an in-depth overview of the marketing skills you should learn, the best available digital marketing training options, career paths in digital marketing, how to become a digital marketer, and more.
Become a Digital Marketer
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A Digital Marketer uses digital channels to reach customers, build brand awareness, and promote products and services. Because of the unique combination of planning, creativity, and strategy their role requires, they wear many hats.
The question “What does a Digital Marketer do?” has a different answer depending on your seniority, but broadly speaking, a Digital Marketer’s job is to drive brand awareness and lead generation through coordinated marketing efforts.
A Day in the Life of a Digital Marketer
It is important to remember that a Digital Marketer’s day varies immensely based on the company size, the target audience (B2B vs. B2C), and whether you are a generalist covering many areas or a specialist focused on one.
Here is how the responsibilities typically evolve from junior to senior roles including consultants:
What does a Digital Marketing Specialist do?
This is often where digital marketers start their journey. Early in your career, your focus is on content creation and executing the strategy set by leadership.
- Creating Content: Writing blog posts, drafting ad copy, and designing social media graphics.
- Running Campaigns: Setting up ads on Google or Instagram and monitoring daily spend.
- Reporting: Pulling data from online tools like Google Analytics for tracking campaign performance.
- Optimizing: Tweaking landing pages or A/B testing headlines to improve conversion rates.
What does a Digital Marketing Manager do?
As you advance to Digital Marketing Manager or Director level roles, your focus shifts from doing to guiding.
- Approving Content: Reviewing editorial calendars, guiding the brand voice, and giving final sign-off on creative assets.
- Budgeting & Strategy: Allocating quarterly budgets across channels and determining the long-term digital marketing roadmap. You will be responsible for approving comprehensive digital marketing plans and ensuring they align with business goals.
- Analyzing Performance: Interpreting high-level data to make strategic pivots rather than just reporting the numbers.
- Team Leadership: Mentoring junior staff, training new hires, and leading cross-functional innovation projects.
What does a Digital Marketing Consultant do?
Consultants are often experienced marketers who work independently or with agencies. Companies hire them to fix specific problems, audit performance, or bring specialized expertise that the in-house team lacks.
- Auditing & Diagnosis: Conducting deep-dive reviews of a company’s existing marketing efforts to identify wasted ad spend, technical SEO errors, or gaps in the funnel.
- High-Level Strategy: Designing the overarching marketing game plan that the internal team will execute.
- Specialized Implementation: Stepping in to set up complex infrastructure (like advanced CRM automation or data tracking systems) that requires niche technical skills.
- Training & Advisory: Acting as an external advisor to upskill the internal marketing team, running workshops, and ensuring the company stays ahead of digital trends.
What Does Digital Marketing Mean?
It is important to understand what digital marketing represents and refers to. At its core, Digital Marketing refers to any marketing effort that uses an electronic device or the internet to reach customers.
If a marketing campaign involves digital communication, whether through search engines, social media, email, websites, or mobile apps, it falls under this umbrella.
While traditional marketing (like billboards or print ads) broadcasts a message to a broad audience, digital marketing allows brands to target specific audiences with precision and measure the results in real-time.
How Digital Marketing Helps in Business Growth
Digital marketing directly contributes to business growth by creating a measurable pipeline that turns strangers into loyal advocates. Rather than just focusing on general visibility, it drives expansion by systematically achieving four key goals:
- Acquisition
Fuel growth by converting strangers into website visitors.
- Engagement
Build value by turning new visitors into an active community.
- Conversion
Generate revenue by turning community members into paying customers.
- Retention
Maximize customer lifetime value by turning paying customers into repeat buyers.
In fact, optimizing these four stages has become so critical that it has spawned an entire discipline of its own: Growth Marketing.
Growth Marketing
While distinct roles like SEO Specialist or Content Manager focus on specific channels, Growth Marketing is a holistic methodology that sits above them all. It is the intersection of marketing, product development, and data analysis.
What is Growth Marketing?
Growth marketing is often confused with “Growth Hacking”, but it is much more disciplined. It is a data-driven approach to marketing that focuses on the entire customer lifecycle, not just acquiring customers, but retaining them and turning them into advocates.
It is important to note that this is a uniquely digital discipline. In the era of traditional marketing (TV, Print), it was impossible to track exactly how a customer used a product after buying it. Growth marketing exists entirely because digital ecosystems allow us to track every user interaction. This data allows for rapid iteration and experimentation that isn’t possible in traditional media.
Marketing Growth Strategies
Traditional marketing often declares victory once the leads are generated. Growth marketing strategists, however, are obsessed with the AAARRR funnel to identify gaps in the business:
- Awareness: How do we get people to know about us? (SEO, Ads)
- Acquisition: How do we get them to visit? (Clicks)
- Activation: How do we get them to take the first step? (Sign up, download)
- Retention: How do we keep them coming back? (Email flows, product value)
- Revenue: How do we get them to pay? (Upsells, checkout optimization)
- Referral: How do we get them to tell friends? (Viral loops, incentives)
A key strategy in growth marketing is Cross-Channel Testing. For example, a growth marketer might test a value proposition on Facebook Ads first. If it gets a high click-through rate, they will then roll that messaging out to the website homepage and email subject lines, using data from one channel to inform the strategy of another.
Growth Marketing Manager
As one of the fastest-growing disciplines in the industry, companies are increasingly hiring for this specific role. Because this approach touches so many areas, a Growth Marketing Manager must have a broad knowledge of all digital channels along with deep, specialized knowledge in data analytics and experimentation.
Their day-to-day looks different than a traditional Digital Marketing Manager:
- Instead of approving creative assets, they are designing A/B tests for landing pages.
- Instead of managing brand voice, they are analyzing user churn rates to find out why customers are leaving.
- Instead of working in a silo, they work directly with product engineers to build referral offers within the products.
Types of Digital Marketing
Digital marketing is not a single strategy but a combination of different channels working together. Here are the most common examples:
- 1
Websites
Your website is ground zero for any digital marketing strategy. It is the only place online where you have complete control over the customer’s experience.
- The Goal: All other channels (social, email, ads) are typically designed to drive traffic to your website, where the actual conversion (a sale or a sign-up) takes place. A website must be fast, mobile-friendly, and easy to navigate to be effective.
- 2
Search Engine Marketing (SEO & SEM)
Search marketing is about being found when a potential customer is actively looking for a solution. It is the first line of offense for visibility.
- SEO (Search Engine Optimization): The process of optimizing your content to appear in organic (free) search results on Google. It builds long-term authority.
- SEM (Search Engine Marketing): The process of buying traffic by bidding on keywords so your ads appear at the top of the search results. It drives immediate visibility.
- 3
Social Media Marketing
This involves engaging users on the social platforms where they spend their free time, Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, TikTok, and Twitter (X).
- The Goal: Unlike search (where people look for answers), social media is about reach and connection. It allows brands to showcase their personality, build a community, and encourage word-of-mouth growth through shares and comments.
- 4
Email Marketing
Despite the rise of social media, email marketing remains the most effective channel for retention.
- The Goal: It is used to nurture relationships. Once a customer’s email address is collected, you can send them personalized emails with product updates or newsletters to keep your brand top-of-mind without relying on a social media algorithm.
What Do Digital Marketers Do?
You also have to keep in mind that many digital marketing roles exist within the field. It all depends on if you are hired as a specialist with responsibilities limited to your digital marketing discipline, or if you are hired as a generalist, coordinating digital marketing efforts across all of the company’s digital channels without needing to be an expert in every single one.
Since the digital marketing industry involves multiple unique disciplines, Digital Marketers typically have some or all of the following responsibilities:
Social Media Marketing
Social media marketing is about reaching vast audiences on online platforms like Facebook, LinkedIn, and TikTok. It requires masterminding smart content campaigns and managing interactions with the public across the company’s social media profiles.
The Role
You act as the voice of the brand, posting content that entertains or educates while handling the customer service aspect of comments and direct messages (DMs).
Why it matters
It is the primary place to build a community and humanize your brand.
Key Tools
Use platforms like Buffer or Hootsuite to schedule social media posts across multiple channels at once, and Canva to quickly design professional-grade graphics.
Inbound & Content Marketing
Inbound marketing is the strategy of attracting potential customers by creating valuable content and experiences tailored to them. Content marketing is the execution of that strategy, creating the actual assets (blogs, podcasts, and video marketing content).
The Role
Creating content that answers customer questions, ranking it on search engines, and using it to generate leads without being overtly promotional.
Why it matters
It builds long-term trust. Instead of interrupting people with ads to try to catch their attention, you are providing the answers they are already looking for.
Key Tools
Plan your editorial calendar with Notion or Trello, and host your content on a CMS like WordPress or HubSpot.
Email Marketing
Email marketing remains the most direct line of communication between a brand and its customers. It is used to nurture relationships, share updates, and drive repeat sales.
The Role
Segmenting customer lists (e.g., new subscribers vs. loyal buyers) and sending targeted automated messages to move them down the sales funnel.
Why it matters
It offers the highest ROI of almost any channel because you own the audience list, you aren’t relying on a social media algorithm to show your message.
Key Tools
Automate complex customer journeys with Klaviyo or Mailchimp.
Search Engine Marketing (SEM) & PPC campaigns
While SEO focuses on earning traffic, SEM focuses on buying it. This typically involves Pay-Per-Click (PPC) and digital ads, where you bid on keywords to appear at the top of search results.
The Role
Managing ad budgets, testing different ad copy, and optimizing landing pages to ensure you get the most clicks for the lowest cost.
Why it matters
It generates immediate visibility and is the fastest way to increase traffic to a new product or landing page.
Key Tools
Manage bids and campaigns within Google Ads and Microsoft Advertising, often using SpyFu to see what keywords your competitors are bidding on.
Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
SEO is optimizing your website so that search engines (like Google) show it as a top result for specific keywords. Unlike SEM, this focuses entirely on driving organic (free) traffic.
The Role
You research the exact words customers use to find products (keyword research), optimize website content to match those terms, and fix technical issues that prevent Google from reading your website.
Why it matters
Organic search is often the primary source of web traffic. Ranking high builds credibility and trust without paying for every click.
Key Tools
Use Ahrefs or SEMrush to find high-volume keywords and research competitors, and Google Search Console to monitor your site’s health and performance in search results.
Marketing Analytics
Data analytics is the practice of measuring the performance of every other channel to prove ROI (Return on Investment).
The Role
Conducting post-published analyses on digital marketing campaigns to answer questions like: “Where did our traffic come from?” and “Which ad image generated the most sales?”.
Why it matters
Digital marketers spend their budget more effectively by using data to stop funding what isn’t working and double down on what is.
Key Tools
Use Google Analytics (GA4) for deep website traffic insights and Looker Studio to visualize that data into easy-to-read reports for your team.
What is a Digital Marketing Job?
While specific duties vary by company size and industry, a digital marketer job description should define the scope of work and how success is measured (KPIs). A professional digital marketing role balances execution with strategy. While some employers look for a digital marketing certification, many value hands-on experience and online courses just as highly.
You could typically find the following core responsibilities in a standard digital marketer job description:
- Campaign Strategy & Execution
Outline and carry out multi-channel campaigns, including Search Engine Optimization (SEO), Search Engine Marketing (SEM), email marketing automation, and content distribution.
- Social Media Management
Manage and shape the brand’s voice, including determining the optimal social media platforms for the target audience (e.g., LinkedIn for B2B vs. TikTok for B2C).
- Performance Analysis (KPIs)
Analyze campaigns to determine the right metrics and Key Performance Indicators (such as Cost Per Lead or ROI) before measuring performance and creating reports.
- Lead Generation
Identify new opportunities and test new digital channels to generate high-quality leads and improve conversion rates on the website.
- Cross-Functional Collaboration
Collaborate across disciplines to maximize the efficacy of digital marketing campaigns, working with designers for creative assets, web development teams for landing pages, and communications teams for PR alignment.
While this description covers the basics, the digital world is vast. Companies often tailor roles to their specific needs, looking for candidates with specialized experience in niche sectors (like B2B Tech or E-commerce fashion). Expect to see job descriptions that demand specialized skills (like pure Data Analytics) or combine multiple disciplines into one hybrid role. Flexibility and the ability to adapt your skills to the specific company needs are key.
Popular Digital Marketing Roles
Digital marketing roles range from generalists that cover a bit of everything to highly specialized technical positions. While digital marketing position titles can vary depending on a company’s size and culture, the following roles represent the core structure you will find in most modern digital marketing teams:
Generalist & Strategy Roles
Digital Marketing Specialist
A generalist role responsible for overseeing and executing strategies across multiple digital marketing channels (social, email, content) to drive overall brand awareness. Because they often “do it all” (especially in smaller companies), this role typically requires proficiency in most digital marketing skills rather than deep specialization in just one.
Product Marketing Manager (PMM)
Common in Tech & SaaS. Unlike a generalist who promotes the brand, a PMM focuses on the product itself. They conduct market research, define the product’s unique positioning (“Why should people buy this?”), and lead the Go-To-Market (GTM) strategy for new product launches.
Content Marketing & Creative Roles
Content Marketing Manager
The Editor-in-Chief of the brand. They own the editorial calendar and strategy, deciding what topics to cover in marketing blogs or video marketing campaigns to attract traffic.
Copywriter
While a Content Marketing Manager plans the strategy, the Copywriter writes the words. They specialize in persuasion, crafting punchy headlines, online advertising slogans, website landing pages, and email marketing scripts designed specifically to convert readers into buyers.
Social Media Manager
Focused on community growth and brand voice. They schedule content and engage directly with followers across social media networks like TikTok, LinkedIn, and Instagram.
Performance & Retention Roles
SEO Specialist
A technical role focused purely on improving website rankings through keyword research, technical site audits, and link-building strategies.
Paid Media Specialist
The ads expert. Responsible for managing paid advertising budgets on Google (SEM), Meta (Facebook/Instagram), and TikTok. Their goal is to buy traffic efficiently, ensuring every dollar spent generates a positive return (ROAS).
Email & SMS Marketing Specialist
Also called a Retention or Lifecycle Marketer. This role focuses on maximizing the value of existing customers. They manage the direct communication digital channels, sending weekly newsletters and, setting up SMS text messaging flows (like abandoned cart reminders) which often have significantly higher open rates than email campaigns.
Operations & Relationships
Campaign Manager
While other roles focus on specific digital channels, the Campaign Manager focuses on timelines and execution. They coordinate the Copywriters, Designers, and Paid Media teams to ensure a successful marketing campaign (like a “Black Friday Sale” or “New Product Launch”) goes live on time and on budget.
Marketing Automation Specialist
A Marketing Automations Specialist does not write the emails, they build the infrastructure that automatically sends them. They manage the CRM (like HubSpot or Salesforce), set up complex workflows, and ensure data flows correctly between sales and marketing teams.
Influencer Marketing & PR Specialist
A relationship-heavy role. Instead of buying ads, they earn attention. They pitch stories to journalists (PR) and negotiate partnerships with social media creators (Influencer Marketing) to get the brand endorsed by trusted third parties.
Account Manager
A common role in agencies. The bridge between the client and the marketing team. If you work in an agency, you might not execute the marketing campaigns yourself, instead, you manage the client relationship, translate their business goals into instructions for the creative team, and ensure they stay happy and profitable.
It is important to note that these titles are not rigid. Digital marketing skills spans a wide spectrum from highly creative (like Social Media Marketing and Copywriting) to deeply technical (like SEO, Automation, and Analytics).
Additionally, company size matters. In smaller startups, a single Digital Marketing Manager might be expected to handle all the responsibilities listed above. Conversely, at large enterprise companies, these roles are often broken down further (e.g., a dedicated “TikTok Creator” rather than a general Social Media Manager). When applying, always look at the specific duties rather than just the title.
AI in Digital Marketing: The New Standard
Automation in the Digital Marketing
Digital marketing is, by definition, a technology-driven field. Unlike traditional marketing, it depends entirely on the internet, devices, and software to function. In fact, digital marketing overtook traditional marketing precisely because it proved to be more efficient, measurable, and scalable through digital media, adapting to new trends and emerging platforms.
For years, the “edge” that defined a great marketer was automation. Automation allowed many digital marketers to set up complex workflows to be more efficient and cost-effective. It was based on rules:
- “If a user clicks this link, wait 2 days and send this email.”
- “If a user buys Product A, show them a paid ad for Product B.”
Automation made it possible to customize the user experience for thousands of people at once, but it still relied on a human marketer to define the logic.
The Next Step: Artificial Intelligence
With automation being the standard across roles, the digital marketer’s next step is integrating Artificial Intelligence (AI) into their workflow. Digital marketers are inherently tech-savvy, so adopting AI is an evolutionary step the role, not a replacement for it. Digital Marketers should use AI to boost learning and efficiency for their overall workflow.
How Digital Marketers Use AI Tools
There are endless opportunities to use AI on the job and enhance your digital marketing strategy:
Copywriting & Content Creation
The Old Way
Writing every single blog post from scratch, staring at a blinking cursor.
The AI Way
You provide the outline based on your keyword research, and the AI generates a comprehensive first draft of the content for you to refine and optimize.
Tools
ChatGPT, Jasper, Copy.ai
Data Analysis & Reporting
The Old Way
Spending hours in Excel trying to find patterns in sales data.
The AI Way
Uploading a dataset and asking an AI tool to discover important customer behaviors such as “Which demographic had the highest ROI last month?” to get an instant valuable insight.
Tools
Looker Studio, Tableau AI, Polymer.
Campaign Optimization
The Old Way
Manually adjusting paid ad bids every morning based on yesterday’s performance.
The AI Way
Letting algorithms analyze thousands of signals (time of day, location, browsing history) to adjust bids in real-time for maximum conversion.
Tools
Google Ads Smart Bidding, Albert.ai.
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