What is a Marketing Analyst?: Key Responsibilities and How to Become One in 2024

Businesses are swamped in marketing data, but they don’t always know how to use data and truly glean insights from it.

This is where marketing analysts come in. The role of a marketing analyst is to act as an “analytics translator” and help companies make sense of their marketing data to drive impact. The insights they generate help companies determine which products to sell, how to optimize their marketing mix, and how to refine ad campaigns.

For many, marketing analyst roles are the first step into data science, as the job requires a range of skills relevant to the data science field, including analytics, SQL, statistics, and modeling.

For those interested in becoming marketing analysts, we took a closer look at what is a marketing analyst, their key job responsibilities, job outlook and salary expectations, and what credentials you need.

Marketing analysts are responsible for providing data-driven insights to help solve marketing challenges for companies. People in this role often specialize in either marketing research or marketing analytics, and most work on a team that includes market researchers, analysts, and other marketing specialists.

Marketing analysts use statistics and statistical software to analyze data and identify trends. From there, they can make predictions about how the market will respond to various marketing strategies. Along with identifying trends and making projections, they also support their findings with qualitative data from customer surveys, focus groups, interviews, and other research methods.

In short, marketing analysts are responsible for:

• Identifying market trends through analyzing sales data
• Creating statistical models for forecasting sales volume
• Designing tests for evaluating the effectiveness of various marketing campaigns both online and offline
• Developing reports based on customer survey data
• Presenting recommendations to upper management based on research insights

Marketing analysts work closely with data and numbers. They often serve as analytics specialists and have the keen ability to generate insights that help companies make more informed decisions.

So what skills do marketing analysts need to be successful? In general, marketing analysts require a precise mix of soft skills and technical expertise.

Marketing Analyst: Soft Skills

Marketing analysts should possess these soft skills:

1. Communication - Marketing analysts have to be comfortable with sharing their findings with clients and colleagues, and making data accessible to non-technical stakeholders. They possess strong verbal and written communication skills in order to present information both in-person and virtually.

2. Analytical Thinking - It’s essential for those within this role to focus on thinking analytically, especially towards defining problems and using data and metrics to back up insights.

3. Industry Knowledge - Marketing analysts can be specialists – serving a particular industry like e-commerce, for instance. However, industry-specific knowledge isn’t as important as general digital marketing expertise. More specifically, you should be sure to have the process behind how marketing data is collected, analyzed, and used down pat.

4. Business Sense - Marketing analysts should have a solid foundation in how businesses function overall, and how marketing data can serve the business. Strong business and product sense is essential in marketing analyst roles.

Technical Skills for Marketing Analyst Roles

Marketing analysts should have some kind of working experience with analytics systems, as well as statistical analysis software, and, in some cases, scripting software. Some of the most common required technical skills include:

• Statistical analysis software (e.g. R or Python)
• SQL databases and database querying languages
• Programming skills (if possible)
• Survey/query software
• Business intelligence and reporting software (e.g. Tableau or PowerBI)
• Data mining
• Data visualization

The marketing analyst role is often listed on job postings as a media analyst, SEO analyst, and market research analyst. While these roles may overlap, there are subtle differences in these positions. Reading the job description and list of requirements will help you clarify what the job entails.

The most common role that is confused with marketing analyst is the market research analyst. Business analysts may also be required to work in the marketing domain. We’ve broken down the key positions and differences between them.

Marketing analysts translate complex marketing data into business insights to drive marketing strategy.

Business analysts are responsible for gathering and wrangling data to generate insights for business decisions. It is a broader role that can encompass various skill sets and responsibilities.

Market research analysts focus specifically on gathering and interpreting data about consumers, competitors, and the market. They provide insights that help companies make informed decisions about products, services, and marketing strategies.

While this role may overlap with the marketing analyst role, the key difference is that Marketing Analysts concentrate on optimizing marketing strategies and campaigns, while Market Research Analysts specialize in gathering and interpreting market data to support business decisions.

Marketing analysts typically have a bachelor’s degree in marketing or business management, with master’s degrees becoming increasingly preferred. Though everyone’s path is different, the most common steps to becoming a marketing analyst include:

Step 1: Undergraduate Studies - A bachelor’s degree is a requirement for most marketing analytics jobs. Marketing and business degrees are the most directly applicable, but concentrations in computer science, data science, and other subjects also work. If you focus on the latter, be prepared to spend more time building your business sense independently.

Step 2: Build Core Analytics Skills - Most marketing analytics jobs require intermediate-to-advanced level skills in SQL, Excel, Tableau, Python, and, in some cases, machine learning. There are several options to achieve this: You can study and learn these skills independently, minor in data science and computer science, or complete a boot camp post-graduation to gain hands-on experience with these tools.

Step 3: Build Your Portfolio - Although a portfolio isn’t necessary to land a job, it can be a powerful tool to get your foot in the door. You can do your own marketing analytics projects, compete in a Kaggle competition, or find a data analytics organization at your university. Another option is a marketing analytics internship. Internships provide practical experience and exposure to real-life marketing analytics cases.

Step 4: Prepare for the Interview - Interviews for marketing analytics positions test technical skills and business sense. Practice data analytics interview questions, work through data analytics case studies, and practice business case interview questions to prepare.

Step 5: Continue to Develop - To be successful in your first role in marketing analytics, be prepared to ask questions, work outside your comfort zone, and make mistakes. You’ll do a lot of learning on the job, and will likely have to continue to develop your skills on your own time. You can continue to develop through professional development programs, attending marketing conferences, and working with different coaches.

Step 6: Consider Next Steps - Many senior-level marketing analytics jobs require a master’s degree. Consider a master’s in data science, analytics, or marketing to continue to build your domain expertise, gain advanced skills, and learn the latest techniques.

There is a strong demand for marketing analysts across a variety of industries. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the role is projected to grow by 13% over the next decade, a higher average rate compared to other occupations.

According to the BLS, the average salary for market research analysts is $74,680 per year, with top earners making $147,000 a year. The best salaries for marketing analytics jobs tend to be in tech.

While applying for marketing analyst roles, it is crucial to understand what your job will entail and tailor your resume accordingly. A smart way to do this is to research marketing analyst jobs on various portals, including LinkedIn, and understand what the usual roles and responsibilities are. Tailoring your CV for each application may be tedious, but small customizations can help you stand out from other candidates.

Here are some tips on tailoring your CV:

• Highlight key projects from your past experience that demonstrate that you have tackled problems similar to the ones you may face in your prospective position. Try to include numbers to quantify your impact.
• List down the technical/soft skills you already have that the role demands, and mention your level of proficiency.
• Include certifications, awards, and relevant accomplishments, and mention how they will help you excel at the job.
• Ensure your CV is well-formatted and proofread it for any serious omissions.
• Only include information that is relevant to the role you are applying for. Your CV shouldn’t be more than one to two pages long.

Interview Query provides a range of resources to help you prepare for marketing analyst interviews, including:

• Product Sense and SQL courses
• Data Analytics Case Study guide
• Marketing Analytics Case Study Guide for 2024
• 500+ Data Science Interview Questions (including SQL, analytics, and product/business sense)