Sales & Marketing

How to become a Marketing Manager

From marketing specialist: every step, how long it takes, and the credential it earns.

Time to get there

4–7 years

Typical pay

$82k–$118k

Starting from

Marketing specialist

The steps

1. 1

   Build depth in one channel first

   Managers who came from nowhere in particular struggle to lead specialists.

   2–4 years

   Course that covers thisDIGITAL MARKETING: Complete Digital Marketing CourseUdemy · around $19.99 →
2. 2

   Learn budgeting and attribution

   Defending spend is most of the role.

   Course that covers thisUltimate Microsoft Excel Bundle from Beginner to AdvancedUdemy · around $19.99 →
3. 3

   Own a campaign end to end

   Strategy, brief, execution and the post-mortem.

   1–2 years

   Course that covers thisSEO for Absolute Beginners - Learn SEO Basics QuicklyUdemy · around $19.99 →
4. 4

   Manage people

   The step that makes it a management job rather than a senior specialist one.

   1–2 years

Course links are Udemy affiliate links — we earn a commission if you buy, at no extra cost to you. Licences and exams named above are issued by state boards and certifying bodies we have no relationship with; we list them because they are what the job actually requires.