It's very difficult really to ascertain what any job is worth in terms of salary. I always think that we're relatively lucky in the world of advertising and marketing that we make a reasonable amount of money, that there is career progression and that we mostly enjoy what we do too. Every year, I do a salary survey for my clients so that they have something to benchmark where salaries are in the Northern region of the UK relative to different job roles. Of course, there are always salary bandings because there are variables but they are useful as I use the information from the candidates who I work with and the roles that I place, so the data is pretty reliable and accurate.
It is a universal truth, however, that everyone thinks they are underpaid. Nearly everyone I talk to who is looking for a new role is doing so predominantly to make more money. Over the past 2 years I've seen a marked decrease in the length of time that individuals spend in a role - particularly in the areas of search marketing, social media and junior client services. I think this is partly generational - young people are ambitious and constantly pushing the boundaries to make more money. Equally, particularly in search and social, the ability of someone to do the job is very visible and results driven which demonstrates to these employees just how useful they are and they are confident that they can pitch themselves to new employers with higher salary expectations - after all, they will prove return on investment very quickly. Equally their market is buoyant and employers are keen to hire people with these skills. In more creative agencies where the client services teams still have to serve their time as an Account Exec, then Manager, then Senior Manager before arriving at the giddy height of Account Director, their progression remains much steadier without sudden leaps of promotion. Talking to clients, this is often because for these individuals to be taken seriously by clients, they have to have served their time moving up the ladder, to earn the credibility. It seems that perhaps for search marketing and social media roles, the talent is there early on and the younger generations prove their credibility by creating results and fast.
The average UK salary currently stands at £29k. Which is higher than I'd thought it would be. So I'd say generally that marketing and advertising hold up pretty well with salaries that become higher than this average after perhaps 4-5 years in the industry. Starting salaries in our industry are not high - compared for example to a Doctor or Dentist but then they've spent many more years training!
Regional salaries in marketing and advertising do not change significantly over time. I'd say that in the recent economic climate, we have seen that there are less 'senior' roles than perhaps we would expect to see. Employers are keeping an eye on their bottom line and often promoting internally rather than hiring senior people externally. The market for £25k-35k roles is usually pretty busy and it's only over the £40-50k mark that we see individuals needing to continue their job search for a little longer before they find their perfect role. It is rare in regional marketing and advertising to see salaries for over £100k and indeed over the £70k role. Senior marketers are earning well but they're not earning mega bucks. Agency marketers always think the grass is greener in-house and expect that their Marketing Director clients will be on silly money. Whilst they're usually on a little more money, it's not always a lot more.
Whenever I meet a candidate, money is usually one of the first things we talk about and I always ask candidates if they have requested a pay rise where they are currently. Interestingly I would say only around 30% would say yes to this. Women, particularly do not want to be considered awkward or difficult for asking for more cash. Men will statistically ask their bosses for a pay rise at least twice a year - interesting! Additionally, I find that those individuals who resign and then are 'bought back' by their existing employer, will stay in the role for an average of another 4 months before being back on the market. Often this is due to unfulfilled promises or more commonly the realisation that perhaps....money isn't everything. Job satisfaction, work life balance, flexible hours, gym membership, decent pension contributions, bring your dog to work, gin and tonic on a Friday....there are plenty of other criteria which do also get a look-in.
On a final note. A (good) recruiter will always give you an honest and objective view about your current salary and your expectations. They will also try to secure you as high a salary as is possible. Within the realms of what is realistic, reasonable and essentially whatever the new employer thinks you are worth - to them. It's not an exact science!