A digital marketing manager plays a crucial role in driving a brand’s online presence, managing campaigns, and ensuring that marketing efforts lead to measurable results. But what skills truly set apart a great digital marketing manager from an average one?
In today’s competitive landscape, simply knowing SEO, PPC, and social media marketing isn’t enough. A successful digital marketing manager needs a mix of technical, strategic, analytical, and leadership skills to navigate the ever-evolving digital world.
This guide will walk you through the essential skills you should look for when hiring a digital marketing manager, along with practical ways to assess them.
Why Digital Marketing Manager Skills Matter
The role of a digital marketing manager is becoming more complex, requiring professionals to juggle multiple responsibilities, including:
✅ Developing and executing multi-channel marketing campaigns
✅ Managing paid advertising, SEO, and email marketing
✅ Analyzing data and optimizing campaign performance
✅ Leading and coordinating teams across different digital functions
Hiring a marketing manager with the right skill set ensures higher ROI, better brand positioning, and more effective audience engagement.
For a complete guide on evaluating digital marketing candidates, check out: How to Evaluate Digital Marketing Skills for Hiring.
Top Digital Marketing Manager Skills to Assess
1. Strategic Thinking & Planning
A digital marketing manager should be able to see the bigger picture and develop marketing strategies that align with business goals.
💡 Key Areas to Assess:
- Ability to create a long-term marketing strategy
- Understanding of customer journey mapping
- Experience in budgeting and resource allocation
🔍 Assessment Tip:
Ask candidates to create a 6-month digital marketing plan for a brand and explain their approach.
2. SEO & Content Marketing Expertise
Strong SEO and content marketing skills ensure organic traffic growth and audience engagement.
💡 Key Areas to Assess:
- On-page and off-page SEO strategies
- Keyword research and competitor analysis
- Content marketing best practices and ROI tracking
🔍 Assessment Tip:
Provide a web page and ask the candidate to identify SEO weaknesses and suggest improvements.
For a detailed list of digital marketing skills, read: Top Digital Marketing Skills List to Assess for Employment.
3. PPC & Paid Advertising Management
A digital marketing manager should be skilled in Google Ads, Facebook Ads, and LinkedIn Ads to drive high-quality leads.
💡 Key Areas to Assess:
- Bid management and audience targeting
- Conversion rate optimization (CRO)
- A/B testing and ad performance analysis
🔍 Assessment Tip:
Give the candidate a budget and a campaign scenario and ask how they would allocate the budget across different platforms.
4. Marketing Analytics & Data Interpretation
Data-driven decision-making is key to improving marketing efforts. A manager should be comfortable using Google Analytics, Google Tag Manager, and data visualization tools.
💡 Key Areas to Assess:
- Understanding key marketing KPIs
- Experience with Google Analytics and campaign tracking
- Ability to derive actionable insights from data
🔍 Assessment Tip:
Ask candidates to analyze a marketing report and recommend optimizations based on the data.
For more insights into digital marketing technical skills, check out: Digital Marketing Technical Skills to Assess for Employment.
5. Email Marketing & Marketing Automation
Email marketing is still one of the most profitable marketing channels. A digital marketing manager must be proficient in CRM tools and automation platforms.
💡 Key Areas to Assess:
- Experience with email marketing tools (HubSpot, MailChimp, Marketo)
- Understanding of automation workflows
- A/B testing and performance optimization techniques
🔍 Assessment Tip:
Ask candidates how they would create an email nurture sequence for a new lead.
6. Social Media & Community Management
A marketing manager should be able to create engaging content strategies across different social media platforms.
💡 Key Areas to Assess:
- Knowledge of platform-specific content strategies (Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter)
- Experience with social media advertising and influencer collaborations
- Crisis management and community engagement skills
🔍 Assessment Tip:
Ask the candidate to outline a social media strategy for a new product launch.
7. Leadership & Team Management
Beyond technical skills, a digital marketing manager must lead a team and coordinate between different marketing functions.
💡 Key Areas to Assess:
- Ability to delegate tasks and manage cross-functional teams
- Strong communication and stakeholder management skills
- Experience in mentoring junior marketers
🔍 Assessment Tip:
Ask about their experience in handling conflicts and motivating teams in a fast-paced environment.
8. Basic Graphic Design & Video Editing
While they don’t need to be designers, marketing managers should understand basic graphic design principles to manage branding efforts.
💡 Key Areas to Assess:
- Experience with Canva, Adobe Creative Suite, or Figma
- Ability to create social media and email visuals
- Understanding of video content marketing
🔍 Assessment Tip:
Ask them to suggest improvements to an existing ad creative.
Hard Skills vs. Soft Skills in a Digital Marketing Manager
| Hard Skills | Soft Skills |
| SEO, PPC, Google Analytics | Leadership & Team Management |
| Social Media & Paid Ads | Communication & Collaboration |
| Marketing Automation & CRM | Problem-Solving Skills |
| Email Marketing & Copywriting | Creativity & Innovation |
| Data Analytics & Reporting | Adaptability to Trends |
To test a candidate’s technical expertise, use a Digital marketing skill test to evaluate their proficiency in different digital marketing areas.
How to Assess Digital Marketing Manager Candidates
During interviews, practical tests help evaluate a candidate’s real-world skills.
| Skill Area | Example Interview Question |
| SEO & Content Strategy | “How would you improve organic traffic for an eCommerce site?” |
| Paid Ads & PPC | “How do you optimize a Google Ads campaign with a low ROI?” |
| Analytics & Data | “Which KPIs do you track for social media performance?” |
| Email Marketing | “What’s your process for increasing email engagement rates?” |
| Leadership & Teamwork | “How do you manage conflicts within your marketing team?” |
For interview-specific questions, check out: Digital Marketing Manager Interview Questions to Evaluate the Right Skills.
Final Thoughts: Finding the Right Digital Marketing Manager
A great digital marketing manager is both a strategist and a hands-on executor who can analyze data, manage teams, and optimize campaigns for maximum impact.
By assessing both technical and leadership skills, you’ll hire a high-performing marketing manager who can drive results for your business.
To test a candidate’s expertise, use a Digital marketing skill test to measure their proficiency before hiring.