Global View
The global digital marketing spends in 2020 is forecasted to have reached $330-340 billion, at a Compound Annual Growth Rate of nearly 13%, according to Beroe Inc, a procurement intelligence company. It is one of the industries that has arguably benefitted from the disruptions of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The market will grow at an estimated 17.6% between 2021 and 2026. It will reach approximately $807 billion by 2026, according to data from Expert Market Research. This projected growth is due to the rising population of people consuming and creating content through digital channels. Vital drivers of the industry are rising investments in online video and mobile advertising— evident in the emergence of new platforms such as Tik-Tok, Youtube Shorts, and Stories on existing social media platforms.

The largest markets by spending are North America, Western Europe, China, and other emerging Asian markets. The increased availability of 4G connectivity and smartphones has accelerated the growth of the digital marketing industry in Africa. It holds a lot of potential due to the young population and millions of MSMEs that power the economy.

Research by EMSI Burning Glass, a labour market intelligence provider, provides a global snapshot of the following trends in the digital marketing industry from the US labour market: 

• Small and big digital media businesses list social media as a top required skill 40% of marketing job openings now require digital skills.
• There are twice as many job postings with a digital focus than there were five years ago. 
• Digital marketing will make up 35% of marketing spending by 2019.
•  In 2016, there were 174,141 digital-marketing focused job postings. 
• Digital marketing jobs offer, on average, $7000 more a year than other types of marketing jobs.

The digital marketing industry seems to be just getting started due to the rise of global e-commerce, which projection says will reach $4.5 trillion by 2021. Businesses are increasingly strategising how to better connect and transact with the 4.5 billion people of the global internet users. 

Africa
Though the African digital marketing industry is the smallest globally, 30% of the African population already had internet access by 2018 despite digital infrastructure being at infancy state. It has, however, been a ripe field for digital marketing; 78% of internet usage in Africa is for social media— according to a 2014 Pew Research Global Attitudes Project. It estimates that Africa has a $14 billion social media industry. With the internet expected to contribute a minimum of $300 billion to the GDP by 2025, social media could contribute almost $230 billion to the remarkable growth of Africa by that time.

The Majority of internet connectivity in Africa is through mobile phones. However, the African digital marketing industry focus on mobile provided an early lead the world has come to follow with the present dominance of mobile in the global digital landscape. The biggest internet platforms in Africa are social media and chat apps such as Facebook and Twitter. Google is the most used search engine, with Facebook, Youtube and WhatsApp being the biggest platforms for videos. 

Nigeria has the hugest digital marketing industry in Africa—more than 100 million people connected in 2021. It is followed by Egypt—with almost 60 million internet users. South Africa has 38.9 million connected people, Morocco— 27.62 million, and more than 20 million users connected in Algeria, Ethiopia and Kenya. However, a determinant of the digital marketing industry is the chunk of spending on online advertising in the total advertising spend. South Africa and Nigeria take the lead here—respectively. 

There are also innovating digital marketing services to reach the mobile audience without internet connectivity. Many digital marketing professionals in Africa operate as freelance consultants. It makes it difficult to estimate the exact population of people employed in the industry. 

Ghana
Advertising spending in the Ghanaian Digital Advertising market is projected to reach US$28.64m in 2022. The market’s largest segment is Video Advertising, with a market volume of US$11.01m in 2022. According to Statista, Ghana’s digital advertising spending was 35,430,000 million US Dollars in 2021. 

Kenya
According to Statista, internet advertising revenue in Kenya stood at 3.4 trillion Kenyan shillings in 2020. In addition, the report projected that the industry would grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 7.7 per cent until 2025, to reach 4.93 trillion shillings. 

Nigeria
According to Datareportal, Nigeria has 104.4 million internet users and 33 million social media users. It is equivalent to 50% and 15.8% of its population, respectively, as of January 2021. The Nigerian digital marketing industry is the biggest in Africa—by the size of audience reach. There are an estimated 187.9 million mobile connections—equivalent to 90% of the Nigerian population at the same time.

The Nigerian digital marketing industry was rebirthed in 2012—spurred by the competition of two e-commerce giants, Jumia and Konga. They massively promoted their products with online ads leveraging their funds raised from venture capital. 2015 to 2019 also proved to be a time of explosive growth as several SMEs moved their marketing online. Total internet advertising revenue in Nigeria was $73 million in 2018; and will reach $133 million in 2023—with mobile projected to account for the bulk of this revenue in coming years.

The bulk of the spending in the Nigerian digital marketing industry comes from financial service providers, telcos, and consumer goods companies. Content and influencer marketing is also highly used by SMEs to reach a large audience. Despite social media receiving the largest share of advertising spend, search engines and visits to websites remain the top channels with which consumers find information before making a purchase.

South Africa
The South African digital advertising market had total revenues of $425.6m in 2020, representing a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 12.5% between 2016 and 2020, according to a Market Research report. The Digital advertising market is projected to reach US$510.90m in 2022 – Statista report. Also, it is projected that 73% of the total digital ad spending will be generated through mobile in 2027. 

Social media platforms are becoming more pervasive as marketing tools in South Africa. More than 90 per cent of South African major brands advertise on social media platforms.   On a consumer level, growth for most networks has slowed down, but engagement by users has intensified.

Recent trends in the digital marketing industry include:

• User-generated content: brands are increasingly leveraging content from their audiences and customers for further engagement. It can be as simple as feedback on a service or videos of customers using their products. Content is also driving commerce as brands include a call-to-action button for customers to make purchases easily. 
• Chatbots: there is an increased use of artificial intelligence (AI) applications like chatbots—for automating interactions with customers. It provides a first-level response to meeting the information needs of prospects and customers. 
• Voice interaction: AI innovations such as Apple Siri, Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa on mobile devices and smart speakers have accelerated the growth of voice as a medium of digital interaction. A recent Search Engine Watch survey found that 27% of global internet users utilise voice search on mobile devices. Digital marketers are adapting their touchpoints like e-commerce channels to be navigable with voice.
• Heavy investment in content marketing: digital marketing is turning brands into media houses—with customer engagement. It has led to a surge of podcasts, newsletters, and blogs. RedBull and AirBnB are some of the companies leading this trend. 
• Omnichannel engagement: from mobile phones to smart speakers; brands meet customers at every digital touchpoint possible. These include chatbots, voice interfaces, interactive emails, and push notifications.
• Influencer and Inclusive marketing: brands work with individuals with large social media followings and cultural influence to amplify their content. It is a common trend in the hospitality industry. Brands are also heeding the call for increased representation of diversity across genders, colours, and sexuality in the messages brands project. 

Visit recent trends, challenges and opportunities for innovation sections for some research research areas in digital marketing. Other topics include opportunities for SMEs to utilise digital marketing, adoption of digital marketing practices and tools by SMEs, Return on Investments in digital marketing, impact on consumer behaviour and local businesses.

The digital marketing industry can contribute to:

SDG 8 for Decent Work and Economic Growth. It creates jobs for millions of young people globally and has the potential to create more. The industry has low barriers to entry for freelancing, independent consulting, or starting a firm. 

Goal 10 to Reduce Inequality within and among Countries.

Digital marketing also removes market barriers for emerging businesses to connect to a global customer base without spending heavily on traditional marketing channels. 

They include:

• Content moderation: governments have been tasking social media companies to take responsibility for the content users share on their platforms. There has been a rise in the need to review content and take action to curtail the spread of inciting false, misleading and indecent content. However, it can be traumatic for individuals reviewing this content as algorithms have not proven to be solely capable of this.
• Internet censorship: Several African governments are taking a harsher stance on social media. There is an increase in the arrest of bloggers. Some countries shut down the internet or ban social media platforms such as Twitter when public opinion does not swing to their political interests.
• Fake news: social media makes unverified and sometimes false information spread before it is corrected. It can negatively affect brand reputation when people make false claims about a product or service. It has led to a need for responsive reputation management for brands.
• Online Management of Brands: the internet can be a noisy place, and brands need to find a way to find the signals from the noise. Brands are adopting technologies for social media listening to quickly detect and respond to customer complaints before they are amplified and negatively affect the brand. Brands are being called on to express their positions—on social and political issues, which can be challenging for conservative organisations and businesses.
• Harmonisation of Data: as new social media platforms and marketing technologies emerge, brands need to have a unified customer view across these platforms. It has led to the adoption of robust customer relationship management (CRM) systems that can provide a 360-degree view of prospects and customers.
• Privacy Concerns: targeting and retargeting customers can be intrusive. There has been a rise in allegations— that internet companies eavesdrop into everyday conversations to improve their customer targeting algorithms. Data also crosses to third-party companies that can misuse the data through malicious intent and social engineering to forward the cause of the highest bidder. A prominent case of this is Cambridge Analytica and Facebook.
• Talent Development: the digital marketing industry has several entry-level professionals due to the ease of entry. However, there is a need for experts who can work with organisations to align corporate strategies with digital marketing efforts to achieve results for companies. Traditional marketers need to have the digital skills to adapt to a changing world dominated by digital technologies.

The Digital Marketing industry is an industry birthed by digitally-enabled marketing. Nevertheless, the following are some technological trends that make the digital marketing industry tick: 

AdTech and MarTech: It is a collection of software, tools, and platforms that power internet advertising and marketing. They include tools for collecting and managing customer data, developing and distributing content, and engagement analytics.

Programmatic Advertising: This is one of the earliest innovations in internet advertising that has led to the boom of the digital marketing industry. It is using algorithms to sell and place in real-time digital ad impressions via an ad exchange platform. 

Targeting and Personalisation: This is the distribution of content and promotions to audiences and customers based on behaviours and interests tracked from their browsing history.

Prospects with interest in any of the content and promotions— are retargeted. However, increasing concern for user privacy has led to experimental replacement with other technologies that do not track users individually.

The following are careers and roles in the digital marketing industry typically open to graduates include:

• Search Engine Specialist/Marketing Analyst,
• Data Analytics, 
• Email Marketing Specialist, 
• Social Media Marketer, 
• Digital Marketing Manager, 
• Blogger/Copywriter/Editor,
• Content Writer/Developer/Marketer,
• Graphics and UX Designer, 
• Mobile Marketer,
• Brand management,
• Media Relations Specialists 
• Online Reputation Manager, 
• Social Media Influencers
• Campaign manager

The highest paying segments of the industry are digital project planning and management, content strategy, brand marketing, e-commerce and digital media management. The highest-earning roles include UX Specialist/Information Architect, Marketing Automation Architect, Content Strategist, SEO Specialist, Mobile Marketing, Social Media Expert/Specialist, Pay Per Click Specialist and E-Commerce Specialists.

• Communication & Persuasion: there is a lot of noise online, and the attention span is short. Therefore, communication such as copies, blogs and media clips must be concise and clear to engage audiences and influence their online and offline decisions.
• Analysis: digital marketing provides access to data that can inform strategies to achieve the best results possible. This skill is also applicable for analysing post reports and the performance of marketing campaigns across digital channels.
• Initiative: social media marketing requires being spontaneous. Creative digital marketers spot trends to put their brands in online conversations without needing top management approval. These conversations must not be divisive and against what the brand stands for.
• Networking and Teamwork: digital marketers who run an agency or work as freelance consultants must network their way to onboard clients by connecting with decision-makers of their prospects. Digital marketers that work with corporate organisations would likely work with other professionals in the marketing communications team.
• Continual Learning, Adaptation, and Industry Awareness: trends come and go, and technologies evolve. Digital marketers must spot new trends. They must learn new engagement strategies and adapt their brands and communication to new platforms; to reach their audiences where they are.
• Creativity and Critical Thinking: engaging communication and compelling content require creative thinking. Digital marketers also need to employ critical thinking to ensure that creative content delivers on the organisational objectives as they change from time to time. It is also required in planning campaigns and communicating in times of crisis.
• Digital Skills: these include coding, UI/UX and graphics design for landing and web pages; data analysis skills for assessing the effectiveness of digital marketing campaigns and skills for content creation such as creating and editing podcasts and videos.

Although studying a marketing or information technology-related degree can provide an advantage, there is no required degree for entry into the industry. An increasing number of higher institutions are offering first or second degrees in digital marketing. What is most important is your ability to think creatively and analytically while demonstrating proficiency with internet tools.

There are several certifications offered by leading digital marketing platforms. These include Google Marketing Fundamentals, Google Adwords, Google Analytics and Facebook blueprint. Several higher institutions provide training and certifications through online courses, distance learning, and continuing education programmes.

Digital marketing is a field where experience is often just as valuable as a qualification. However, it is not to say that a degree or professional training is useless.

A significant number of successful digital marketers started as self-thought, though many take professional training later in their areas of interest to sharpen their skills. There are many digital marketing resources—to read, watch and practise—by experienced digital marketers, internet companies and marketing technology providers. Areas you can develop your creative skills include social media communication, graphics design, newsletters, and creating short videos. 

However, while having general knowledge in several areas can be beneficial to your digital marketing career, you must decide on an area of specialisation. There are many routes to a career in digital marketing. For example, if you want to focus on content development, you can develop your image and video editing skills. For website development, you can hone your coding and web design skills; and for analytics, you can work on your coding skills. 

As a very hands-on industry for entry-level practitioners, you can expect recruiters and prospective clients to evaluate you based on what you have done. It makes it crucial to put your skills to use on your internet pages, volunteer to promote business for friends or family, an event, or a cause. It provides a way to gain invaluable work experience that can help get an internship or job opportunity. You can also share your experience via blog posts and videos.

Despite the high demand for roles in digital marketing, it is sometimes difficult to find them. Aside from the graduate schemes of top corporate communications and advertising agencies, most graduate schemes focus on management and technical roles. However, some organisations in industries such as media, hospitality, and consumer goods have marketing graduate trainee programmes which may provide a pathway for digital marketing. 

You can make speculative applications to organisations and brands with an online presence you find admirable, or you can do a lot to improve. You will be surprised that some may offer you a consulting role even if they are not ready to take you on as full-time staff. You can use your online skills to find decision-makers in such organisations and network with them online. The better you can articulate how you can help them with digital marketing, the higher your chances of securing an opportunity. 

In your job search, it is also important to note that the needs of companies differ. While small to medium-sized businesses may prioritise social media and email marketing, well-funded startups and large organisations may have their priorities around targeted advertising, online media buying, and digital analytics. Research each company to tailor your job application or consulting proposal to their needs

A majority of internet platforms and marketing automation companies are in the US and Europe. Hence, most digital marketing professionals in Africa work in Agencies and as freelancers or independent consultants—while others work within the marketing (communication) team of well-established organisations. Digital marketing agencies teams usually range from 3 to 5 people in small to mid-sized companies. They rarely exceed the double-digit even in the big agencies and organisations.

It is an evolving, rapidly growing and fast-paced industry, thus providing plenty of opportunities for rapid advancement. It is not unusual to find several graduates become digital leaders in 4 to 5 years. The informality of the industry makes it appealing to young professionals as it is well known for its youthful and upbeat environment.

Digital marketing jobs are usually flexible, providing a lot of opportunities for remote work. Several freelancers and independent consultants work from home. They now have follow-up via virtual meetings and only visit clients when the need arises. The less-formal nature of the industry also makes it appealing to young professionals as it is well known for its youthful and upbeat environment.

Though entry-level salaries in the industry are relatively small—compared to other industries, several freelance consultants and those working with agencies can boost their earnings by taking on private projects. However, with performance, salaries also scale. Digital marketing professionals working with well-established organisations typically join as experienced hires. They usually earn a sizable salary and other work-related benefits depending on the organisation and industry.

Digital marketers who work in other industries also have this aura of a young breed of Professionals. Unlike the traditional advertising industry where success can be hard to measure, reports and dashboards for instant assessment of campaign performance dominate the industry. It is both a creative and analytical industry. Day to day terminologies in the industry include campaigns, reach, click rate, conversion rate and more.

Digital marketing is both a creative and analytical industry. From writing, graphics design, campaign planning, scheduling posts to reviewing video edits, hands are always on deck in entry to middle-level positions. Unlike in traditional where attaining success is hard and takes a long time to measure, reports and dashboards for instant assessment of campaign performance are always available as engagement metrics. These metrics include reach, click rates, and conversion rate of posts, campaigns, and messages. 

Staying in touch with the latest trends is essential to succeed as there is always high competition for audience attention. It is an industry where continual learning is needed—as new platforms such as Snapchat and Tiktok that appeal to a specific segment keeps emerging. It is an evolving, rapidly growing and fast-paced industry, thus providing plenty of opportunities for rapid advancement. Graduates with five years of work experience in the industry sometimes become thought leaders and influencers.

Content Marketing Institute, International Marketing Association (IMA), Digital Marketing Institute, Association of Digital Marketing Professionals, The Digital Marketing Association, and The Chartered Institute of Marketing (CIM).

Ghana
Advertising Association of Ghana, Chartered Institute of Marketing Ghana

Kenya
Marketing Society of Kenya, Marketing and Social Research Association of Kenya

Nigeria
In Nigeria, these include Advertising Practitioners Council of Nigeria (APCON), National Institute of Marketing of Nigeria (NIMN), and Association of Digital Marketing Professionals (ADMARP).

South Africa
Direct Marketing Association of South Africa (DMASA), Mobile marketing association.

Abasiama Idaresit, Bestie Tamara Atti, Editi Effiong, Rob Stokes (https://www.famousfaces.co.za/artists/rob-stokes/), Yasmina Belahsen, Nunu Ntshingila , Jason Bholanaut, Gary Vaynerchuk, Saoussane Hmidouch, Tanja Lategan. Neil Patel 

Ghana
Edward Asare, Kwabena Agyekum, Abena Nyantakyiwaa Wode Maya, Frank Kwaku Harrison, Adams Awul

Kenya
Priscilla Muhiu, Rajiv Mehta, Rita Kavashe, Terry Anne Chebet, Phil Karanja, Ben Cyco, Alex Chamwada, Ali Mandhry, Ivy Mugo, Kitt Kiarie, Janet Machuka

Nigeria

South Africa
Khosi Sanni, Perry Norgarb, Matalane Ngobeni, Mike Saunders, Dylan Kohlstädt, Josephine Buys, Jeanine Ferreira

The Digital Marketing industry is relatively new. Hence, the bare existence of International and National Agencies responsible for the industry. However, the activity of internet agencies can affect their work.

Ghana
Ministry of Communication

Kenya
Ministry of Information, Communication and Technology

Nigeria
Some of these agencies in Nigeria include:

• National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) 
• Nigerian Communications Commission

South Africa
Advertising Regulatory Board 

International

• Platform providers including; Google, Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Microsoft (Bing). 
• Publishers and owners of media properties.
• Marketing platform providers such as Mailchimp, Hubspot, Termii, Twilo, Infobip.
• Agencies—that serve clients.

Global Employers
Google, Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Microsoft (Bing), Mailchimp, Accenture Interactive, PwC Digital Services, IBM, iX, Dentsu, Adobe, Rise Interactive, 97th Floor, Ignite Visibility, Webi Max, Location3, Madfish Digital, Max Audience, Split Reef, Digivate, Stryde, KoMarketing, Ogilvy, DigitasLBi, and Envol.

African Companies/Startups

Ringier One Africa Media (ROAM), Schibsted, Frontier Digital Ventures, Dragon Fly, ADE Digital, Entwined Media, Belva Digital, Liquorice, Smart Codes, Wineloya, MdConcept, AIM Group, Hello Computer, Digitlab.

Ghana
CliqAfrica, Origin8, Aquity Media, Entamoty Media Ltd, SEO Digital, Blue Impact, Luxxis Communications, BrandNerds Ltd, Wope Digital, Wild Fusion, WineLoya Digital, Focus Agency Ghana, KGL Solution, Apex Advertising, Dewins Media Africa, Digital JB, GHOnline Marketing, Loopsol, AD-Age Concepts, Pivotweb Incorporated, Manifest Multimedia, Hyperlink Promo Ghana, Global Media Alliance, Kava Media, JobHouse Web Services, Ezone57 Digital, ThinkExpand Limited, Gravity Web Solutions 

Kenya
Wild Fusion, Witfair Enterprises ltd, Akus Digital Solution, Grid Branding Solutions Limited, Digilab Marketing Agency, Consumer Options Ltd, The Digital Monkeys Ltd, Oceans Digital Marketing Agency, Mambo Microsystems Limited, Worldwide Digital Marketing Agency Ltd, East Africa Digital Marketers, Inceptor, iDeveloper Technologies, Dotsavvy Limited, Kwetu Marketing Agency, Growthpad Digital Consulting, Agency Africa, Bean Interactive, Trio Digital, Africa 118, Smart Sites, Manta, Thrive Internet Marketing Agency, BraIT Consulting Limited, 3tech Agency, Funnel Boost Media, Hotspec Media, Zo Agency, Pettinsky, Rococo PR & Media, Lilo Social, Charleson, Sino Soft, Madavi Agency.

Nigeria
Anakle, Orange Academy, Wild Fusion, Markova Creative, Caroline Wabara, Tech O’Clock, DMI Agency, Cregital, Intense, Ellae Artistic, CKDigital, Backdesk, KM Consulting, Inspiresia Media, Automatic Pallet Limited, 5 Digital Marketing Agency, Bytesize, Amplify, Wow Effect Communication, Terragon TML, GoDigital Inc, Adhang, Cifwep, Marex Venture, orbhelpers, Brandz Digital Agency Abuja, ARC Digital Marketing, Rage Tech, Lead Web Praxis Media Limited, Nativedge, Adhubbing, Eulahub, Interactive CT, Big Field Digital, Street Toolz, TINC Creative, Acumen Digital, Blueafric Media, Ninville Integrated Services, Digital Square Ltd, Netpreneur, Precise Nigeria, 3rd Floor Digital Marketing Agency, CKDigital, Kong Marketing, Socialander, Kings Elite, WhirlSpot Media, Uppermark Solutions Ltd, Webcoupers Consulting, Adcrip, TopYouGo, Crank Digital Marketing Agency, TAGET Media, Ziza Digital, Giga Lagos Digitals, Gem Boss Digital.

South Africa
BlueMagnet, Modern Day Strategy, Hype Digital, Jives media, Bermont, Web SEO Online, So Interactive, 1st Content Digital, L7 Creative, WFMA Agency, Storyteller, IMS, SEO Studio, SEO Durban, Conversation Science, Spitfire Inbound, Sybergrupe, Magoven Creative Studio, Select Web, Poptag Agency, Social Path, BrandHeart Digital Marketing, Pixel Perfect, Wunderbrand (Pty) Ltd, Cloudfusion, Live Communications, The Delta, Archetype Copywriting, Syte, StratDigi Pty Ltd, TopLine Comms.

Books

1.  eMarketing: The Essential Guide to Marketing in a Digital World by Rob Stokes
2. David Ogilvy; Ogilvy on Advertising and The Confessions of an Advertising Man
3. Seth Godin; Permission Marketing and Purple Cow
4. Crushing It!: How Great Entrepreneurs Build Their Business and Influence-and How You Can, Too by Gary 
5. Digital Marketing Strategy by Simon King
6. Digital Epidemic – Strategic eMarketing Guide to growing your customers in the age of Connected Customers by Adeola Kayode

Events
Social Media Week
Virtual MarTech Summit
Adworld
Festival of Marketing
Brandweek
Content Marketing World
Social Media Marketing Nigeria Conference

Podcasts
The #AskGaryVee Podcast Show
This Old Marketing
Social Business Engine
Duct Tape Marketing
Copyblogger
Social Media Engine

Movies
The Story of Content
Influencer
Mad Men (series)
Thank you for Smoking
Art & Copy

Publications
DigiDay
TheDrum
Neil Patel’s Digital Marketing 
Hubspot Blog
Digital Marketing Institute