How to Hire a Digital Marketer: Roles, Skills Test and Interview Guide
Acrapath Team
A practical guide for founders and marketing leaders on hiring a digital marketer: choosing between generalists and specialists, writing the job description, evaluating portfolios and results, and running a fair practical assignment.
A good digital marketer can become a growth engine for your business. A poor fit can burn budget quickly. This guide explains how to hire a digital marketer who fits your stage, goals and channels.
Start with your goal
Before writing the job description, be clear about the outcome: more qualified leads, online sales at a target return, app installs, brand awareness or organic traffic. The goal determines the skills you need.
Generalist or specialist?
Write a focused job description
Include the business goal, channels the person will own, monthly budget range they will manage, tools you use, who they will work with (designers, writers, agencies) and how success will be measured in the first six months. Specific job descriptions attract candidates who have done similar work.
Evaluate portfolios and results carefully
Marketing results are easy to exaggerate and hard to attribute. Dig into the details.
Use a fair practical assignment
A short assignment shows how a candidate thinks. Good options include:
An audit of your website, ads or social presence with prioritised recommendations
A 90-day channel plan for a given budget
Writing three ad variations and a landing page headline for a product
Keep it to a few hours, avoid asking for work you will use without paying for it, and evaluate with a simple rubric: insight, prioritisation, creativity and clarity.
Interview questions for digital marketers
"Walk me through a campaign that failed. What did you learn?"
"How would you spend our first month's budget, and why?"
"Which metrics would you report to me weekly?"
"How do you decide when to stop a campaign?"
"How do you work with sales or product teams?"
Red flags
Vanity metrics only (followers, impressions) with no business outcomes
No examples of experiments or learning from failure
Unclear about their personal contribution
Hire marketers on Acrapath
Post marketing roles on Acrapath, search marketing professionals in Talbox and manage assignments and interviews in a customisable hiring pipeline. You can start on the free employer plan.
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Frequently asked questions
Should I hire a generalist or specialist digital marketer?
Hire a generalist when marketing is new and you need to test several channels. Hire a specialist when one channel drives most growth or spend is significant enough to need deep optimisation.
How do I verify a digital marketer’s results?
Ask for dated screenshots, the baseline and budget, the candidate’s personal contribution, what did not work, and check with references where possible.
What is a good assignment for digital marketing candidates?
A short audit with prioritised recommendations, a 90-day channel plan for a given budget, or writing ad and landing page copy. Keep it to a few hours.
What skills should a performance marketer have?
Campaign setup and optimisation on major ad platforms, conversion tracking, analytics, budgeting, creative testing and a clear understanding of unit economics.
How can Acrapath help me hire a digital marketer?
Acrapath lets you post marketing roles, search candidates in Talbox and manage assignments and interviews in a hiring pipeline, starting on the free plan.
