Advertising Salary Guide—why commerce jobs are in demand despite a tough economy

This is the first in a recurring series of stories that examine the hottest ad industry jobs and what they’re paying. Looking for a job in advertising that pays well and is in demand? Try a role in commerce. Ad Age searched ad agency and marketing listings in May for commerce jobs in New York across various sites including LinkedIn, ZipRecruiter, Indeed and others. Highlighted below are some of the more senior and interesting roles shops and brands are looking to fill in this area, along with sometimes very broad salary ranges they posted. Note that these listings may have been filled or adjusted since they were posted. Ad Age Agency Report 2023 Revenue, listings and analysis for agencies and agency companies Read more here What are commerce jobs in advertising? Commerce jobs in advertising vary widely and span departments from creative to media and strategy. Essentially, brand-side marketers and agency professionals who hold these roles are charged with converting clicks into sales and tracking purchases across online channels and physical stores. Why are commerce roles in demand? Even at a time when agencies are laying off employees, it appears there are still some protected pockets of specialties, and commerce is one of them. In fact, the tough economy is driving commerce to play an even more important role for agencies as pressure builds on marketers to boost sales across online and offline channels and make customer transactions—no matter where they’re taking place—as seamless as possible. The rise in retail media and social shopping has complicated commerce, adding new layers (and jobs) in pursuit of driving sales. Agencies, as a result, are building out departments and teams dedicated to helping clients navigate the space, while marketers are also looking to poach in-house experts in this area. “We’ve entered a new chapter where brand and business are intertwined, and CMOs are looking for all channels to work harder in building both brand and delivering growth,” said Beth Ann Kaminkow, global CEO of WPP-owned VMLY&R Commerce. “Enabled by the social channels and aided by a surge in retail media, the required creativity to deliver a commerce experience that converts in the moment has placed retail and commerce expertise in high demand, with intimate knowledge of ecosystems a must.” Ian Mackenzie, chief creative officer of creative-data shop Performance Art, said brand leaders are increasingly being scrutinized to prove the performance of their marketing investments, and “commerce is where this proof point becomes real in terms of sales.” What skills are required for commerce roles? Kaminkow said employees need wide-ranging skills because commerce requires an understanding of how everything connects to get customers to buy a product—from the creative messaging, to the media buy, to the data and experience that entices customers to make a purchase. “Those who are able to be brave in their thinking, connecting creativity, culture and technology to deliver on the emotional aspect of commerce, are winning over clients eager to modernize the way they go to market,” she said. Sasha Martens, president of industry headhunting firm Sasha the Mensch, said it’s essential for agency talent, in particular, in this space, to be highly educated on all aspects of the customer’s shopping journey with tangible sales-boosting knowledge. “Agencies are focused on finding people with the sophistication to speak to clients across commerce, social and earned-media areas,” Martens said. “From the creative team, for example, we’re looking for much more than a big idea with a commerce bolt-on,” Mackenzie said. “We’re looking for ideas that are inherently shoppable. From a consumer standpoint, the expectation is to be able to frictionlessly transact anywhere, so we need to help our clients make that happen." As a creative agency, Performance Art is currently “looking to build out key roles with commerce-adjacent skill sets,” Mackenzie said, rather than hire for pure-play commerce roles. “At agencies, creative directors and business strategists who understand the intersection of sales, creative, media and technology are most in demand,” Mackenzie said.More news: Ad industry employment rebounded in April Here are a few areas agencies and brands are looking for talent to be adept in for the open commerce jobs: How much do these commerce roles get paid? Many of the salaries for these positions reflect that demand—several of which are in the six-figure range, according to job openings tracked by Ad Age. Still, salaries vary widely, starting as low as $51,000 a year and going as high as nearly $300,000 a year in Ad Age’s findings. Martens said typically commerce jobs in New York, as is the case with other disciplines, pay about 25% higher than in other areas of the country such as the Midwest. “But there is variance. Generally, compensation tracks with the location and is similar to other roles,” he said. Mackenzie said Performance Art has tried making its salary offers for commerce roles competitive with what consultancies pay in this area. Much depends on the specific role and the company, but here’s a glimpse, thanks to a new law in New York that went into effect Nov. 1, 2022, requiring companies to include good faith pay ranges for all job listings. See all of Ad Age's 2023 Leading Women here Job title: Associate director, commerce, Zenith Salary range: $98,500 - $154,500 a year Publicis Groupe media agency Zenith is looking for an associate director of commerce to lead annual commerce media planning for brand clients, advise clients on retail media budgets and priorities, and develop media strategies across retailer media networks including Walmart and Target’s Roundel, among other responsibilities. The agency is looking for candidates with an understanding of “commerce media tools and partners such as Profitero, Edge, Numerator, Kenshoo and Pacvue” as well as “strong team and client leadership experience.” Benefits: medical coverage, dental, vision, disability, 401k and paid time off. See the job post here. Job title: Media planner, commerce strategy, Zenith Salary range: $51,000 - $73,500 a year Zenith is also looking for an executive to own clients’ e-commerce strategy and activation. The planner will monitor performance of e-commerce campaigns and help “in driving strategic success within the team as well as helping to develop innovative strategies to meet and exceed client business objectives.” Skills desired for this role include: “Strong cross-media planning background; digital planning capability, including retail or Amazon” and “experience with Pacvue, Skai (Kenshoo), Marin, Criteo or other bid management software.” Benefits: medical coverage, dental, vision, disability, 401k and paid time off. See the job post here. Job title: Supervisor, commerce, PubW Salary range: $73,500 - $115,500 a year PubW, Publicis Groupe’s dedicated hub for Walmart’s media and data needs, is looking for a supervisor, commerce to develop “content-to-commerce, social commerce and best-in-class e-commerce media strategies and campaigns.” The executive will maximize the “integration of commerce opportunities across branded content, influencer, affiliate campaign initiatives.” The candidate will need: “Knowledge of key retailers, their ecosystems, and go-to-market strategies” and “performance media planning background; digital planning capability, including retail or Amazon, is a plus.” Benefits: medical coverage, dental, vision, disability, 401k and paid time off. See the job post here. Job title: Global vertical lead, automotive, Wunderman Thompson Salary range: $125,000 - $295,000 WPP creative agency Wunderman Thompson is seeking someone to oversee topline revenue growth for two global automotive clients within its commerce, technology and transformation hub. Responsibilities include developing and managing “strong client relationships at C-level or just below in order to accompany clients through their transformation and make WT Commerce, Technology and Transformation the most trusted strategic partner for our clients.” Wunderman Thompson is ideally looking for a “senior commercial sales leader with proven track record of successfully selling and delivering digital business transformation projects for enterprise clients, resulting in [year-over-year] growth of the portfolio” as well as “a minimum of 10 years of selling, commercial and strategic consulting experience within the digital industry domain.” Benefits: “What we offer full time hires ranges from the full spectrum of group health coverage options (medical, dental, vision) to a generous 401k match (100% dollar-for-dollar match, up to 5% of salary contribution), and a variety of paid time off offerings that reflect our investment in all aspects of your overall life balance and wellness.” See the job post here. Job title: Associate director, commerce strategy, GroupM Nexus Salary range: $75,000 - $180,000 a year WPP’s media investment group, GroupM, recently promoted Samantha Bukowski to lead its Nexus Commerce capability, and now it’s looking for an associate director to unlock new growth opportunities across channels for clients. The ideal candidate will “have an understanding of the capabilities of commerce platforms including retail media networks, adtech partners and data suppliers.” Other skills required for the job include “5+ years of experience in performance media, with a focus on retail media” and “excellent communication and presentation skills, with the ability to effectively communicate complex ideas to clients, leadership and internal stakeholders.” Benefits: “Medical, dental, and vision insurance for employees and dependents” as well as “employee assistance programs focused on mental health.” U.S. benefits for GroupM can be found here. See the job post here. Job title: Senior manager, Amazon Media, Night Market, Horizon Media Salary range: $110,000 - $130,000 a year Horizon Media’s commerce and experience media solutions and products hub, Night Market, is looking to hire a senior manager to specifically “champion the usage of Amazon Marketing Cloud and Amazon DSP Media executions.” This new role for the independent media agency will lead the planning, reporting and activation of clients’ investments via Amazon’s self-service display ad product. “This individual must be deeply familiar with both [Amazon Marketing Cloud and Amazon DSP] execution along with bid and audience strategies.” Other skills for this role include: 12-plus months of “functional [Amazon Marketing Cloud] ownership and executions” and to be “data obsessed.” Benefits: Did not specify in the job post. See the job post here. Job title: Manager, commerce display, Transact Salary range: $85,000 - $100,000 a year Omnicom Group e-commerce specialty agency Transact is looking for a manager to plan, create, optimize and measure programmatic media campaigns for clients across retail platforms including Amazon DSP, Walmart DSP, Kroger Precision Marketing and private marketplace, Target’s Roundel and The Trade Desk. This employee must “remain at the forefront of the retail media industry, helping to define best practices, identify new opportunities and actively contribute to our body of knowledge and expertise across the company.” Skills the agency is looking for include “at least three-five years of programmatic retail media experience across one or more eRetail platforms and DSPs (Amazon, Walmart, TTD, etc.)” and “experience with at least one or more tech providers such as Pacvue, Skai, Helium10, MerchantWords, Jungle Scout, Analytic Index, etc.” Benefits: “health/vision/dental insurance, 401(k), Healthcare Flexible Spending Account, Dependent Care Flexible Spending Account, vacation, sick, personal days, paid parental leave, and paid medical leave, STD/LTD insurance benefits.” See the job post here. Job title: Manager, commerce, analytics, OMD Salary range: $75,000 - $95,000 a year Omnicom media agency OMD is looking to fill a client-facing position on a “large luxury and beauty team” that will be responsible for “building a strong presence and delivering on market share growth across critical digital commerce platforms.” The candidate will use data to analyze and measure search and display advertising performance as well as find “opportunities for media optimization within the search and programmatic channels.” Skills required for the job include: “three-five years of experience in a quantitative data driven field” and “knowledge of digital ad technologies and research techniques (how they work and how to troubleshoot).” Benefits: “health/vision/dental insurance, 401(k), Healthcare Flexible Spending Account, Dependent Care Flexible Spending Account, vacation, sick, personal days, paid parental leave, and paid medical leave, STD/LTD insurance benefits.” See the job post here. Job title: Assistant manager, social commerce, Coty Salary range: $70,000 - $90,000 a year Beauty brand Coty is looking for an assistant manager to lead e-commerce solutions in the U.S. The company said “a fluency in social media platforms is a must” for this role. Some responsibilities of the job include: “Connecting and analyzing the dots between social activity and retailer.com site traffic and sales activity; identifying new areas of e-commerce opportunity; tracking and sharing out brand lift studies to emulate across digital; and leveraging data and measurement to glean insights and constantly optimize, socialize and advocate insights and broader strategy both internally and externally.” Other skills required for the job include: A “proactivity and start-up mindset: ability to move, propose new ideas and take actions before asked; Knowledge in e-commerce, user journeys, social listening and Loyalty (strategy, planning, market and channel analysis); Expertise across various social networks (Instagram, TikTok, Facebook Live, etc); Ability to digest data to develop & execute multi-channel strategies.” Benefits: Coty has a “global omni-working policy [that] provides the option to work up to 50% of your month remotely.” Other benefits were not specified. See the job post here. Job title: Commerce director, Allure Salary range: $115,000 - $145,000 a year Condé Nast-owned Allure is looking to hire a marketing executive to oversee “the overarching commerce strategy for beauty and wellness; driving performance to meet ambitious growth targets.” Among this person’s responsibilities is maximizing “all go-to market commerce activity including newsletter, social media, paid campaigns and events.” Skills required for the job include a “deep understanding of the beauty industry, including editorial, brands and retail” and “5+ years experience in building an ecommerce or affiliate commerce business.” Benefits: Not specified in the job post. See the job post here. Job title: Marketing specialist, e-commerce, EssilorLuxottica Salary: $72,223 a year Italian-French eyewear brand EssilorLuxottica is seeking a specialist to manage the content calendar of the company’s e-commerce websites in North America. The employee will “support cross-functional and cross-category initiatives that support the continued growth and expansion of the online channel, including supporting roadmap projects and conversion optimization tests.” Skills needed for the job include “2+ years’ experience in e-commerce and marketing” as well as “experience in project management methodologies and resource management to ensure project deliverables contribute to business value and meet agreed-upon scope.” Benefits: The company may offer a bonus and/or commission plan on top of the base salary. Other benefits include “PTO, 401K, paid family leave, tuition reimbursement, and eyewear discounts.” See the job post here. Job title: Director, on-demand delivery, The Mars Agency Salary range: $100,000 - $135,000 a year Independent commerce marketing shop The Mars Agency is looking for an “expert on emerging omni-channel selling and marketing platforms – including marketplaces, delivery and pickup enablers, aggregators, D2C operators, shoppable media and net new retailers.” This person will be critical in helping clients go to market with existing retail media platforms such as Instacart, Shipt, GoPuff, Drizly and DoorDash, while identifying and studying new platforms as they emerge. Ideal skills for the job include: “Experience devising shopper marketing, e-commerce and/or media strategies and plans at an agency, CPG brand, retailer, media publisher/company or, even better, an emerging commerce platform like Instacart or Shipt. Five-seven years preferred, but not required,” as well as a “Collaborative team player, but unafraid to challenge peers or clients when necessary in order to achieve the best results for the project.” Benefits: “Comprehensive group health plans, a parental leave program that includes paid maternity and paternity benefits for pregnancy, adoption and surrogacy, flexible paid time off, a broad and confidential employee assistance program, ongoing wellness support initiatives, trusted financial health advice and guidance, promotion of education through tuition support and assistance, and a flexible and supportive work environment and culture.” See the job post here.

Advertising Salary Guide—why commerce jobs are in demand despite a tough economy

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