Advertising salary guide—why design jobs are in demand

This is part of a recurring series of stories that examine the hottest ad industry jobs and what they’re paying. Design positions are proving to be resilient in a tough economy, offering job opportunities in an otherwise stagnant hiring market. Ad Age searched ad agency and marketing listings in March for design 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 some of these listings may have been filled or adjusted since they were posted, and Ad Age has not detailed the benefits offered with each role. Ad Age Salary Guide The hottest ad industry jobs and what they’re paying Read more here What are design jobs in the ad industry? Advertising or marketing designers generally craft the overall design of a brand or campaign, working to elevate a company or boost awareness of a new product launch through various visual elements. Designers can work in-house at a brand, an ad agency or a design firm. Jobs include graphic designer, a VP of design or design director, which is equivalent to a creative director or executive creative director on the advertising side. If they work for an agency, designers may be tasked with crafting that shop’s own identity and materials for new business pitches and other internal matters. Digital firms are also helping clients launch new digital products and are hiring designers to help bring those ideas and services to life. Brands look to these professionals to craft a cohesive design across all channels where they show up. Tech companies and other brands are also hiring designers to craft user experiences across platforms and websites. “Design is so many different things within agencies,” said Owen Williams, founder and managing partner of ad recruiting firm Outside Lines. “In most, it is an afterthought to make the deck beautiful or comp up others’ ideas. In some cases, it is a core tenet of the agency's brand and is involved in projects from start to finish. In both cases, I think you can see it in the finished product.” Also read: Designers break down the Clippers’ rebrand Why are design jobs in demand? Design continues to be in demand despite declines elsewhere in the industry, including in creative advertising. The craft is a bright spot in a shaky environment where employment in advertising, public relations and related services fell slightly in February for the first time since last spring. Proof of that demand can be seen in hot creative shop Gut opening a design practice earlier this month and Accenture Song buying Work & Co in January, in part because of its digital design chops. Much of the reason is because design is central to marketing in all its forms. “Design and advertising are a bit of a different beast,” Williams said. “The majority of ads have a shelf life, and great design is timeless. I had a client at a well-known design studio put it to me this way last year. A Super Bowl ad is like an amazing piece of cheesecake, and every CMO wants one, but too much cheesecake is a bad thing. A great brand design package is like a cupboard, it has rice, pasta, beans, sauce and other ingredients that can be mixed together to sustain life for an extended period of time.” Serena Wolf, founder and recruiting partner of industry headhunting firm Wolf Creative, said design has “always been integral in the agency world.” She said agencies are increasingly tasked with giving their clients a “full 360” service so they have to “look at the actual design [of the brand] and really look at your logo. They need those designers who’ve got that skill,” Wolf said. Read more: Why Gut is opening a design practice What skills are required for design roles? Wolf said advertisers tend to favor designers who went to traditional design schools like the Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD) and ArtCenter College of Design. “There are great design schools all across the country,” she said. “That’s where you get the foundation. You learn the craft. So many people get jobs pretty quickly from those schools.” Also read: Why ad agencies are still relying on portfolio schools Williams said designers usually need a degree “and a portfolio that shows a mix of traditional design work and increasingly more knowledge of motion and animation.” Here are a few areas agencies and brands are looking for talent to be adept in for the open design jobs: How much do these jobs pay? Although design is in demand, professionals in this area typically get paid slightly less than those in the creative advertising sector. “Design can be paid on par with creative in some cases, but in most cases they are paid more in line with a strategist than a top creative,” Williams said. Wolf said design directors typically don’t get paid more than $200,000 a year, while creative directors, depending on the level, can get paid up to $250,000 a year. She said it’s odd because jobs for traditional big-brand advertising, which is not as much in demand anymore, are still priced higher. “It’s kind of ridiculous,” Wolf said. Employers are “not putting a premium on design as much as the big sexy TV stuff. The salaries are still antiquated.” Check out our LinkedIn newsletter here That’s at least true for marketers and agencies; tech companies do tend to pay higher salaries. To that end, Google Ads has a job open for an interaction designer on its Seller Experiences team and is offering up to $252,000 a year. Work & Co also seems to be offering a competitive salary, with an open position for a design director listing a salary range of between $175,000 and $225,000 a year. Ad Age’s search found some healthcare agencies paying robust salaries to senior-level designers, ranging between $120,000 to just under $185,000 a year. Asked whether designers are making more in New York than elsewhere in the country, Wolf said senior employees might get a slight boost, but “anything from junior to mid to senior [level employee jobs], it’s all the same.” Much depends on the specific role and the company, but here’s a glimpse, thanks to a law in New York that went into effect Nov. 1, 2022 requiring companies to include good faith pay ranges for all job listings. Check out the latest rebrand and design stories Job title: Interaction designer, Google Ads Salary range: $164,000 - $252,000 a year Google Ads is looking for an interactive designer to create user experiences. This person will “influence stakeholders across functions to gain support for design strategies; drive the development of innovative design solutions to user, product, and business problems;” and “provide direction to [user experience] designers in creating design concepts for product ideation and/or user research/testing,” per the job listing. Skills desired for this role include: A Bachelor’s degree in design; human-computer interaction or another related field; at least eight years of experience in product design or user experience; and “experience designing across multiple platforms.” See the job post here. Job title: Designer, Passport Brand Design Salary range: $45,000 - $90,000 a year Advertising agency Passport Brand Design, which was acquired by WPP in 2022, is looking for a designer to create materials across various media channels including websites, social media and mobile apps. The person will be “responsible for taking the lead and driving projects from an execution standpoint, and must have solid design and software knowledge,” per the job listing. The designer will lead and drive projects from an execution standpoint. Skills desired for this role include: “Must have solid design and software knowledge; solid concepting and design chops, plus interactive know-how which you can utilize on a large client in the nicotine category”; and “visual communication skills that will knock our socks off, including: graphic design, event activation experience and typography.” See the job post here. Job title: Designer, Meta Salary range: $94,000 a year Meta is looking to hire a designer across its apps including Instagram and Facebook. This person will work with the company’s marketing, product design, research and brand design teams to “create brand systems, behaviors and design solutions with a high level of craft,” per the job listing. Skills desired for this role include: A “history of working on integrated projects and a comfort zone in various media touch points." The listing says "a knack for crafting meticulous design systems is vital,” as well as “an effective strategic acumen for building timeless brands.” See the job post here. Job title: Graphic designer, print and social media marketing, Media Explode Salary range: $20 - $30 an hour Ad agency Media Explore is looking to hire a graphic designer to work with its marketing team to “develop and execute creative design solutions for print and social media campaigns,” per the job post. This person will “design and produce marketing materials including flyers, brochures, business cards and social media graphics.” Skills desired for this role include: At least three years of graphic design experience; proficiency in the Adobe Creative Suite and Canva; and experience creating designs for print and social media marketing. See the job post here. Job title: Design director, Work & Co Salary range: $175,000 - $225,000 a year Work & Co is looking to hire a design director to make “great digital products—that’s all we care about,” per the job listing. This person will work on “initial concepts, prototypes and detailed designs informed by user research, marketplace and behavior trends and your best ideas,” through to every part of the product phase, “from strategy to launch to optimization.” Skills desired for this role include: “Proven ability to propose creative concepts during initial project phases and the ability to deliver on those ideas and the ideas of others through detailed design; proven ability to solve complex [user experience] problems and the product strategy skills to deliver best-in-class visual design solutions”; and “experience working in a highly iterative, collaborative environment where people share work daily.” See the job post here. Job title: Senior designer, Work & Co Salary range: $90,000 - $125,000 a year Work & Co is also looking for a senior designer to “create original digital products and services that reignite industries and reshape companies,” per the job listing. The job posting for senior designer was similar to the one posted for the design director, in that it called for someone who will “stay 100% focused on making great digital products--that’s all we care about” and work “from concept through delivery.” Skills desired for this role include: The “ability and desire to solve complex product design problems and the strategy skills to deliver best-in-class solutions; impeccable execution and care for all aspects of design, from conceptual thinking to motion and visual design"; and “demonstrated ability to synthesize and present findings and articulate design rationale.” See the job post here. Job title: VP, design director, TBWA\WorldHealth Salary range: $171,000 - $184,500 a year TBWA\WorldHealth, part of Omnicom Health Group, is hiring a VP, design director. The agency is looking for someone who is “caught up on the latest trends and you use them to help design work that stands out from all the rest,” per the job listing. “You are equally comfortable as an individual contributor as you are a partner, working closely with creative leads to bring award- winning design to award-winning ideas.” Skills desired for this role include: Successful candidates will be “knowledgeable on the latest design trends across all medium and platforms” and “adept at turning data into branding materials.” The listing also specifies it is seeking “a digital-first designer who understands different medium and platforms.” See the job post here. Job title: Designer, McKinney Health Salary range: $50,000 - $65,000 a year McKinney Health is searching for a designer to “produce creative and effective presentations and other marketing materials for the agency, prospects and clients,” per the job listing. This person will “create presentation artwork including data visualizations, iconography and infographics.” Skills desired for this role include: “A high standard of creative work that is award-winning, applauded by the industry and appreciated by existing clients and new business prospects; [the ability to] work well under pressure, be attentive to detail, have excellent time management and communication skills.” McKinney Health seeks up to three years of experience for the role. See the job post here. Job title: Product design lead, McCann Health Salary range: $124,000 - $171,000 Interpublic Group of Cos.’ McCann Health is looking for a product design lead to “manage and mentor other product designers across several projects and be hands-on with pixel-perfect [user interface] work on their own projects,” per the job listing. This person will “know how to work at a high level within all aspects of product design, including interaction design, visual design, motion design and prototyping.” Skills desired for this role include: A “high level of visual design ability, and [a person who] can lead product designers in the creation of digital products like websites, interactive presentations and touchscreen experiences for our major health care clients; a strong design portfolio showing examples of visual design and digital art direction that is pixel perfect”; and “experience in the healthcare industry, preferably in the design of deliverables for branded products.” See the job post here. Job title: Product design lead, FCB Health New York Salary range: $120,000 - $150,000 a year FCB Health New York, another IPG health care agency, is looking for a product design lead. This person will work across product design spanning “interaction design, visual design, motion design, wireframing and prototyping,” per the job listing. The person will “work closely with creative, strategy, production, technology, et al; so that the end digital product truly exceeds both the users’ needs and the requirements of the business.” Skills desired for this role include: At least six years of experience in “user-centric product design; a strong portfolio showing examples of visual design and digital art direction that is pixel perfect;” and candidates must be expert in tools including Sketch, Principle, Adobe XD, Photoshop, Illustrator or similar. See the job post here. See all of the Healthcare Marketing Impact Awards winners here Job title: Associate design director, IPG Mediabrands Salary range: $110,000 - $120,000 a year IPG Mediabrands is looking for an associate design director to act as “the brand gatekeeper, responsible for knowing our look inside and out while ensuring that all assets you create are of the highest quality and look pixel perfect,” per the job listing. This person should be able to “professionally defend your creative ideas in a room while bringing your peers and senior leaders along with you in the design journey.” Skills desired for this role include: “Animation skills are a huge plus; understanding of information design and usability principles; relentless eye for detail,” and the “ability to travel up to 20%.” See the job post here. Job title: Senior designer, Publicis Groupe Salary range: $73,500 - $123,500 a year Publicis Groupe is looking for a senior designer to “help build and shape brands to become utterly distinctive and deeply embedded in modern culture,” per the job listing. This person will report to the design director to “create original design solutions at a project level.” Skills desired for this role include: At least six years of design experience; experience working in teams.” Candidates must have the “ability to deliver concept-driven design” and have “a commitment to and eye for craft.” See the job post here. Job title: Marketing graphic designer, wholesale apparel, Premier Brands Group Holding Salary range: $70,000 - $85,000 a year Premier Brands Group, owner of apparel and jewelry brands such as One Jeanswear Group and The Jewelry Group, is seeking a marketing graphic designer to create seasonal marketing across in-store signage, social media and digital marketing. This person will “develop a range of creative ideas and executions that support creative projects and be able to effectively collaborate with creative partners” including copywriters and content coordinators, per the job listing. The candidate will “create unexpected ideas/executions with solid design direction all the way through production.” Skills desired for this role include: At least five years of industry experience; “hands-on production experience with print, video and digital channels/platforms”; and a “proven ability to provide and take effective direction.” See the job post here. Job title: Senior design lead, presentation focus, Horizon Media Salary range: $80,000 - $95,000 a year Independent media agency Horizon Media is looking for a senior design lead to create presentations for new business, existing clients and internal initiatives. This person will “build templates, layouts, graphic content and develop and/or curate imagery, social media and device mock-ups, data visualization, charts, infographics, illustrations and iconography to support key messages for each deliverable,” per the job listing. Skills desired for this role include: At least five years of design experience, preferably with an agency; “advanced expertise in PowerPoint, as well as robust working knowledge of Adobe Creative Suite.” The listing reads, “Though your design skills should be razor sharp, you will also be asked to bring strategic thinking and curiosity.” See the job post here. Job title: Junior designer and writer, Bandujo Salary range: $60,000 - $75,000 a year Digital advertising agency Bandujo is hiring an entry-level designer “who has the unique talent to come up with the perfect combination of words and layout for a marketing campaign,” per the job post. This person will be “writing and designing across a range of digital media, including social, email and landing pages and traditional media, such as television and outdoor.” Skills desired for this role include: “A solid knowledge of Sketch and the Adobe Creative Suite; video and basic front-end development expertise are a plus”; and candidates will be required to come into the office a minimum of three days—ideally four days—a week. See the job post here. Job title: Senior graphic designer, Saks Fifth Avenue Salary range: $80,000 - $90,000 a year Luxury department store Saks Fifth Avenue is seeking a graphic designer to work with its creative and marketing teams “to create innovative designs and compelling stories in line with each season's inspiration and campaign,” per the job listing. This person will work independently or collaboratively, depending on the need. Responsibilities will span “typography, graphic design, illustration, photography and animation.” Skills desired for this role include: A Bachelor’s degree in graphic design or another equivalent degree; at least five years of graphic design experience “in a branded content, agency, editorial or marketing environment creating and launching campaign content; strong conceptual abilities; a sophisticated sense of color and layout with an eye for cropping/selecting photography,” and a “full understanding of digital platforms to ensure all electronic files are built responsibly.” See the job post here. Job title: Senior graphic designer, Authentic Brand Group Salary range: $90,000 - $100,000 a year Authentic Brand Group, a portfolio company of various apparel brands including Forever 21 and Sperry, is also looking for a senior graphic designer. This person will design marketing materials across all lifestyle brands, which will help sell and pitch those brands, per the job listing. The person will “foster positive relationships between creative teams and other departments with a high degree of collaboration, including helping the business team develop appropriate collateral and sales marketing materials.” Skills desired for this role include: A Bachelor’s degree in fine arts, graphic design, visual communications or something similar; at least eight years of experience “demonstrating strong creative and art direction skills across disciplines”; and the ability to write copy and develop stories for various brands. See the job post here. Job title: Marketing/graphic designer, Cad Blu Salary range: $45,000 - $70,000 a year 3D printing company Cad Blu is looking for a marketing/graphic designer to create marketing plans alongside company leadership. Responsibilities include developing and preparing “marketing materials and presentations and help in coordinating trade shows.” Cad Blu also seeks someone who can update and edit the company’s website and handle certain social media duties, per the listing. Skills desired for this role include at least five years of marketing and graphic design experience; experience using Adobe Creative Cloud; and “a proactive self-starter who pays close attention to detail, be deadline and detail-oriented, creative and organized.” See the job post here. Job title: Senior manager, product design, eBay Salary range: $168,400 - $262,900 a year EBay is looking for a senior manager, product design on its Seller Advertising Experience team “to improve the end-to-end advertising experience for eBay sellers,” per the job listing. This person will “build user-centered designs that solve for customer needs, deliver on business requirements, account for technical feasibility and leverage future trends.” Skills desired for this role include: A degree in interaction design, industrial design, graphic design, visual communications or something equivalent; at least 10 years of product design experience and at least five years of experience leading product designers; and an “outstanding portfolio demonstrating a broad range of product design work across web-based applications, consumer experiences and mobile devices.” See the job post here. Job title: Senior digital designer, Ralph Lauren Salary range: $80,000 - $171,000 a year Ralph Lauren is looking for a senior digital designer to create digital experiences across its fashion brands including Polo, Collection, Purple Label and Home. This person will work with design and marketing teams to “bring to life seasonal campaigns as well as wholesale dedicated campaigns, which fuse elevated storytelling with best-in-class digital commerce,” per the job listing. The person will also work with external ad agencies and other partners “to identify design opportunities and challenges for each brief.” A Bachelor’s degree in design or similar is preferred and at least five years of digital experience. Candidates must be skilled in Adobe Creative Suite, Sketch and Photoshop; and the company seeks “strong experience as design lead for interactive content experiences.” See the job post here. Job title: Digital associate creative director/product design lead, Hudson Rouge Salary range: $75,000 - $180,000 a year Luxury marketing boutique shop Hudson Rouge is looking to hire a digital associate creative director/product design lead to “design beautiful experiences and then create the functional requirements for development,” per the job listing. This person will collaborate across departments, work on new business pitches and “be responsible for ideas and creative work, and competently present pitches.” Skills desired for this role include: “Extensive experience executing against digital product design best practices—agile methodology, technical development, emerging web technologies, accessibility, user pathing, etc; expert knowledge of industry standard software/tools,” including Figma and Sketch; and “some familiarity with common coding languages.” See the job post here

Advertising salary guide—why design jobs are in demand

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