You’re underpaid for the marketing work you perform.
That’s the sentiment of marketers surveyed for CMI’s 2025 Career Outlook: Content and Marketing Professionals (registration required).
How much are marketers underpaid? About 20%.
That’s a lot of money, given that the survey finds marketers in the U.S. average $108,380 per year, which is 3% less than the previous year.
So how do you get that 20%? Well, the best advice to get a huge increase like that is to switch jobs. Few companies will pay you 20% more in 2025 than they did in 2024 for the same work.
But that doesn’t mean you must accept what you’re earning now. You can take steps now. How can you ask for and get a realistic increase? Do your research. Prep the case and present it effectively.
Do external research
Just as you do for your content marketing, you should research the marketplace. What do others in similar roles in similar industries earn?
Fortunately, you live in an era of pay transparency laws and a global economy. California, Colorado, Connecticut, Maryland, Nevada, and many cities, including New York City, require companies to publish salary ranges in their job postings. In some cases, big companies now include salary ranges in all their postings, probably to ensure compliance with any potential law.
Search job postings on LinkedIn, industry job boards, and employment sites to learn what compensation is being offered. By using job postings, you can also better understand whether your responsibilities match, or are at least similar to, what the employer is requesting in the job posting.
From here, you can move on to salary benchmark reports. Though more general than individual job postings, they provide some cumulative, credible research.
As mentioned, CMI research finds that the average U.S. marketer earns $108,380 per year. But when configured for major urban centers, such as Boston and San Francisco, and all other locations, the numbers differ. The average rate in major urban centers is $122,265, while other locations have an average pay of $93,737.
When breaking down the salaries into roles, more differences appear. Directors and above earn an average of $146,901, while the average for managers is $102,914, and individual roles earn an average of $89,455.
Another option is to use the salary tool from the recruiting agency Creative Circle. When you select a job title and location, the tool reveals both the average pay and the desired salary, based on what candidates say they want. All the data comes from Creative Circle’s clients and job applicants.
Get ready internally
Of course, arguing you should get a raise because everybody else makes more money won’t get you anywhere.
You must get specific about your work situation and ask these questions:
Is my employer doing well? CMI’s research finds that 33% of marketers say their companies have laid people off in the last year. If that’s you, a raise isn’t likely unless your role has significantly expanded. However, if you’re in the majority that hasn’t seen a layoff, a raise could be possible.
How is content and marketing affecting the business? The bigger the impact of content and marketing on the bottom line, the better case you likely can make for a raise.
With the macro factors identified, you should now reflect on your role and work.
Nikola Baldikov, CEO and founder of Inbound Blogging, says it’s all about showing the difference you’ve made.
Start with clear examples of your achievements backed by measurable results. “These are the kinds of wins that connect your work directly with the company’s success. It’s important to highlight your determination to drive results,” Nikola says.
I suggest every employee create a bullet list. In this document, you paste positive feedback, metrics, and results from your work when you get them. That way, whenever you’re ready to argue for a salary increase (or update your resume), you can pull the most important and relevant bullets into your formal request.
Nikola notes that you shouldn’t forget to look to the future in your plea. Detail the new tools or skills, such as AI, that you’ve learned and show how they can help improve performance and bring more value to your role.
With that external, internal, and personal research, you’re almost ready to make the ask. But it’s helpful if you’ve already executed this next idea.
Build a bench of supporters
Steve Rose, a product manager and former vice president at Intent, offers a tip to help you prepare your case: “Aggressively cultivate your support base. Having someone else advocate for you can go a long way toward demonstrating your value.”
But don’t wait until the last minute. “Build these ties proactively over time,” Steve says. “If they’re comfortable, ask one or two of them to send a statement to your boss about your progress and improvement.”
Or if that seems too daunting, ask people with whom you work to provide recommendations on your LinkedIn profile and pull what you need later for your salary request.
Prepare for the conversation
Don’t make the ask for personal reasons; put the spotlight on the value you’ve added to the business, says Jay Egger, senior manager at SBG Funding.
“Also, understand that often your direct manager isn’t the only one making the decision, so the goal needs to be to make it easier for them to sell the decision,” Jay says.
Even a well-researched request can feel nerve-racking, so rehearse the conversation. “Most people tremble at approaching their boss about a wage boost, says Vaibhav Kakkar, CEO of Digital Web Solutions. He offers this prompt to get you started:
“As you’re aware, I just finished my (X) year with (organization). I am eager to continue working toward the company’s goals in my current position and expand my duties. On that basis, let’s talk about my pay.”
Don’t let the employer make an offer; make a specific request based on your research. Be realistic. If you have the same responsibilities, a 3% raise is typical. “Anything over 5% is remarkable,” Vaibhav says.
If your duties have expanded or the circumstances have changed (e.g., a job with minimal travel becomes a job with 50% travel), a higher rate of 10% to 20% might be possible, he says.
If you retain the same role and responsibilities but your research points to a wide gap between the average standard industry rate and your compensation, plan for a more extensive conversation. The industry gap likely exists for other roles, too. A significant change in your salary likely would lead your employer to need to address other underpaid positions as well.
Just remember not to make the request all about the past or even the current situation. “Share your vision for how you’ll continue to deliver results, whether it’s fresh ideas for campaigns or new ways to take on greater responsibility. Showing that you’re focused on the company’s future is a great way to strengthen your case,” Nikola says.
Also, know that your supervisor is unlikely to approve your request during your initial conversation. They may need to revisit their budget, reflect on what you’ve shared, or have a conversation with their boss.
So, at the end of the conversation, set follow-up expectations, says Adam Crossling, marketing and new business director at Zenzero.
Acknowledge you understand the supervisor likely can’t approve your request right that minute. Then, indicate that you’ll check in a week or two later. It’s one more way you can lead the process rather than take a sit-back-and-hope strategy.
Winning the raise and planning for the alternative
Allison Gagliardi, legal content director at PaperStreet Web Design, has a successful history in asking for salary bumps. At two previous employers, she asked for 10% raises during her annual reviews and got them.
How did she do it? She wrote a letter outlining her compensation request and listed her accomplishments to date in a bullet format. She signed the letter — with an actual pen – and put it in a two-pocket folder. In the other pocket, she included emails/letters from clients and co-workers singing her praises. “It’s proof they just can’t argue with,” Allison says.
Alllison advises all marketers requesting salary increases to have a response ready if the answer is no. Ask for additional paid time off, suggest a bonus for achieving a specific benchmark, get permission to bring a pet into the office on certain days, or ask for a standing desk, an improved title, a continuing education plan, or even control of the AC unit in your department (yes, for real).
Get ready for next time
If you don’t get the raise (or even if you do), Anthony Miyazaki, professor of marketing at Florida International University, offers three things to do (or keep doing) to ask for higher compensation, get promoted, or get hired.
- Ramp up your training in consumer psychology. Understand how and when different types of persuasive appeals will work to nudge an audience in a certain direction.
- Connect your work to marketing key performance indicators. You must understand marketing analytics and their role in determining the value of marketing efforts such as ad campaigns and content creation.
- Combine your knowledge of marketing analytics and your human ability to create persuasive content to present convincing arguments, including compelling data visualizations, to decision-makers.
What do you think? Is now a good time to ask for a raise? How do you persuade your superiors? Let us know on social.
Updated from a November 2022 article.
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Cover image by Joseph Kalinowski/Content Marketing Institute