By Nikki Gee, Assistant Manager, Recruit & Hire
The digital marketing industry stands out as one of the most rapidly expanding professional service sectors globally, poised to surge at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 11.1% from 2024 to 2030. As this dynamic field continues to evolve, Europe is gaining prominence as a hotspot for digital talent development and investment.
The European Social Fund Plus (ESF+), with a substantial commitment of nearly $65 billion, aims to fuel digital training initiatives through 2030. Furthermore, programs like the European Skills Agenda and the Pact for Skills have already empowered over two million workers across Europe with advanced digital training.
International companies are turning their gaze towards Europe to harness its growing pool of skilled digital professionals. This endeavor demands a strategic understanding of compensation benchmarking tailored to the landscape of Europe’s digital marketing talent market. After that, it requires a solution that streamlines recruitment and HR processes.
Why benchmarking matters
Compensation benchmarking is essential for international companies seeking to engage top-tier digital marketing talent in Europe. Here’s why:
- Navigating Market Realities: Europe’s digital marketing hubs have diverse salary norms and cost-of-living indices. Benchmarking provides a clearer perspective and deeper understanding of regional market realities, ensuring the total compensation package meets local expectations.
- Aligning Regulatory Frameworks: Europe’s complex and varied labor laws impact salary structuring and benefits. A salary benchmarking exercise provides insights into employer obligations, aligning statutory requirements and regulatory compliance with budgets.
- Attracting and Retaining Talent: Competitive remuneration not only attracts but also retains top digital marketing talent. Reviewing salary benchmarks regularly enables companies to stay competitive and foster a committed workforce.
- Promoting Internal Equity Across Borders: Salary benchmarking promotes internal equity and fairness within an organization. By comparing compensation for similar roles across local industry peers and market standards, you can identify and address potential disparities to foster a transparent and equitable global workforce.
- Balancing Budgetary Constraints: Effective salary benchmarking allows organizations to strike a balance between offering competitive salaries and maintaining financial sustainability. By understanding market norms and cost structures, organizations can optimize resource allocation and assert efficient budget management.
Essential steps to take
Benchmarking is a strategic endeavor that evaluates your organization’s practices, performance and compensation against your competitors. Here are the essential steps for effective benchmarking:
The following is an excerpt from a salary benchmarking report we recently completed on behalf of a multinational client looking to hire digital marketing roles in several key markets of Europe:
| Content Editor | SEO Specialist | UX Designer | |
| Denmark | $53,000 | $57,000 | $70,000 |
| Germany | $64,000 | $61,000 | $80,000 |
| Italy | $48,000 | $53,000 | $64,000 |
| Netherlands | $43,000 | $55,000 | $64,000 |
| Poland | $23,000 | $32,000 | $74,000 |
| Spain | $32,000 | $45,000 | $48,000 |
| Sweden | $36,000 | $57,000 | $45,000 |
The provided ‘benchmark’ figures serve as a reference point for annual salaries/compensation in USD, derived from local market research and recent hiring information sourced from GoGlobal.
Hiring in Europe poses unique challenges for international companies, from navigating disparate regulatory environments to managing payroll and benefits. Europe’s cultural diversity introduces another layer of complexity, emphasizing the importance of sensitivity to local norms and values to cultivate a harmonious work environment.
To tackle these challenges effectively, international companies can leverage a strategic combination of specialized global recruitment services and Employer of Record (EOR) hiring solutions, such as GoGlobal’s one-of-a-kind Recruit & Hire platform.
Here are the key advantages companies gain with this approach:
- Compliance: Companies can be assured that they adhere to local labor laws and regulations, mitigating legal risks and upholding the company’s reputation.
- HR Process Management: A proficient EOR provider can offer full HR support in the preferred or local language. This support includes streamlining payroll, tax contributions, benefits administration and end-to-end HR processes – from recruitment to termination.
- Access to Local Expertise: A qualified EOR facilitates benchmarking, recruitment, interviewing, hiring and headcount management.
- Risk Mitigation: Hiring through an EOR protects both the company and its hired workers by alleviating the risks of labor-related audits, permanent establishment, global tax liability and data breaches.
- Flexibility and Scalability: The EOR model offers flexibility in establishing a presence in Europe without the burden of setting up legal entities or independently managing local HR processes.
Gaining a competitive advantage
Digital marketing expertise is essential for businesses in every industry. However, the global economy faces a grave shortage of digital talent that is projected to leave over 85 million jobs unfilled by 2030, according to the World Economic Forum. The ability to source top professionals in this vibrant field swiftly and across borders offers a significant competitive advantage.
By integrating global recruitment capabilities with EOR hiring, international companies can strategically secure Europe’s top digital marketers – leading to sustained success and growth.
Contact us to learn more about how GoGlobal’s one-of-a-kind Recruit & Hire solution can help drive your remote talent management strategy.