Canadian Marketing Jobs Outlook | FreshGigs.ca

Canadian Marketing & Creative Jobs Outlook

Despite sluggish economy and shifting life cycles, employment outlook in marketing remains strong.

Here at FreshGigs.ca, we see job postings in marketing, communications and creative industries come through every day! So we remain confident that abundant employment opportunities will be ongoing in our industry.

New opportunities in digital marketing (Internet, mobile, etc.) expected to be the main drivers of job growth and spending in marketing over the next five years.

But we understand how easy it is for job seekers to get sidetracked with doubt.

“Canada’s economy is muddling through the second half of 2012 and into 2013. The weakness has been relatively broad-based across industries, as the struggles of the global economy have hit home,” said Marie-Christine Bernard, Associate Director of Provincial Outlook at the Conference Board of Canada.

Young graduates seem especially hard hit as they come of age in an era of complexity and uncertainty that has delayed or even destroyed the landmarks that once signaled life transitions.

“The linear path from school to career, home ownership, and family has disappeared,” said Ian Bird, President and CEO of Community Foundations of Canada. “We want communities to recognize that this is ‘the new normal.’”

If you are just at the start of your training in marketing and communications, it’s easy to wonder, Is the grass really greener after graduation?

Recent data suggests that there is hope for job seekers in the industry, so our optimism at FreshGigs.ca is well-grounded.

For example, global marketing research firms are growing, as they racked up total revenues of $18.7billion in 2011 — 4.1% higher than the previous year, according to the Honomichl Global Top 25 Report published in AMA’s Marketing News magazine.

The Conference Board estimates current marketing-related employment at nearly 1.1 million jobs in Canada or 6.3% of total employment in the country.

“[This] is good news given the dire economic conditions in many countries,” says Jack Honomichl, founder of the newsletter “Inside Research,” who compiles the annual Honomichl report.

Closer to home, Human Resource and Skills Development Canada projects that the number of job openings will outpace the number of job seekers for sales, marketing and advertising managers, over the 2011-2020 period.

Canada’s transition to a digital marketplace will drive widespread change in marketing and its impact on the economy over the next five years, according to a new report prepared for the Canadian Marketing Association (CMA) by the Conference Board of Canada.

The Conference Board estimates current marketing-related employment at nearly 1.1 million jobs in Canada or 6.3% of total employment in the country. Prospects for the future are bright, with new opportunities in digital marketing (Internet, mobile, etc.) expected to be the main drivers of job growth and spending in marketing over the next five years.

“Marketing will play a critical role in business decision-making over the next five years as new digital tools and techniques come to market that will change the way we communicate with consumers and do business,” noted CMA President and CEO John Gustavson. “The effective use of these techniques will be key to managing brands and winning customers in this evolving environment.”

With 27.4 million Canadians online (representing 80% of the country’s population), the above infographic by 6S Marketing about the State of Canadian Connectedness illustrates the opportunity for marketers in the digital space.