How to write the perfect marketing manager resume in 2023

Tips on how to write an ATS-optimized resume: 

1. Play it safe and stick to Word documents over PDF, unless PDF is listed under “file types.” Plain-text files are also ATS-friendly. 
2. Don’t put important information in headers or footers. This is because ATS is unable to identify the information in the header section of the document. 
3. Avoid using charts and graphs in your resume. Charts and graphs may look nice. But, the ATS can’t identify images. As a result, your resume may become garbled images in the system.
4. Simplicity is key. Stick to a “traditional” resume format. This will help ATS analyze your resume better. 
5. Elevate your resume with keywords. This is because each ATS may analyze your resume differently. Some measure the strength of your skills based on how many times you repeat that skill in your resume. Others count your experience for each skill based on its position in the professional experience section. Thus, restate your skills throughout your resume instead of just one section.

This article talks about three ways to make your resume ATS-compatible.

If keywords are what you’re stuck on, skip to the “Key Skills – The Keyword Extraction Process.” There, I will show you how to extract keywords from job descriptions. I’ll also share a list of keywords that you can add to your resume.

How to implement ATS-friendly tips into your marketing manager resume:

Here is a step-by-step guide on improving various sections of your marketing manager resume. It will help reshape your abilities into winning words on paper. 

1. Contact Information

In this section, make sure to include:

• an active phone number
• frequently-used email
• the location where you would like to conduct your job search.

So, if you’re planning on relocating, make sure to update your location. By doing so, ATS will show your resume when recruiters do location-specific searches.

For example, if you’re looking for jobs in New York, but live in California, use the New York address.

2. Marketing Manager Resume Professional Summary – know your target audience 

Your resume summary is going to be the first thing that the recruiter will read. 

Remember, recruiters skim through hundreds of applications every day. It is vital to treat your employers as potential customers and sell yourself to them.

My favorite way to do this is looking at the company’s “about us” section and mimicking the language in your summary. For example, 

I colored text red that I felt could be applied to any marketing manager. Sure, this sentiment is important to convey. But, see how the “after” statement shows that this marketing manager has these skills rather than saying so.

The new summary is to the point, generates interest, and is targeted towards a company’s values. It states a key accomplishment highlighted in green. It also describes how this person achieved it, instilling context and personality.

Here is how the complete summary section looks like:

After the one-line summary is a headline that includes their biggest technical skills. It is bolded to attract attention.

Next, there are three major accomplishments throughout his/her career. Adding a bolded subject heading here further emphasizes their key abilities.

Finally, I add a skills list. This provides further reassurance to the recruiter about a candidate’s competency.

3. Key Skills – The Keyword Extraction Process for Marketing Manager Resume

In your resume, you need to highlight skills that align with your target job’s description. Thus, ATS will be able to collect your information easily.

Marketing Manager Resume Keywords

Below are some keywords that you should consider putting in your Marketing Manager Resume. Feel free to copy these from a pdf document I have linked here.

How did I get these? By condensing a few marketing management job descriptions into a list of keywords.

For example, here’s a portion of the job description of a Senior Marketing Manager role in Amazon:

What are some of the key skills you can identify here? Here’s what I got:

After this, I like adding the most important skills to a little skills table in the summary. For example, 

Critical Marketing Soft Skills in 2021:

• Creativity
• Leadership abilities
• Marketing/technology platform experience
• Data science background
• Curiosity
• Emotional intelligence/stress management 
• Financial acumen
• Customer obsession 

4. Creating Powerful Accomplishments for a Marketing Manager Resume

Now, let’s discuss phrasing your marketing accomplishments in the professional experience section of your marketing manager resume.

Many writers make the mistake of stating duties. On the other hand, context brings a candidate’s personality into the spotlight. So, if you led a multimillion-dollar marketing campaign and acquired approximately 3000 new customers within a four-month deadline by tapping into new marketing technology and optimizing multi-marketing channels, it shows you’re efficient, strategic, innovative, and profitable all in one go without having to use any of these words.

In other words, show, don’t tell. 

There’s a simple way to do this. Just brainstorm the following:

• marketing challenges you experienced (e.g. building trust with consumers, making full use of data, or generating leads)
• the actions you took to resolve them (e.g. executing a hyper localized marketing strategy or making content more inclusive)
• the effect it had on the company (e.g. improved profitability or increased customers)

Questions to Ask Yourself

If you’re having a hard time brainstorming accomplishments for your marketing manager resume, ask yourself these questions:

• When I first joined the company, what problems was I required to solve? Why did they hire me?
• Did I inherit any ineffective marketing campaigns? If yes, what did I do to optimize the marketing channels in place? What effect did it have on customer acquisition? Or, customer engagement?
• What approach did I use to further gain insight into customer requirements? Did this build customer relationships? If yes, what impact did it have on sales?
• What KPIs was I required to track? Did it represent our whole customer base?
• Did I have a test and learn strategy in place? If yes, what effect did this have on the marketing strategy in place?
• What marketing platforms did I use? How did I ensure the platform aligned with the marketing requirements? Did I tap into other channels? If yes, what impact did it have on the company’s profitability?
• Did I inherit any outdated marketing tools or platforms? If yes, what changes did I make?
• How did I integrate marketing across all channels?
• Did I align our marketing strategy with business growth objectives? How so? What impact did it have?

Asking questions like these will help remember the valuable results you achieved for the company. Moreover, it will show how you won despite facing various challenges and obstacles in your career. Quantify results if you can. This shows that you’re data-driven. 

Here’s an example:

See how I started with the “big win”? Do the same for your resume. It will help draw the reader in.

5. Education & Certifications for Marketing Manager Resume

You need to have the right credentials to advance your career in the marketing industry. It’s preferable to have a Master’s degree in Marketing, Business, Advertising, or any other related field. Also, it is best to have 7+ years of experience for a manager-level role.

It’s also important to take data science courses and marketing certifications. A marketing certificate can be beneficial for formal training in marketing skills. These include the following:

It also helps familiarize you with marketing tools. These include social media platforms, Google Ads, Hootsuite, HubSpot, and other web analytics tools. 

Here’s a list below of some of the most important marketing certifications to have. Most of them are related to digital marketing:

• Google Analytics Individual Qualification
• Google Ads Certification
• HubSpot Email Marketing Certification
• Facebook Blueprint
• HubSpot Content Marketing Certification
• Twitter Flight School
• HubSpot Inbound Certification
• Hootsuite Social Marketing Certification

Besides, the American Marketing Association (AMA) is one of the most known marketing organizations in the country. The certification program consists of 4 courses. These include Digital Marketing, Marketing Management, Sales Management, and Content Marketing. All courses begin with a summary of the skills needed for the certification and a free practice exam.

So, if you are lacking in education, consider signing up for the certifications above. After that, add them to your resume with a tentative date of completion, like so:

Google Ads Certification, Expected June 2021
BA in Marketing, University of California, Los Angeles, 2015

This helps you get keywords into your resume. It also shows readers that you’re always willing to learn and grow.

Conclusion

In addition to the above-mentioned points, it is important to format a resume correctly. This will build further trust between you and the recruiter. To do so, use the following:

• • Correct grammar

• • Acronyms and abbreviations

• • Active voice

Moreover, use short sentences, bullets, and lots of white space in your resume. As a result, even the skimmers will slow down. It will also help them digest the information on your resume.

Furthermore, your marketing manager resume shouldn’t be longer than two pages in length.

Looking for something other than a marketing manager resume? Check these out:

1. 1. How to write a marketing director resume

1. 1. Marketing Executive Resume 

1. 1. Masters of Business Administration (MBA) Resume

Need help with your resume? Work with an expert marketing resume writer to build an ATS-optimized resume that actually gets interviews. Use this link to schedule a call with me—I’d be happy to help you brainstorm ideas for your resume.