Why you should consider a career as a marketing contractor

With so many businesses struggling to find permanent marketing hires, many are instead filling the gaps with temporary hires. The resulting boom in temp marketing roles is a great opportunity for qualified candidates. But, how do you know if marketing contract or temp work is the right career move for you, instead of further permanent work?

Temporary, contract or interim marketing work could be the start of an exciting new phase in your professional life and give you the opportunity to develop an incredible new skill set. Here’s how to decide whether a marketing temp position is right for you:

What are the benefits of marketing temp work?

Taking on a temp role in the marketing sector comes with some huge benefits to your professional growth. Here are some of the highlights:

Gain experience. It gives you the chance to work on interesting and varied contracts, increase your experiences and develop new skills in a relatively short space of time.
Dive straight in. If you’ve been hired for a specific role or project, you’re unlikely to get bogged down in the bureaucracy and office politics that can affect permanent job roles, allowing you to really focus on getting things done.
Make a difference. You’ll have the opportunity to drive change and demonstrate clearly what you’ve achieved by the end of the contract.
Create opportunities. Contracting is a great way to get a “foot in the door” with organisations and sectors you may be interested in. Temporary roles can sometimes lead to permanent offers, and it’s a useful opportunity to test the waters in different sectors.
Control your schedule. You’ll have the flexibility to take time off between contracts – ideal if you have family commitments, study, or a dream holiday planned.
Always learning. The ability to demonstrate your skills in challenging situations with marketing temp work means you’ll soon get used to picking things up quickly and getting to grips with new challenges. This level of initiative, drive, resilience and people skills is highly attractive attributes to employers.

Are there downsides to temporary marketing roles?

Temp positions aren’t for everyone, and to make a fully informed decision you should also consider the downsides that can come with temp work. Here are a few:

Missed opportunities. You’ll need to commit to a marketing temp contract for its duration, so you may miss other contracts or permanent opportunities during this period.
Lack of security. There’s no guarantee of permanent work at the end of the contract, although the experience and skills you’ve gained will always be valuable.
Work gaps. You’ll need to budget for time between contracts – the next role may not begin immediately after the first, so there could be times when you aren’t earning.
Harder to build relationships. You may not feel part of the organisation or social culture the way that permanent staff do.
Minimal perks. In most cases you won’t benefit from the additional employee perks that a business might offer such as healthcare, car leases, pensions or social club initiatives.

How to land your next temporary role

If you’re interested in taking on a temp position in a marketing team, there are a few things you need to make sure you’re showcasing to a potential new employer. Previous experience in marketing temp work isn’t always essential, but a proven track record of completing similar projects is highly valued by employers.

Whether it’s coordinating online marketing campaigns or turning around falling sales, you’ll need to demonstrate proven tangible success in your field to differentiate yourself from the rest of the market.

Showing that you have the capacity to deal with change is also key! Being a temporary worker or interim manager is not easy and you should be comfortable with change and changing environments. Clients pay a premium for flexible staff who can be productive immediately, without losing time on a lengthy learning curve.

Finally, it’s important to showcase a clear outline of your skills and what you can offer an employer. Very rarely is a “jack of all trades” what an employer actually needs. Focus on your skills and finding roles that call for those specific strengths.

Key attributes of a marketing contractor

If you think a temp role could be for you, then there’s a few key attributes that will help you stand out to potential employers.

1. Adaptability and flexibility

Being able to jump head on into new challenges and adapt to different environments quickly is essential. You may be required to perform a task you’re familiar with, but in a completely new way, so be willing to try new things.

2. Ability to work well under pressure

As someone moving from organisation to organisation frequently, you must be able to get new projects off the ground fast and understand that you won’t have time to ‘settle’ into a company. You’ve been brought in to do a job, and chances are you’ll have a tight schedule. You therefore need to thrive when working under pressure and with new people.

3. Strong communication skills

Excellent communication skills are vital for any marketing professional, but you need to be able to adapt yours depending on your environment and audience, which will change with every organisation.

4. Hand-over competence

There may be times when your contract ends before you’ve completed the project you’re handling, so it’s important you’re proficient in handing-over and have a strategy in place that will help the team continue after you depart.