Generalist vs. Specialist Marketers
Livilla M.
Account Director | Omnichannel Marketing Expert | Media Buying Specialist | Driving High-Impact Campaigns for Luxury Brands
As I reflect on the past year at Nadine- Claire , I find that businesses often grapple with one fundamental question: should they hire a generalist marketer or a specialist marketer? And this is informed by the brand and social media strategy that has worked for a variety of clients on the luxury and FMCG space this year.
While both roles have their advantages, the choice often depends on your business’s stage, goals, and resources. To make the right call, it’s essential to understand what these roles entail and how they’ve evolved in the marketing space. So, let's start from the recent past.
Context of the Generalist Role in Marketing:
The concept of the generalist marketer arose alongside the growth of startups and lean businesses in the early 2010s. With limited budgets and small teams, startups needed versatile professionals who could juggle multiple marketing tasks without the need to hire large, specialized teams.
Generalists became the go-to solution, especially as digital marketing evolved, requiring flexibility and adaptability to rapidly changing tools and platforms.
Context of the Specialist Role in Marketing:
As marketing channels and tools became more sophisticated, businesses began to realize the value of having experts who could focus deeply on one area. This trend gained momentum in the mid-2000s when companies started scaling operations, requiring dedicated skills to stay competitive. For instance, the rise of Google and the proliferation of social media platforms created entire subfields like search engine marketing (SEM) and social media advertising.
How These Roles Fit into Modern Marketing
The generalist vs. specialist debate stems from the shift in marketing trends over the last two decades. Early marketing roles were largely generalist by default, as marketers were expected to wear multiple hats. However, as technology advanced, the explosion of tools, platforms, and strategies created niches that required dedicated expertise, giving rise to specialists.
Today, most businesses recognize that the two roles aren’t mutually exclusive but rather complementary. Generalists are often tasked with strategy and coordination, ensuring all efforts align, while specialists drive technical execution in their respective domains.
I'll share their pros and cons tomorrow. As well as, how to decide which one is right for you later this week.
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