Specialist vs. Generalist

How to figure out where you belong and which route is best for you

Hello!

How are you doing?

In this week’s newsletter, we’re diving into a debate as old as (marketing) time: “Should I be a specialist or a generalist?”

You'll get a mixture of feedback depending on who you ask or what you search online. In marketing circles, it’s seemingly hotly debated; this week, I saw someone accuse generalist marketers of being “lazy” on LinkedIn (although he was another podcaster, so we’ll put that down to sensationalism).

However, try not to take too much stock from people on the internet looking for a following.

Before we dive in though, I want you to read (and then re-read) this:

There is plenty of room and respect for folks who choose either route. There is not, however, enough room in your headspace to worry about choosing a lane right now, and there is absolutely no need to fret about committing to either one or the other (or ever, for that matter).

In my offline experience, the best way to sum up the difference between a generalist and a specialist marketer is to use an analogy…

Are you more Dolly or Bowie?

I don’t need to be in your presence right now to assume you’re thinking one of two things:

• What the hell is she on about?

and

• I thought this was a marketing newsletter?

But bear with me on this - I really do have a valid analogy for you that will hopefully help give you clarity on the generalist vs. specialist debate.

Dolly Parton is a specialist

If you asked the average person to give an example of a country western singer, you’d be hard-pressed to think of anyone but Dolly Parton first.

And rightly so, she wrote ‘Jolene’ and ‘I Will Always Love You’ (yep, that Whitney classic is actually a cover) on the same day.

She’s been active for over 60 years, and won 39 awards in her career, including the coveted Lifetime Achievement Award at the Grammies, yet continues to be belting out songs at the age of 79 years old.

But her whole career has stemmed from one simple fact - she is known for being a country and western singer and, therefore, a specialist.

Sure, our Dolly deviates now and again to flex her pop skills (did anyone else spot the news that she’s going to be featuring on Sabrina Carpenter’s ‘Sweet and Sour’ Deluxe album?)

Yet even on those records, she brings her humble, rich country style because first and foremost, Dolly is the queen of country.

Bowie is a generalist

If you’ve never heard of David Bowie or his music, please take this as a sign to stop reading and get listening.

Bowie, like Dolly, had a decades-long career that spanned 26 studio albums which all explored different genres. By this, I don’t mean he dabbled in pop then punk and back again, his albums spanned disco, pop, punk rock, glam rock, soul, R&B - the list really goes on.

Unlike Dolly who honed her craft in one genre, Bowie explored and mastered multiple genres over his career and has long been heralded as one of the greatest musical innovators of all time.

Though Bowie had a soft spot for one genre - rock - he ultimately was a generalist in that he could apply his musical style and vocals across the broader mix of musical genres.

This is not to say that he is better or more iconic than Dolly, it’s just simply that they both took different lanes; one specialist, the other generalist.

Specialist vs. Generalist: Pros and Cons

When considering your future growth, it’s important to know there are pros and cons to following either direction.

Specialist

Pros:

• Competitive pay and sometimes more so for more technical specialities like SEO and PPC
• Career progression is really clear and finding roles that fit your specialism is easier, with roles including SEO specialist, Head of Digital, or Director of Growth
• On average, stronger job security because your skills are required

Cons:

• By nature of specialising, you limit flexibility outside of your specialism

• People hire you to be a specialist, but if that specialism is no longer required, neither will you be
• You need to keep those skills sharp, so ongoing learning and development are essential and often your responsibility (not your employer’s)

Generalist

Pros:

• You’ll have a broad, varied skillset that allows you to move into different roles and industries
• Due to your varied experience, you’ll be suited for management or leadership roles like Director of Marketing or CMO
• With exposure to lots of elements of the marketing mix, you’ll be adaptable to the changing market if the worst happens (i.e. a global pandemic)

Cons:

• Pay can vary as it’s more about experience, skillset and industry suitability
• It can be harder to stand out (this is when a good portfolio comes in handy)
• Spinning lots of plates requires multi-tasking skills and the adaptability to understand data and metrics at scale

Now you know the pros and cons, your next step is to consider where you fit and what this means for your career.

It’s not how to choose, it’s if

A common question I get from my mentees is “Should I be a specialist or generalist?” What I think a lot of them are hoping for when they ask this is “You should be a specialist” or “You’d be best suited as a generalist.”

The reality is, though, it’s not (and rarely is) that simple.

Being a generalist is always a good start

Looking from the outside in, it can be really easy to say, “I want to be a social media specialist!” But much like a world foods buffet, you don’t know what you’re really going to love until you try a bit of everything.

Therefore, if you’re just starting in marketing or looking for your first role, opt for a generalist role. These will often be something along the lines of “Marketing Assistant” or “Marketing Executive.”

A good entry-level or early-career marketing role should give you exposure to lots of different elements of the marketing mix which, in turn, enriches your career with real-life experience and understanding of the various specialisms you can move into.

However, it’s important when looking for these roles that you do your vetting before applying.

Not all junior marketing roles are what they seem

Before applying for any junior role, look at the job spec closely as this will not only tell you what type of activities you’ll be getting involved in but if it is in fact a sales role dressed up as a marketing one.

The ideal job spec would see you working across the marketing mix, so should include references like:

• “Creating content”
• “Maintaining and updating our website”
• “Running digital and in-person events”
• “Running social channels”
• “Develop marketing and sales collateral”
• “Reporting to the Marketing Manager/Director”

It’s disappointing that we’re still seeing jobs like “marketing assistant” pop up on LinkedIn that are actually just sales roles with a bit of social media chucked in, but the reality is there are two types of employers out there: the ones who want to hire a marketer, and the ones who want to hire someone to “do” their marketing (as part of something else).

What do when you’re ready to specialise

If you’re already a year or two into your marketing role, you may have found something you love and are starting to consider specialising.

If you are, you’ll be like some of the mentees who have asked me two very important questions:

• How do I become a specialist?
• What if I change my mind?

So let’s tackle these two questions head on.

Questioning what you love and where you want to go? Read SWOT yourself better, then How to find and do what you love

How to become a specialist

There is no single route to becoming a specialist as the path comes in many forms: side-stepping or being promoted into a specialist role, learning independently and applying it to your current role, or more commonly, simply moving into a specialist role with a different company or agency.

Now this is very much a personal take, but if you’re looking to specialise, you need to be willing to take a risk and that risk - more often than not - is leaving your current job in favour of working with other specialists.

And while this is my lived experience and opinion, I do have some valid reasons as to why I stand by this point:

1. Some companies simply don’t have the capacity for your growth

What I mean by this is that some companies are not ready or able to offer you the role you want to grow into. Some marketing teams are small or have limited budgets, so if you’re a generalist wanting a specialist role, your manager has to consider two things before offering you that path:

• Does the business have a need for this particular specialism? Having someone full-time on brand for example might be what you want, but not what they need.
• If we lose you in that role, how do we OR can we fill it? And by this I mean do they divest parts of your role to other team members, outsource it, or hire a new person to fill that role?

The reality I’ve personally experienced is that it’s often a no to both questions. Despite how much a manager wants to keep you or how much you want to stay within that team, the reality is that if there’s a glass ceiling, you have two options: let it weigh you down or step aside and move on.

2. ‘You can specialise if you stay!’

Picture this: You ask your manager to make you a specialist, they say yes, and you become the social media manager - that’s great, right?

But 6 months down the line, you’re the only social media manager in the company. In fact, you’re the only specialist. Therefore, despite the new title, you’re still doing things you were responsible for in your old role.

Suddenly, it hits you - they offered you a specialist title, but not a specialist role…

What I mean by this is that sometimes, to keep good people, managers will give you what you want to appease you.

Now, this isn’t to cast dispersions against the manager - they clearly value you as a team member - but the problem is that there’s either noise from higher up adding to your workload or simply that they don’t understand what you’re specialising in which ultimately causes friction for you and your career.

If you’re in this situation, which I’ve seen many good marketers in, it’s time to leave.

3. You can’t learn without space to grow

Now, this is a mixture of the two above. Sometimes, despite having zero capacity to allow you to specialise, they will say yes to keep you, and they might even let you specialise in peace.

But after months or years, you begin to feel stuck. Why? Because you can only learn so much online or at networking events.

Learning hard skills like how to build backlinks, the ins and outs of the dreaded Meta Business Suite, or brand application can all be learned online.

However specialism-specific soft skills that will help you grow in your role are best learnt from the folks who came before you.

In my experience, working in an environment where you can flex your soft skills and learn new ones with a person who has done it before or within a workplace that requires your specialism means there is much more room to grow and learn.

For example, you could move into a specialist team (i.e. a junior SEO manager working under a Head of SEO), work in an agency where you’ll be surrounded by specialists who will teach you the art of client and deadline management, and so on.

What if I change my mind?

When becoming a specialist or leaning into becoming one, there’s something you need to keep in mind: you’re picking a lane, not a junction.

I understand the concern of “well if I choose this path, I’ll stay have to stay on it forever!” but the reality is, you probably won’t have to.

You’re not coming off the motorway completely if you choose to go from Marketing Assistant to PPC Executive. You’re simply switching from one lane to the other, and there’s no reason you couldn’t go from PPC Executive to Social Media Executive in the future, Junior SEO Manager, or just straight-up Marketing Specialist.

No hiring manager worth their weight in gold would dismiss you purely because you took a different lane for a portion of your career and then decided to move back into being a generalist or a different specialism.

In fact, they’d see huge amounts of value in it because you bring a rich understanding of an element of the marketing mix to the table, and all of your other marketing mix skills can be built upon over time.

It’s okay to be more Beyoncé

Okay, I am back at it with the music analogies - but for good reason!

Beyoncé, to us Millennials, was first and foremost a pop icon - you simply need to blast “Single Ladies” at any wedding to see a smattering of millennials shamelessly descend the dance floor like moths to a flame for a moment of nostalgic, pure pop joy as testament to this fact.

But despite specialising in pop for all those years, she has recently generalised.

Her first two parts of her genre-spanning trilogy include a dance album (Renaissance) and a country album (Cowboy Carter), proving that those dulcet tones aren’t just reserved for generation-defining pop hits.

So if you find yourself specialising but missing the variety of a generalist role, it’s okay to move back. Change your mind again? Go back into a specialist role.

(I very much suspect Beyoncé will be returning to pop one day.)

You, your preferences, and your opportunities will change throughout your career. Your sole job is not to pick one or the other but to be in the right roles for you as you grow as a marketer.

What does a specialist or generalist career look like?

Okay, now we’ve looked at the opportunities of being Dolly, Bowie, or Beyoncé, let’s dive into what an ideal specialist or generalist career path could look like.

Or shall I say, one that I asked AI to create (spoiler alert: you’re going to want to read to the end as to why I’ve mentioned I used AI to create this.)

Generalist career path

As mentioned earlier, generalists tend to have an overarching title, ‘Marketing X’, which encompasses the marketing mix.

• Years 0-2: Marketing Coordinator
• Years 2-5: Marketing Manager
• Years 5-8: Senior Marketing Manager
• Years 8-12: Marketing Director
• Years 12+: VP of Marketing or CMO

Specialist career path

For the sake of example, I’ve chosen SEO as a specialist direction for this hypothetical career path.

• Years 0-2: SEO Coordinator
• Years 2-5: SEO Specialist
• Years 5-8: Senior SEO Manager
• Years 8-12: Head of SEO
• Years 12+: Director of Organic Growth or VP of SEO

Now you may be reading this and thinking “oh my god, I’m so behind” or “my career path doesn’t look like that” or “how do I even know I want to be an SEO coordinator!”

I’ve purposely included this ideal list because it’s just that - ideal. Rarely do marketing careers look as clear-cut as this, particularly in marketing.

So to take the pressure off, I’m going to give you my very real, and very candid career path that took me from Wedding Coordinator to my current role of Marketing Director.

An example of a real career path

My path, like many, into marketing, wasn’t as straightforward as ChatGPT would have you think.

1. Year -1: Wedding Coordinator

Also in year -1: Applied and got rejected from 127 jobs. Interviewed for a copywriter role, but lost the role to someone else at the final stage and cried big, ugly tears on a very packed train. 1/10, would not recommend.

2. Year 0-1: Marketing Assistant, Pharmaceutical Company

Also in year 1: Completely uncreative, highly regulated, and super corporate - I felt so out of my depth that I nearly quit marketing altogether.

3. Year 2-5: Sales & Marketing Exec, then Sales Marketing Manager, Food Industry

Also in these years: I learned more than I can sum up in a single newsletter, sharpened my skills, and became the marketer I am today as a result of these roles - but I also cried in the toilets a lot, scrambled to become a specialist in branding, but neither the title nor role ever truly came to fruition.

4. Year 5-6: Marketing Specialist, Airline industry

Also in these years: Dropped the Manager title but got to work within a creative team. Hands down, one of the best experiences of my career. I discovered a love for innovation, design, and the junior designer who, little did I know back then, I would marry this past September.

5. 6 months of year 7: Community Manager, FTC, Creative agency

6. Year 7-9: Head of Marketing, Head of Marketing & Sales, Head of Agency, Digital Agency

Also in these years: A marketing role that went from pure marketing to commercial business leadership. It was fun, I had plenty of exposure, and by going laterally across departments, I set myself up for my next roles…

7. Year 10-Now: Marketing Manager, Director of Marketing, SaaS

If I were to visualise this journey, it’d look less like the straight line that the internet suggests. Instead, it’d be more like an upward arrow with a few kinks and twists in the middle.

But that’s the reality of the average marketing journey - it’s not always as ideal as the internet would have you believe.

So when choosing a generalist or specialist, remember it’s not a career-defining choice. You’ll know when to be more Bowie or Dolly, or whether you want to follow in Beyoncé’s footsteps later down the line.

Or somehow the universe will take matters into its own hands and put you on the path you’re meant to be on.

Have a great week, you’ve got this!

Coral x

Things I am loving or have loved:

Watching: The latest series of ‘Am I Being Unreasonable?’ from Daisy-May Cooper (This Country) and Selin Hisli. Series 1 was possibly some of the best TV I’ve seen in years, and series 2 hasn’t disappointed.

Reading: ‘Start with Why’ by Simon Sinek, partly because it’s an absolute gem, but also partly because I will be writing about it in a few week’s time.

Listening to: The News Agents podcast which helps make sense of things that don’t make sense in the news, like Trump’s general existence.

How would you rate this newsletter?

10/10, needs improvement, or not quite what you hoped for?

You can let me know by leaving me a comment - I’d love to know how I can improve this little corner of the world and make it a great space for you and your growth.

About the author of The Marketing Mentor

Hello! I am Coral, a Marketing Director who’s been in marketing for over 10 years, worked at 7 different companies, in 10 different roles, across 7 different industries.

After experiencing career-defining mentoring myself, I am trying to pay it forward as best I can, from 1-2-1s to this newsletter, and everything in between.

When I’m not in my professional headspace, I enjoy cooking and eating in equal measure, getting creative, being outside, and fussing over my incredibly spoilt dog, Bobbi.

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