Sales & Marketing Market Insights Q3 2017

Q2 2017 has seen an optimistic hiring trend for Sales & Marketing talent across financial organisations, professional services and other corporates, as well as digital and online businesses in Singapore.

Banks and financial firms: It's all about giving back to the customer

In the second quarter of 2017, we saw an upward hiring trend for Marketing and Marketing-related professionals, especially those with Digital expertise, across banking and financial firms. These firms have been putting a focus on customer acquisition and engagement, and Digital professionals were largely in demand to make this transformational impact. 

Demand for Business Development & Sales professionals within financial and professional services has remained consistent since the last few quarters, though in Q2 the market seemed to be saturated with these professionals.

Unwavering demand for Digital talent across various businesses

In the second quarter of 2017, professionals skilled in Digital areas that revolve around content marketing, performance marketing, video marketing, and e-Commerce transformation continued to be desirable for many employers.

Retail continued to flourish in emerging markets

We continued seeing the ongoing trend of retail expansion into emerging markets such as Vietnam, Thailand and Indonesia as we cruise through the first half of the year up until the second quarter.

Along with this trend, there has been an accompanying demand for experienced Sales & Marketing professionals at the senior to management levels to drive business growth.

Online & Digital businesses: Higher level and strategic roles were in demand

Singapore’s digital business landscape continued to show greater complexity in Q2, as business models were growing geographically and across product verticals. We saw companies hiring people who were new to the business and market.

There was also the trend whereby high growth companies were moving towards scaling up their business and looking to put an overarching growth strategy in place.

Demand for strong talent to support business growth ensued, particularly for Business Development, Marketing, and Strategic Sales professionals. These were people who had responsibilities that could include helping firms through vertical expansions, strengthening internal capabilities, and specifically building up B2B business models.

Surge of B2B in the Online & Digital space

Throughout Q2 2017, we have seen an industry-agnostic emergence of the B2B business model in the Online & Digital space, which was largely due to recurring and more stable revenues that this business model could bring. 

This surge in B2B growth demanded account-based marketing expertise. 

Positive Q3 outlook for Sales & Marketing professionals

In Q3 2017, we foresee a further increase in demand for Sales & Marketing talent in Financial & Professional Services. There will be hot opportunities for talent from various industries who are open to making a career move to work with financial or professional services firms.

We expect to continue seeing the demand for professionals specialised in content marketing strategy and execution, especially in areas of social and mobile. There will also be a continued demand for SEO experts along with the growth in content marketing.

Plenty of talent demand in the Online & Digital space

Across Online & Digital companies, job seekers who have sales floor experience and have moved into a marketing position will be in-demand talent.

Employers will also seek professionals who can grow the business and strengthen branding by creating marketing partnerships across retail, travel and banks. These professionals will be those who have the ability to broker negotiations whilst being hands-on with online paid media campaigns.  

In the months ahead, we expect to see Online & Digital businesses continuing to demand these professionals, along with a higher volume of replacement hires.

Sales & Marketing 
Salary Report for Q3 2017*

*Notes about salary table:

1. Titles and levels vary from organisation to organisation.

2. The salary ranges given are only approximate guides. For tailored salary advice, please contact us directly.

3. 12-month base salaries are assumed.

4. All other benefits and bonuses are in addition to these figures.

5. Bonus ranges can vary significantly from company to company and will be influenced by market conditions, business and individual performances. Bonus ranges from 1 month at the low end to 100%+ at the upper.

6. Holiday entitlements range from 12– 25 days with senior executives not usually receiving less than 18 days. Less than 15 is very rare and 20 days is becoming the norm.

7. Healthcare policies are standard.

8. Pension plans vary with some companies offering greater than the standard contribution. Top up schemes can increase employer contribution levels as much as 15–20% of the base salary for senior executives.