Building a high performing marketing team or agency starts with hiring the right people.
Marketing leaders must balance in-house and outsourced resources when building their marketing teams, especially for creative and paid media.
When hiring for your performance marketing and paid media team, look for candidates with a deep understanding of PPC, paid media and its role in business growth. They should also be up-to-date on the latest social media trends and platform changes, and have strong creative, strategic, and analytical skills.
Tariq Mohammed, the Founder & CEO of 360 OM, shared his insights on LinkedIn about hiring the best talent and wrote, “I’ve interviewed hundreds of candidates over the years. From my experience, to ensure that you are hiring the right people, consider these six hiring practices.”
- Finding cultural fit is crucial.
- Assess their ability to learn new things.
- Host screener calls to save everybody’s time.
- Seek their journey and story and get insight on their ethics and passion.
- Leverage your team’s networks to find talent from trusted connections.
- Use LinkedIn Sales Navigator for finding talent.
A great hire can transform your team while a poor one can derail it.
6 Essentials to Hire The Right People
Here are the six essential ingredients you need to hire the right person and create a successful paid media team.
Test Cultural Fit
Your team culture is your secret weapon. It’s what drives collaboration, creativity, and innovation. When everyone on the team feels valued, respected, and supported, they’re more likely to do their best work.
To assess cultural fit, look for candidates who share your team’s values and work ethic. During the interview, ask questions about their experience working in a team environment, how they handle conflict, and what motivates them.
Assess Learning Potential
The marketing landscape is constantly changing, so it’s important to hire people who are eager to learn and adapt. Ask candidates about their experience learning new skills and technologies. Look for evidence that they’re curious and self-motivated.
Give them a marketing challenge. Ask them to come up with a marketing plan for a new product or service. Or, ask them to evaluate an existing marketing campaign and suggest ways to improve it. This will give you a chance to see how they think critically about marketing problems and how they come up with solutions.
Screen Candidates Early
Screener calls are a great way to get a quick sense of a candidate’s qualifications and experience before inviting them to a full interview.
During the screener call, ask the candidate to tell you about their background and why they’re interested in the role. You can also ask them a few basic questions about the industry to assess their knowledge.
Learn About Their Story
When you’re interviewing a candidate, take the time to learn about their journey and story. What led them to pursue a career in marketing? What are their passions? What are their goals? This will give you a better sense of who they are as a person and whether they're a good fit for your team.
Ask open-ended questions. Instead of asking yes or no questions, ask, “What led you to pursue a career in marketing?” or “What were the key steps along the way of marketing?” Look for patterns and themes. For example, do they often talk about their desire to help others? Or their passion for creativity? This can give you insights into what’s important to them and what drives them.
Tap into your Network to Find Top Talent
One of the best ways to find top talent is to leverage your team’s networks. Ask your team members if they know anyone who would be a good fit for the role. You can also reach out to people in your industry on LinkedIn and ask for referrals.
Attend industry events and conferences. This is a great way to meet new people and learn about potential candidates. Be sure to exchange contact information with people you meet, and follow up with them afterwards.
Use LinkedIn Sales Navigator to Find Talent
LinkedIn Sales Navigator is a powerful tool for finding and connecting with potential candidates. You can use Sales Navigator to search for candidates based on their skills, experience, and industry. You can also use it to send personalised InMail messages to candidates.
Use advanced search filters. For example, you can filter by job title, company, location, skills, experience level, and more. Also use saved searches with the filters you want so that you can easily run it again in the future. This can save you time and effort, especially if you're regularly sourcing candidates for similar roles.
Here are some additional tips that you may find helpful:
- Use data to inform your hiring decisions. Track your team’s performance over time and identify any areas where they need improvement. This will help you identify the skills and experience you need to look for in new hires.
- Look for candidates with a diverse range of backgrounds and perspectives. A diverse team will bring a wider range of ideas and perspectives to the table, which can lead to more creative and innovative marketing campaigns.
- Invest in your team’s development. Once you’ve hired the right people, it’s important to invest in their development. Provide them with opportunities to learn new skills and technologies, and attend industry events and conferences.
By following these tips, you can build a high-performing marketing team that will help you achieve your business goals.
Need help finding the best paid media agency for your business? Let’s talk.
At 360 OM, we specialise in helping businesses take their marketing efforts to the next level. Our team stays on top of industry trends, makes data-informed decisions to maximise your ROI, and provides full transparency through comprehensive reporting and dashboards.
