My hot take on the challenges and opportunities
After seven years at EMR, working with some of the best-loved consumer brands, I’ve seen first-hand just how fast digital marketing has gone from a “nice-to-have” to the growth engine of modern business.
That shift is exactly why I joined TalentPool: to build and lead a specialist digital marketing practice. Here, I get to do what I love most, partnering closely with clients, cutting through a crowded market, and connecting them with the very best passive talent.
The market
Demand for digital talent is intense:
- Two-thirds of UK employers plan to hire digital marketers in the second half of 2025.
- Salaries are climbing 12–18% year-on-year, proof of businesses needing to go above the industry average to secure talent.
- FMCG e-commerce is expected to reach 9% of total category sales by 2025, the highest penetration in Western Europe.
In short: demand is exploding but supply can’t keep up.
The challenges
Across the board, clients keep telling me the same things:
- Widening skills gaps in performance marketing, SEO, CRM, and analytics.
- Multiple offers for top candidates, making attraction and retention a real battle.
- Rising salary inflation as businesses chase the same shallow pool of talent.
The opportunities
Yes, the competition is tough. But the opportunity is bigger and smart digital hires can unlock outsized value; driving growth, strengthening customer loyalty, and future-proofing strategies.
The businesses that win will be the ones that:
- Invest early in Digital talent!
- Think strategically about hiring, not reactively.
- Build teams with the right people, not just those who are available and applied to an advert.
Where we can help
Here at TalentPool, we focus on mid–senior digital roles, including:
- Performance Marketing: PPC, Paid Social, Programmatic, Performance Leads
- Digital: Marketing Managers, Automation, Digital Directors
- Content & Social: Content Managers, Social Media, Influencer Specialists
- E-commerce & Marketplace: E-commerce Managers, Amazon/Marketplace Experts
- CRM & Growth: CRM Managers, Retention Specialists, Growth & Lifecycle Marketing Leads
We combine deep market insight with a strong passive network to help clients hire talent that sticks and scales.
My final thoughts
Digital isn’t “just a channel” it’s the engine room of sustainable growth. The winners will be those who treat digital hiring as a strategic priority, not an afterthought. I’m super excited to lead The TalentPool’s digital team and to partner with forward-thinking clients ready to build the teams that will take them there.
If you are a client or a candidate working in the above digital functions, then feel free to reach out to me on: Rebekah@talentpoolcompany.com