Ecommerce Manager Salary & Jobs Guide 2020
Predictions about the expansion of ecommerce have come true and the numbers are exceeding new predictions monthly and even weekly. With this growth comes a growth in the number of ecommerce managers worldwide, as well as in the average ecommerce manager salary. In other words, this is a great time to be or become an ecommerce manager.
In order to keep you in the loop, we’ve put together this ecommerce manager salary guide for 2020. It’s meant to help you whether you’re looking for a new position in ecommerce management, considering moving into ecommerce from a different industry, or looking to hire a new ecommerce manager. No matter why you’re here, you’ll find actionable ecommerce manager salary information and information on factors affecting ecommerce job salaries.
Special Announcement for Ecomm Managers!
To help generate data for future ecommerce salary reports, please take 1 minute to participate in The Ecomm Manager Salary Survey for 2021.
That helps provide an authentic insight into ecommerce manager salaries based on experience, location, job title, and type of employment — having this information will help us all negotiate fair salaries and understand what if we’re being paid what we’re worth.
Thanks in advance!
What Does an Ecommerce Manager Do?
Companies define ecommerce manager roles differently. An ecommerce manager may oversee all ecommerce operations, or have a specialized role in a subset of ecommerce, such as marketing or product management. Companies may employ ecommerce managers for different specializations, as well as at different seniority levels, in order to cover a wide range of tasks and to allow for delegation between seniority levels.
Ecommerce managers are responsible for online sales. They manage the content of the company website and drive sales through their online presence. Ecommerce managers may also be involved in ecommerce strategy and may have a hand in related departments such as marketing and sales.
Ecommerce Manager Salary Information
The ecommerce manager salary information below considers the USA, Canada, and the UK. Data was compiled from Indeed, Neuvoo, and ZipRecruiter. Data for some roles was unavailable, so we substituted it for data from equivalent roles and made a note of this. Average salaries for some positions are based on fewer salaries, which may cause some inaccuracies.
Ecommerce Manager Salary
While the average ecommerce manager salary is specific to those with the title of ecommerce manager, it can be relevant for all specializations within ecommerce management. This average also considers different levels of seniority and represents more of a mid-range salary. Senior ecommerce managers can make much more than what is listed here. Overall, the USA has the highest ecommerce job salary, which is likely due to demand — the USA has a much higher population. This means more ecommerce companies and a greater need for ecommerce managers.
Entry Level Ecommerce Manager Salary
Entry-level ecommerce jobs can include a lot of different roles and responsibilities. While entry-level ecommerce manager positions do exist, starting off in marketing, product development, or other supporting roles is more common. The ecommerce manager salary numbers below reflect entry-level ecommerce management positions, so individuals in these roles likely started in a related role and moved up into ecommerce management. This means that “entry-level” is a bit of a misnomer. Also, as the data for Canada is based on limited salaries, this number may be inaccurate.
Ecommerce Marketing Manager Salary
The role of ecommerce marketing managers includes marketing strategy around ecommerce and content marketing, as well as strategy implementation, ongoing monitoring and optimization, and success measurement. As a more specialized position within ecommerce management, ecommerce marketing managers tend to have a higher average salary than the average ecommerce manager salary. The data for Canada reflects the salary of marketing managers. We deemed this number applicable to ecommerce marketing managers because of a similar level of experience and seniority is required. Both positions have a specialization in marketing as well.
Web Marketing Manager Salary
Web marketing managers have a broader focus than ecommerce marketing managers. Their role includes responsibilities in overall online marketing, including ecommerce. Web marketing managers are also involved in marketing strategy and campaign creation around a company’s website and other elements of their online presence, such as social media and email newsletters. The USA again has the highest salary for this role, which can similarly be attributed to a larger overall population.
Ecommerce Account Manager Salary
Ecommerce account managers function similarly to account managers, but with a focus on ecommerce. This requires a focus on maintaining accounts that exist online, as well as sales skills for moving new products to exist customers. The data for Canada uses data for account managers. As account managers, in general, need to consider online and ecommerce accounts, whether their role is specific to ecommerce or not, we deemed the equivalent of the role. This role follows the above trend of the USA having the highest overall average.
Ecommerce Product Manager Salary
Ecommerce product managers are product managers that specialize in ecommerce. They oversee the development and launch of products sold through ecommerce. Depending on the company, ecommerce product managers may be involved in marketing or design. As ecommerce product managers need to have experience in these areas, they tend to have a higher salary than ecommerce managers with less specialization. The data for Canada uses data for product managers, which is relevant to ecommerce product managers as the skills and experience required are similar.
Director of Ecommerce Salary
The role of a director of ecommerce focuses on strategy, including market segmentation and omnichannel marketing, as well as a delegation to other ecommerce managers. This role has some of the highest ecommerce manager salary numbers, which reflects the experience required. As there are fewer directors in general, the data is based on fewer salaries, which explains anomalies such as a higher average in the UK for ecommerce product managers than directors. The data for Canada reflects directors in general. This is applicable even though there is variation in the responsibilities of directors, as all director positions require a high level of experience.
Ecommerce Merchandiser Salary
The responsibilities of ecommerce merchandisers can vary widely, which explains the range for this position. The position can range from warehousing and fulfilling orders to digital merchandising tasks such as categorizing products or UI/UX design. Canada has a high average for this position, which could be due to more workers categorized as digital merchandisers. It’s possible that other countries use merchandisers as a catchall for both types of work. The data for Canada uses data from Vancouver, Canada, and this smaller sample size could explain the high average salary in Canada.
Ecommerce Marketing Specialist Salary
Ecommerce marketing specialists support the ecommerce manager or marketing manager. They act as the go-to person for marketing in the ecommerce department. They tend to have a mid-level amount of knowledge and experience, which is reflected in their salary. However, their salary tends to be lower than an ecommerce manager or an ecommerce marketing manager. The data for Canada is the data for senior marketing specialists, which explains the high average. This data is applicable to ecommerce marketing specialists, as ecommerce marketing specialists tend to be more senior due to their level of specialization.
Ecommerce Project Manager Salary
Ecommerce project managers are another specialization within ecommerce management. Their role is that of a project manager, although the difference is managing ecommerce projects. As a project manager, they are responsible for managing deadlines and team members, as well as ecommerce project planning. Their salary tends to be on the higher end of the scale, as they are required to have experience with project management and ecommerce, and have the leadership skills to lead teams and complete projects.
Ecommerce Operations Manager Salary
Ecommerce operations managers have similar roles to operations managers with a focus on ecommerce operations. They are responsible for training individuals in the ecommerce department, as well as creating ecommerce specific procedures. As another specialization within ecommerce management, operations ecommerce managers tend to have higher salaries. The ecommerce manager salary for individuals with a specialization in operations is again highest in the USA, likely due to the larger population. The data used for Canada is data for operations managers, rather than ecommerce operations managers. The data for the operations manager is relevant as both roles require a similar level of experience and training.
Factors Affecting Ecommerce Manager Salary
As noted, the numbers above are averages — there isn’t one number that is applicable for everyone. As with any position, there are factors that affect an individual ecommerce manager salary, including but not limited to location, the size of the company they work for, education level, experience level, and whether they are certified.
Location
Location is one of the main factors affecting salary. As seen in the data above, the USA generally has higher salaries than in other countries. Their higher population creates demand, whereas other countries don’t necessarily have this demand. Within the USA, there are certain cities that see higher salaries than the rest of the country. For example, salaries tend to be higher in San Francisco, likely due to the large number and continued growth of tech companies in Silicon Valley. Another city with higher than average salaries in Seattle, which hosts a number of tech companies, as well as Amazon’s headquarters. As a large corporation that is always growing, Amazon creates salary competition with other companies in the city, driving up overall salaries at other companies, not just Amazon.
Company Size
There is a difference in salaries between small businesses and larger corporations. Larger companies have the resources and revenues to pay their ecommerce managers in the upper levels of the salary range. Small businesses may have a tighter budget. However, there is a trade-off here, as small businesses and start-ups have the flexibility to be more innovative and allow ecommerce managers to be more creative, rather than tied up by hierarchy at larger companies.
That said, salary isn’t everything, and looking at the bigger picture, the size of the company doesn’t matter as much as the quality of your time there.
Linda Bustos from Elastic Path weighed in on this topic, reminding us that, “Success as an ecommerce manager responsible for growth, sales and customer retention is tough. You can have great skills, deep experience and lack the resources to build out a team, lack technology budgets or approvals from other departments or finance, be restricted in how you market the digital channel against retail stores and channel partners (like authorized resellers of your brand) or even have to compete with your own company selling through Amazon.”
She explained that the size or type of company you work for impacts far more than your paygrade:
“You may also be working for a company that views digital as an afterthought, or that struggles with competitive differentiation. Picking the right company to work for is as important as having sharp skills and working hard.”
Education Level
In general, more education leads to a higher salary. Ecommerce managers usually have a bachelor’s degree at a minimum, with many having a master’s degree as well. Degrees tend to be in business primarily, but also may be in other areas such as communications or marketing. Companies may value experience over education, or vice versa, so education equaling a higher salary is not a hard and fast rule, but the overall trend suggests a correlation between education and salary.
Experience Level
As with any position, having more experience means a higher salary. Companies are both willing to pay more when hiring an external candidate with more experience, as well as pay internal employees more as they gain more experience and move up within the company. Either way, if you bide your time and learn as much as you can in every position you take, you can expect to start making salaries in the higher range.
Certifications
Companies hiring ecommerce managers will also look at whether or not a candidate is certified. Certifications can include diplomas and degrees from universities or colleges offering programs in ecommerce and online business management, as well as certificates from accredited online organizations. While certifications don’t have as much impact on salary as some of the other factors listed, they can help you get a smaller bump.
Originally published at https://theecommmanager.com on June 10, 2020.
