Meeting salary expectations is the biggest stumbling block to finding the right talent for your marketing team, according to recruiter Michael Page.

Securing the right talent for your marketing team is a challenge every marketing leader will have to face – but it seems many are struggling to recruit due to mismatched salary expectations.

New data from recruiter Michael Page shows two in five (41%) marketing leaders cite matching candidate salary expectations as their biggest challenge when it comes to recruiting new staff. More than half (51%) of the sample admit struggling to hire new staff in the past year.

Michael Page’s 2025 Salary Guides – which analyze hundreds of roles to generate data on recruitment demand, popular roles and hiring timelines for UK firms across 15 sectors – also explore the latest trends in the UK recruitment landscape.

The data finds businesses which lack a “considered” recruitment approach and “competitive employer value proposition” may lose out on securing top talent.

“As marketing leaders look to save on resource and budget in their search for talent, a trend we’re seeing is hiring managers opting to merge multiple roles into one,” says James Nally, operating director at Michael Page.

“While this can be a smart solution on paper, the truth is that, due to increased workload without adequate compensation, attrition rates ultimately increase.”

It’s not just salary expectations which are causing problems for marketing leaders. The report also finds 31% of business leaders believe finding candidates with the right skills is a significant hurdle, with a further third (33%) citing a lack of candidates in the market.

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