Top 9 Marketing Influencers (And Why You Should Be Following Them)

The marketing industry is moving at a faster rate than ever before. With new apps, trends and technology advances occurring daily, it can be hard to stay on top. And for marketing influencers this is even harder because it’s much more than staying current.

For someone to be a great marketer, keeping up-to-date with the industry’s latest news is a must. It’s the only way they can take advantage of these new opportunities and make sure their brand remains relevant. 

But being a great marketer goes beyond that. 

To really master their craft, they need to know the industry inside out. For instance, by learning from those who have had formulaic success and continue to grow despite today’s saturated market. 

Following the industry’s biggest influencers will do more than keep you in the loop on all things marketing. Most importantly, they’ll inspire you to explore new avenues, spark your creativity, and pave the way to success.

Below, I’ve listed 9 of the most influential forces within marketing. 

These marketing influencers have had insurmountable success with their careers and are masters at what they do. 

Start following them today to learn the insider secrets. And to uncover their top tips on how to become a market leader.

1. Neil Patel

Neil Patel

We can’t create a list of marketing influencers without mentioning Neil Patel. When it comes to search engine optimisation (SEO), Neil Patel is considered one of the most prominent thought leaders. Take a look at the first chunk of his LinkedIn bio and it’s hardly surprising to see why:

I am a New York Times bestselling author. The Wall Street Journal calls me a top influencer on the web, Forbes says I am one of the top 10 marketers, and Entrepreneur Magazine says I created one of the 100 most brilliant companies. I was recognized as a top 100 entrepreneur under the age of 30 by President Obama and a top 100 entrepreneur under the age of 35 by the United Nations.”

Neil co-founded businesses like CrazyEgg and KISSMetrics – which are used by thousands of online to improve their website’s own SEO. As such, he’s also a keen educator and has a huge blog on his website. And, it covers every single topic on search that you could think of. 

A few years ago, Forbes named him as one of the top 10 marketers to follow within the industry. His own business developments and expert knowledge lead him to successfully create digital strategies that have helped business giants. For example, Amazon, Airbnb and Salesforce – they have all become some of the world’s biggest online businesses. 

Feeling inspired? 

He’s also co-authored a bestselling self-help book aptly named Hustle. It presents a step-by-step guide on how to break out of your 9-to-5 and turn your dream career into a reality.

2. Ann Handley

Ann Handley

Paving the way as one of the most influential women in content marketing, Ann Handley is a leading digital marketing pioneer.

Handley is a true expert. She first created her business ClickZ in the nineties – one of the first online marketing guides. She sold it in 2000, right at the cusp of when technology started growing rapidly. Since then, she has seen first-hand the effects that great content marketing and SEO strategies can have for a brand. 

Her role as partner at MarketingProfs sees her take the lead in building valuable and highly reputable training programmes. As well as online events and free resources for marketing professionals. Today, the platform has more than 600,000 subscribers. It is considered one of the greatest training academies for marketers in the world. Which is unsurprising considering Handley is one of the leading marketing influencers out there. 

But with a career focused on great written content, it’s hardly surprising that she offers her expertise in the form of two best-selling books; Everybody Writes and Content Rules. As well as her very own newsletter which keeps readers updated with the latest industry developments. And offers advice and top tips for content marketing success. 

If she’s not writing her opinion in long form, she can also be found tapping out witty Tweets or sharing her expertise on LinkedIn.

3. Rand Fishkin

Rand Fishkin

If you were asked to name one of today’s leading digital marketers, chances are you’d probably say Rand Fishkin. Rand is co-founder and former CEO of Moz – one of the leading SEO software tools available on the market.

Fishkin started his business in 2003 as a simple blog to share advice on the changing world of search. This blog then turned into a consulting company. Which then formed into a software business. One which grew to be known as one of the world’s best in terms of SEO. Almost every marketer has heard of and used Moz in one or another way. Either through their paid plan, free tools or via their resourceful blog posts and guides.

In 2018, Fishkin left Moz and like many great marketing influencers, founded his own company SparkToro. A company which focuses on audience intelligence. It makes it easier for you to refine your market research, and find out what content is reaching your audience. 

In the same year, he also wrote a semi-autobiographical book titled Lost and Founder: A Painfully Honest Field Guide to the Startup World. It guides hungry entrepreneurs through the trials and trivialities of launching your own brand in today’s saturated market

And if that still isn’t enough Fishkin for you, keep up-to-date with him on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.

4. Ryan Deiss

Ryan Deiss

Need a marketer who can advise you on building the most effective strategies for lead generation and online growth? Then look no further than Ryan Deiss.

Deiss really is a digital marketing guru. He’s written two highly successful books, Invisible Selling Machine and Digital Marketing for Dummies. 

Even if you don’t know him by name, you’ve probably heard or engaged with his brand, DigitalMarketer. It offers free and paid membership resources for digital marketers, teams and agencies. 

The website is full of helpful resources, including a blog which covers everything digital marketing. As well as a recently launched podcast providing industry insights,detailed campaign and strategy analysis with some of the most successful business leaders and marketers. 

Aside from this, Deiss is also well-known for being the creator of the ‘customer value optimisation’ strategy. This introduced the creation of a sales funnel to outspend your competition and acquire new leads. 

Fortunately for marketers, Deiss is happy to share his marketing knowledge, featuring on many a podcast talk. As well as being the founder and host of the Traffic & Conversion Summit. This is the largest digital marketing conversion conference in North America. 

5. Lilach Bullock

Lilach Bullock

Having been in the digital marketing industry for over 15 years, Lilach Bullock certainly knows a thing or two about how to be successful online. 

On her website she talks about her ‘big break’ being back in 2006. This was when she started ‘asklilach’ – a virtual PA company. It eventually evolved into a social media marketing agency. She then later sold this brand in 2009. She then focused on building and launching her very own social media marketing tool.

Unfortunately, the tool never came to be as development never succeeded. Bullock was left with an ultimatum: find another million-dollar investor or park the project.

She chose the latter. Instead choosing to develop her multi-site marketing blog into a full-fledged business. After all, it attracted hundreds of thousands of visitors each month. 

Fast forward a few years, and Bullock runs a highly successful content marketing boutique agency and business consultancy. Her blog has become very popular, having featured in publications such as The Sunday Times and Huffington Post. She’s even been featured in Forbes as one of the Top 20 Women Social Media Influencers.

So why have I shared her story with you? Because Bullock’s story is like so many I have seen and heard from so many small businesses. She’s an example that failure can actually be a blessing – it helps you to succeed and grow. She’s one of few marketing influencers who demonstrate that making mistakes is part of the process.

If you like to be inspired daily, then stay up-to-date with everything she has to say. Subscribe  to her blog, and follow her on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn

6. Eric Siu

Eric Siu

Eric Siu’s name may be familiar to you if you’ve been a follower of Neil Patel for some time. He is Neil’s co-host on the podcast, Marketing School. But his work goes way further than that. 

Siu is the owner of Single Grain – a highly successful digital marketing agency.He often boasts on the website that he bought it for only $2. 

Before purchasing, as a young entrepreneur, Siu helped an education company to grow to huge success online. This gave him the start-up energy he needed to make Single Grain a success.

Over the years, his agency has worked with huge corporations. This includes working with Amazon, Nordstrom and Uber to create digital strategies that can support the business’ growth. He also prioritises the potential of small companies. In fact, he has a dedicated branch of his agency for backing start ups and helping them on their venture. 

In fact, he’ll even offer a free marketing consultation to any businesses that own a website and/or app. As long as they earn more than $5 million in annual revenue. 

Marketing influencers are often motivating but Siu’s business energy is inspiring. It shines through his frequent podcast appearances and public speaking events. If you want to hear more from him, be sure to follow his LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter

7. John Rampton

John Rampton

Want to follow a marketer with proven success, and who shares and inspires others with motivational speaking? Then look no further than John Rampton.

His story is pretty inspiring. Whilst working on a construction site in order to pay his college fees, Rampton’s leg was crushed. He began experimenting with online marketing as a way to pass the time. From there, he moved into the ecommerce industry. He has since purchased and grown several companies online, resulting in seven-figure revenue streams for some of them. 

He takes second place on Entrepreneur Magazine’s Top 50 Online Influencers in the World. And, is as a labelled ‘blogging expert’ by Forbes. So it’s obvious how successful Rampton is as – in his own words – a ‘serial entrepreneur.’

Rampton specialises in a whole host of business strategies. These include content, branding, marketing, leadership and motivation. His work has featured in a range of business publications too. Including Mashable and TechCrunch. And even news outlets like ABC News and CNN. 

He boasts how his passion comes from helping others to succeed. Citing that helping others always comes back to benefit you in the end. His LinkedIn bio even says that it ‘brings me joy in my life.’

Although Rampton has his own blog, you can also follow him on social media. Check out his Facebook and Twitter for daily knowledge snippets and updates on his business’ success. 

8. Gary Vaynerchuk

Gary Vaynerchuk

Gary Vaynerchuk is possibly one of the most high-profile marketing influencers in the world. He’s also a much sought-after public speaker and angel investor. He pummelled cash into the early days of brands like Facebook, Twitter and Uber. 

He started out a career with his own online wine business. This endeavour had tremendous success. And created an annual revenue growing from $3 million to $60 million in just five years. On the side, he worked on his other projects. Such as his communications brand, VaynerX. As well as women’s lifestyle brand, PureWow

Today, he manages a whole range of enterprises. He regularly shares his advice on how to create a successful digital marketing strategy to help brands grow. 

His career has flourished over the years. And he shares the highs and lows of his work via his globally successful podcast, The GaryVee Audio Experience. 

Though, if that’s not enough for you to consume, you can also subscribe to his newsletter. Or follow him on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.  

9. Murray Dare

Murray Dare

Murray has been at the forefront of website analysis, pulling the lid off search engine marketing for years. 

His work focuses on understanding what strategies companies use to grow their online traffic. And how it can be replicated elsewhere. 

His company regularly produces in-depth website analysis. As well as competitor reports spanning various industries and businesses. He posts these for free on his blog every week.

And, he has a no stone unturned approach to marketing. This means you gain loads of knowledge and insight into the best routes for growing your website’s SEO.

Murray has worked with some of the UKs most recognised brands. But, he regularly works with startups to get them on the path to growth.

You can follow him on Linkedin, Twitter and Facebook if you want to see the latest reports and articles.

Get Inspired

Each of the 9 influential figures listed above have had incredible success with their marketing careers. They demonstrate how anyone can become a market leader with the right strategy.

By following their social media profiles and subscribing to their newsletters, you can learn too. Discover plenty of industry insights and find out exactly how to make your brand a success. 

Their examples are everything you need to get inspired and ramp up your own digital marketing efforts. 

Looking for Help With your Digital Marketing?

Digital marketing is a huge industry. As such, it can feel pretty overwhelming trying to tackle it as a small or new start-up business. 

Working with a marketing consultant such as myself may be the boost you need. We can help with launching your website from the ground up. 

Having worked within the industry for over 10 years, my team and I have worked with thousands of clients. So we know how to help you reach your online goals. 

See what my team and I can do to help grow your business online by scheduling a call with us. I’d be more than happy to have an obligation-free chat with you. Or even talk you through some of our previous work. 

About Murray Dare

Murray Dare is a Marketing Consultant, Strategist and Director at Dare Media. Murray helps UK businesses find better ways to connect with their audiences through targeted content marketing strategies.