‘Marketers must leverage technology’
What aspects should one keep in mind while choosing a career in marketing?
Firstly, effective marketers are deeply interested in human beings and their needs. This is key to being able to understand the pulse of the market. Secondly, consumers today are using the internet widely and spending a lot of time on social media. This has made it imperative for marketers to leverage technology and data analytics to best address consumer needs. Thirdly, the market place is highly competitive and there is immense pressure on brands to differentiate. So it is critical for marketers to have a creative bent of mind in order help brands stand out in the market place. In a line, the key abilities needed to be a good marketer today are human empathy, creative thinking and being technology savvy.
How are advertising and marketing linked?
Advertising has traditionally been relatively more left brained - a creative field. While marketing management over the years has evolved to become relatively more right brained – that is analytical. However the greatest marketers effortlessly marry left brain and right brain thinking. So, in order to be a successful marketing professional, understanding the process of creativity and being able develop a creative bent of mind is as important has having sound analytical skills.
Is it useful to specialise in advertising and marketing at the UG level?
The interconnected globe has changed landscape of workplace. Industry is demanding talent and expertise at a younger age. That’s because industry across sectors is facing sluggish growth and demanding consumers.
This is exactly what Peter Drucker also recommended “Because the purpose of business is to create a customer, the business enterprise has two–and only two–basic functions: marketing and innovation.” Since all business wants customers, every business management wants to have a firm grip on marketing. And the earlier the better. Also, with startups becoming increasingly commonplace the average age of entrepreneurs is reducing. It is commonly known that the biggest reason for new ventures to fail is the lack of a strong market need. So it would really help if young entrepreneurs have a deep and practical understanding of marketing before investing time and money behind an idea. Generic business management course will equip students to ‘manage’ a function. Our UG course will catch the youngsters early and make them ready for being relevant and useful for business growth.
What should one look for in an advertising and marketing course?
The ideal advertising and marketing course should provide a sound theoretical understanding of the subject as well as ample practical exposure through industry projects. Skills in design thinking (a cutting edge skill that helps build creative thinking and human empathy), digital marketing and data analytics are becoming increasingly important in order to be a future ready marketer. Finally, getting global exposure would help aspiring marketers not only understand global best practices, but also how marketing differs across cultures.
What are the employment prospects after a course in advertising and marketing?
Students will be highly valued in advertising agencies, digital marketing agencies, media planning agencies, market research agencies and marketing departments of corporations and startups.