A CAREER IN MARKETING
Introduction – Marketing is a much sought after career in the contemporary business environment. It is a discipline which revolves around the customer and satisfying their needs and wants. The late Management Guru Peter Drucker stated it aptly and boldly declaring that a business has only two functions – Marketing and Innovation. This clearly emphasises the importance of Marketing for the success of any business, since it is the revenue generating function.
What is Marketing?
Definition
“The science and art of exploring, creating and delivering value to satisfy needs of a target market at a profit. Marketing identifies unfulfilled needs and desires. It defines, measures and quantifies the size of the identified market and the profit potential”.
Dr Philip Kotler “Marketing is the management process responsible for identifying, anticipating and satisfying customer requirements profitably.” The Chartered Institute of Marketing
Different Types of Marketing and the Jobs Available in Marketing
1. Product Management – Is the process that looks after the product and makes sure it’s exactly what the client wants while keeping the business sustainable. Product Managers are responsible to make sure the customer needs are met with products and the company can deliver those products Job titles available – Group Product Manager, Product Manager, Assistant Product Manager, Product Executives
2. Digital Marketing – Is a relatively new practice. It promotes and sells products or services to prospective customers through online platforms such as email, social media, mobile marketing, online customer communities, webinars and other video-based content.
Job titles available – Digital Project Managers, E-Commerce Specialists
3. Content Marketing – It consists of any information that other people can consume. It’s a marketing technique of creating and distributing valuable, relevant and consistent content to attract and acquire a clearly defined audience – with the objective of driving profitable customer action. Job titles available – Content Specialist, Content Editor, Content Manager, Copy Writer
4. Sales Management – Is a business discipline aimed at coordinating and enhancing the activities of a sales force. It involves developing new selling strategies, gathering and training sales teams and co-coordinating the practices aimed at pursuing a company’s sales goals.
Job titles available – National Sales Manager, Regional Sales Manager, District Sales Manager, Sales Executives, Sales Representatives
5. Marketing Research – Is a broader field that covers market research, but also includes other types of research related to the marketing of products and services. The goal of marketing research is to provide insights into customer behavior and attitudes, as well as to inform marketing decisions related to product development, pricing, promotion, and distribution. Job titles available – Marketing Research Specialists, Marketing Research Manager, Marketing Research Executives, Marketing Research Assistants
6. Event Marketing - It’s a type of a marketing strategy that marketers use to promote and advertise their brand, product, or service by creating a personal or real-time engagement. It helps a business gain new customers and improve relationships with existing clients.
Job titles available – Event Marketing Specialist, Event Manager, Event Organizer, Marketing and Events Officer
7. Public Relations - Is a strategic communication process companies, individuals, and organisations use to build mutually beneficial relationships with the public. A PR specialist directly or indirectly communicates with a target audience through media to create a positive image. PR is a subset of Marketing.
Job titles available – Public Relations Manager, Promotions Coordinator, Media Coordinator, Public Information Officer
8. Niche Marketing - Is a form of marketing geared towards targeting a specific audience, united by needs, preferences, and identity. In the simplest sense, with niche marketing, businesses promote their products and services to a small particular and well defined audience.
Job titles available – Niche Marketing Manager, Niche Market Officer
9. Advertising – It is one of the oldest forms of marketing and is a method of communication that attempts to influence the behaviour of a defined target audience. It brings messages about products and services to broad audiences through media such as TV and radio, newspapers and magazines, online social platforms like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube, and billboards.
Job titles available – Account Director, Account Manager, Client Services Executive, Media Manager, Creative Director, Copy Director, Copywriter, Media Executive
10. Marketing Strategy – Is the long term planning of business objectives that the company wants to achieve. It’s a broad strategy that incorporates everything from how a company positions itself, to the creative, the strategic partners, the media relations, the marketing mix, and the channels and tactics Job titles available – Head of Marketing, Marketing Manager, etc., which are Senior Manger positions
11. Key Account Manager (KAM) – Is the managing of “Key Accounts” (Key Customers) and retaining and enhancing their loyalty with the organisation. Key Account Management is important in both product and service marketing and also in B2C and B2B marketing.
Job titles available – Key Account Manager, Key Account Executive, Account Manager
12. Customer Relationship Manager (CRM) – CRM is about building and growing the relationship an organization has with their customers.
Retaining customers is less costly to an organisation than trying to acquire a new customer. (It is stated that it’s 7 times more expensive to acquire a new customer than to retain an existing customer). Most high profile organisations employ Customer Relationship personnel, both in product and service industries.
Job titles available – Customer Relationship Manager, Relationship Manager, Customer Relationship/ Relationship Executives.
The science and art of exploring, creating and delivering value to satisfy needs of a target market at a profit. Marketing identifies unfulfilled needs and desires. It defines, measures and quantifies the size of the identified market and the profit potential Dr Philip Kotler
Qualification Options
1. Universities – Both in Sri Lanka and overseas offer undergraduate courses in Marketing.
2. Chartered Institute of Marketing (CIM) U.K. - Offers a Diploma in Marketing, which is a post graduate diploma, providing direct entry to post graduate studies. (Example – A MBA Degree). The CIM Diploma can be acquired in Sri Lanka.
3. Sri Lanka Institute of Marketing (SLIM) - Offers a Diploma in Marketing Management as well as the Certified Professional Marketer (CPM) – Asia Pacific Programme of study. In addition, a series of other Marketing and Sales related courses are offered.
There are many other institutions offering study programmes in Marketing and Sales. It is not possible to list all of these options.
Conclusion – In this brief article my endeavour was to shed light on the fantastic discipline of “Marketing” which I have practiced passionately over the past 40 years. The sheer variety and job spectrum offered in Marketing is indeed unique. Marketing is a fascinating discipline which provides a fulfilling career, as at the end of the day it is a humanistic discipline
“Our jobs as marketers are to understand how the customer wants to buy and help them do so.” Bryan Eisenberg