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Submitted by: Mac H McIntosh
What does it take to be successful in the marketing & communications field in today’s competitive marketplace? Marketing professionals should offer much more than the usual skills of writing and project management in order to maintain job security and a career with significant growth. There are new technologies and vast amounts of business knowledge which can all contribute to the overall value of the best marketing professionals, and even when they are not asked for outright by a potential employer, they will prove essential in the field.
Here’s an example of what the average job description looks like:
Looking for a MarCom Manager:
Job Details
Write and maintain print and online sales collateral, including Website
Track, review and analyze marketing programs
Support PR activities
Job Qualifications
BA degree required, MBA preferred
5 – 10 years of marcom experience
Ability to develop strong relationships with the sales team and press
Excellent written [sic] and oral communications skills required [that should be excellent *writing* skills]
Ability to manage multiple projects on tight deadlines
This job description is great, but it is probably not quite adequate to really encompass the skills that one will need to succeed as a marketing and communications manager.
Below you will find a few additional ideas of what today’s business to business marketing professional needs to bring to the table for best success:
1) A thorough knowledge of the complete sales lead process is an important priority, including knowing the difference between a sales cycle and a sales funnel.
2) Successful marketing communications pros see the overall big picture, and are well-versed in exactly how the company’s products and product life cycles sync with the objectives of the business. Marketing professionals really need to have this info to fully understand the part their work will play in the overall scenario, going beyond focusing on just the next campaign or launch.
3) Marketing technology savvy is another important factor, including a familiarity with the current tools of the trade. Now that about fifty percent of the average marketing budget is spent on the Internet, better use of the software available to manage campaigns can offer improved results. A successful marcom professional can no longer get away with saying that they aren’t technically-oriented.
4) A good grasp of mathematics is truly key in today’s marketing, where managers require a calculation of the return on their marketing investment in moving the business forward.
5) The skills necessary to make a good presentation are also needed, including inter-personal, group, phone and email formats, among others. These skills will prove essential when persuasion is needed in order to compel the boss to increase the budget, provide more staff or grant a raise or promotion.
6) Of course ‘business know-how’ is a sweeping term which means a wide span of basics, including manufacturing, accounting, development, and marketing. The span of valuable business knowledge is endless, and it is all useful for a successful marketing professional.
Still, the good old-fashioned initiative to run with the ball and form positive relationships on the fly remains essential. If a marcom professional doesn’t quite get how to manage the product and develop teams while speaking the business, they need a refresher course.
About the Author: Mac McIntosh is president of Mac McIntosh Inc., a sales and marketing consulting firm that helps companies get more high-quality
sales leads
and turn them into sales. Read more articles on marketing business-to-business.
Source:
isnare.com
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