We have all taken varied routes which have led us into a career in marketing. Some of use started as marketing majors at university but many marketers have taken really different and interesting career paths to end up in our profession.
The CIM in the Midlands has close working relationship with our Region’s Universities, including the University of Lincoln. As part of the National Careers week this week (March 1-7 2021), students from Lincoln International Business School have asked our Board members about how their marketing careers began plus other searching questions on the big marketing issues of the day!
1. How did you get into marketing?
2. What is the best way of building a brand through marketing, from the ground up?
3. What social media marketing trends are you most in favour of at the moment?
4. If you could describe the 'perfect' strategic marketing plan in three words, what would they be?
Chris Lewis, Vice Chair - Events
Contact Chris on LinkedIn
1. How did you get into marketing?
I did a business degree and wasn't really sure what I wanted to do, so I went through all my modules and discounted them one by one, and what was left was marketing!
I applied during year 3 at Uni for marketing roles, got my foot on the bottom rung of the ladder, enjoyed marketing and kept learning (and climbing too).
2. What is the best way of building a brand through marketing, from the ground up?
Just like a house, with strong foundations. In marketing speak this means you have got an excellent idea for your product or service, it is grounded in insight with your target audience and it is positioned differently and better than your competitors. Then (and only then) do you start building the house, the executional bit, for example choosing the brick colour, the window frames and the roof tiles! The trick to building a clear and consistent brand is to ensure the marketing execution always reflects your positioning and always engages your target audience.
3. What social media marketing trends are you most in favour of at the moment?
The 'big' long-term trend is our use of digital, and one trend in digital is social media, and then within social media in vogue are brands like Tik Tok in our seemingly insatiable appetite for "bite-sized" animated content. Do remember social media is simply a channel for marketing execution, a very important comms channel (especially so for some consumer segments and product/service categories), but it is just one channel!
4. If you could describe the 'perfect' strategic marketing plan in three words, what would they be?
It depends on the category, but to answer your question..."insight-driven, differentiated, bold"
Clare P Bayley, Event Ambassador
1. How did you get into marketing?
I knew I wanted to get into marketing when studying for my Communication Studies degree. I got a role in marketing and publicity at the Students Union in my final year and when I graduated I wrote on spec to lots of marketing consultants across the East Midlands with a covering letter and CV to get my first role and break! It took patience!
2. What is the best way of building a brand through marketing, from the ground up?
At the start be clear what the brand stands for, what its purpose is and then brand building can be achieved through generating awareness and promoting its services via a strategic plan.
3. What social media marketing trends are you most in favour of at the moment?
I am enjoying social commerce posts where the user sees the post, gets hooked into the story and then you can even check out easily without even leaving the platform. Perfect way to get new subscribers and customers to your service.
4. If you could describe the 'perfect' strategic marketing plan in three words, what would they be
That’s a hard one! “The 5 Ps”?!
Charley Everiss, Event Ambassador
1. How did you get into marketing?
I worked in a business development role that worked closely with the marketing department. We had a lot of cross over and I really enjoyed the marketing parts I was involved with so decided to switch. I completed both my level 5 & 6 CIM qualifications, this linked with the work experience in the role gave me the skills I needed to succeed and progress my career.
2. What is the best way of building a brand through marketing, from the ground up?
Word of mouth (WOM) is one of the best forms of marketing, get your brand in front of as many people as possible early on and ask them to leave feedback across all social channels. Also having a brand that is authentic and personably is important, people don’t want to interact with a faceless brand anymore, they want to engage with the people who run it and feel listened to and valued on a personal level.
3. What social media marketing trends are you most in favour of at the moment?
Influencer/brand ambassador marketing can be very powerful, although you must be very careful about who you chose to promote your brand, undertake plenty of research about that person and their brand and what their values are. Also make sure to keep up to date with what they are posting and how customers are perceiving them.
4. If you could describe the 'perfect' strategic marketing plan in three words, what would they be?
Thought-out, innovative, unique.
Joanna Box, Vice Chair - Communications
1. How did you get into marketing?
Upon graduation I started my career as a graphic designer working for an agency, and soon developed an interest in the marketing campaigns we developed for customers. I moved across to become an account manager working directly with clients and undertook several CIM training courses and qualifications to give me the skills required to build a strong foundation for my future.
2. What is the best way of building a brand through marketing, from the ground up?
Key to developing a strong brand is to identify your point of difference, what can you offer the market that your competitors can’t, and why should customers choose you. It’s also important to recognise that your brand can’t be everything to everyone, so identify your target market and create a brand identity and strategy focused specifically on that audience.
3. What social media marketing trends are you most in favour of at the moment?
In the past 12 months we’ve seen a ‘less is more’ approach with brands carefully selecting content which is engaging and useful, rather than churning out social media posts. The COVID-19 pandemic has made brands more thoughtful about their postings, questioning why their audiences would want to hear from them right now, and sharing genuinely valuable content.
4. If you could describe the 'perfect' strategic marketing plan in three words, what would they be?
Understandable, Adaptable and Achievable.
Katerina Pickup, Communications Ambassador
1. How did you get into marketing?
I graduated from classic music with a major in classical piano in the Czech Republic, my birth country. I then moved to the UK and landed a dream job organising a large annual event for the Royal Air Force. Marketing started as a small part of my role but I got fascinated about just how much the right marketing mix can affect the bottom line of a project. I completed several CIM qualifications which were just priceless to getting solid foundations to my marketing career. I love working in marketing, it’s an ever-evolving profession that drives the success of an organisation. How exciting is it to be part of your organisation’s success story?!
2. What is the best way of building a brand through marketing, from the ground up?
Start with evaluating your brand proposition which will clearly lay out the benefits which a customer gets out of your brand. It’s also key to know what your unique selling proposition (USP) is so, what are the benefits that you offer and no other brand can provide (or can’t provide anywhere near as well as you can). Once you have these foundations in place, start letting your target audience know about your offering. A good blend of owned media, earned media and paid media has worked for me well over the years!
3. What social media marketing trends are you most in favour of at the moment?
Storytelling has been at the core of my social media strategy for many years and is now more important than ever. I love telling our followers about my company, what our values are and sharing our success stories. I enjoy celebrating our employees’ anniversaries, sharing news about new equipment or new projects.
4. If you could describe the 'perfect' strategic marketing plan in three words, what would they be?
Innovative, Measurable, Adaptable!
Remember to join our other discussions on our CIM Community Midlands LinkedIn group!