Career in Marketing

You are considering a career in marketing, but are not sure if it is exactly what you are looking for. Perhaps you do not know what a marketing job entails. According to marketing guru Philip Kotler, marketing is defined as "human activity directed at satisfying needs and wants through exchange processes".

Here are some pointers to help you decide if you are cut out for a marketing career:

The first principle of marketing is to be able to look at things through another person's perspective or "eyes". Put yourself in the consumer's shoes and understand his needs. It helps if you have worked in other jobs or countries, and have mingled with people outside your social circle.

Before starting a career in marketing, you may have worked as a sports trainer for the blind, a travel guide in Turkey and Greece, a door-to-door newspaper salesman, a timeshare salesman in Grand Canary islands, a test person for new medicines, a house cleaner for the elderly, a painter and a counsellor at a children's camp in Florida.

So if you are looking for a part-time or vacation job before embarking on a full-time career, you should work in places that will help you understand the consumer market better.

Select the kind of product that you want to market if you choose to enter the field. Marketing is about principles and processes, but if you are not passionate about the product, you will not be able to market it successfully.

Aim to work for a company that provides opportunities for staff to grow and believes in an individual's performance rather than the starting salary.

Some companies offer a nice office or have "big or nice-sounding" job titles for their employees. But these people may not get the opportunity to develop themselves

Your job is to make sure that you utilise budgets effectively to produce the most optimal results, as you have to answer to your stakeholders at the end of the day.

This is not the most exciting part of marketing because people often associate it with living a fast life that is glamorous and exciting.

Marketing is both an art and science. There are some cases where marketing people are just "smooth operators" who are only good at selling ideas. But top-notch companies would want to hire those with thorough analytical skills, sound finance management, excellent project management skills and the ability to make strategic decisions.

Do research on a company before you join. If you are not convinced by the company's practices and values, you will not be able to perform.

It does not matter which job you start with. Some people have started in research, consultancy or advertising and ended up in a marketing position. If you have the qualities necessary for the job, they will surface. Start with what you are most passionate about, or what comes your way. When you work in advertising or market research, you may feel that it has little to do with marketing, because you do not often get to see the big picture.

However, such exposure will equip you with generic management skills, improve your understanding of corporate processes, give you good consumer insights and help you develop the corporate acumen that is necessary when you move on to a full-fledged marketing position.