What is Marketing Manager: Courses, Skills, Salary & Career

In this blog, we will be talking about the very interesting job of a marketing manager. We will discuss roles and responsibilities, career paths, and tools you should know for going into this field.

What is a Marketing Manager?

A marketing manager is a professional who helps plan, do strategic and marketing communications projects, and execute campaigns for communicating an organization's message to its target audience. The general role of the marketing manager is to craft plans for the ideas and check if they will fit the marketing objective, that creates interest for a product or service. For example, in an insurance policy company, the marketing manager's work will be to meet insurance policy selling goals.

Roles and Responsibilities of a Marketing Manager

1. Planning and managing marketing campaigns.
2. Formulating a social media engagement strategy.
3. Preparing advertising contracts.
4. Advertising campaigns.
5. Building relationships with customers.
6. Working closely with the marketing team.
7. Designing marketing strategies by doing market research.
8. Managing the team of marketing employees.
9. Collaborating with creative and advertising departments.
10. Advertising material for print and digital media.
11. Researching the market to find new opportunities.
12. Analyzing market trends and conducting competitor research.

Marketing Manager Qualifications

Step 1: Earn a Bachelor's Degree

The first step in becoming a marketing manager is earning a bachelor's degree in marketing. By doing this degree, students will be prepared for novel strategies and advanced technology such as

1. Content management
2. SEO, data analytics
3. Multimedia 
4. User interface design 
5. How to deal with a dynamic marketing environment. 
6. Interactive marketing.
7. Applying advanced analytics to consumer behavior.
8. Customer-focused product development.

Step 2: Build On-the-Job Experience

Before trying to get into a marketing manager job, it is recommended to gain relevant on-the-job experience.

1. Understanding target audiences
2. Budgets for doing marketing
3. Organizing customer service through social media, 
4. creating content for social channels
5. Staying up-to-date on social media trends and news

To become a marketing manager, you have to start with an entry-level job. 

entry-level roles in marketing include

1. Account executives
2. Marketing associates or assistants  
3. Media planners 
4. Media assistants
5. Marketing assistants
6. Social media coordinators
7. SEO specialists
8. Marketing analysts
9. Sales representatives

So be sure to keep yourself updated by reading plenty of blog posts and industry articles.

Step 3: Pursue an MBA for Advancement (Optional)

Doing a master's degree is not mandatory, but earning an advanced degree such as an MBA in Marketing can help you grow more financially and professionally in a marketing career. So if you want to increase your chances of qualifying for more diverse career opportunities, you should go for an advanced degree. MBA in Marketing courses focus on social networking, customer behavior, and SEO(Search engine optimization).

Also explore: What is Marketing 

How to Become a Marketing Manager in India?

To become a marketing manager, it is recommended to take up certification courses. Here are some courses listed below. You can choose the program according to your requirement.

1. Understand customers' needs and online behaviors by Google
2. Advanced Content and Social Tactics to Optimize SEO by Coursera
3. Global Marketing Strategy on edX
4. Introduction to Marketing: Omnichannel Marketing and Analysis on FutureLearn
5. Introduction to Marketing by the University of Pennsylvania on Coursera
6. Marketing Channel Functions on Coursera
7. International Hospitality & Healthcare Services Marketing on Coursera
8. Market Segmentation Analysis on edX
9. Fundamentals of Market Structure on edX
10. Marketing Automation: Strategy & Implementation on Udemy 
11. Marketing Campaign Strategy From A to Z on Udemy 
12. Global Marketing Management on NPTEL 
13. IIM Kozhikode Executive Post Graduate Certificate in Marketing Management on Times TSW
14. PGDBM Marketing Management on Doorasth Shiksha
15. Part time masters in marketing management on Wellingkar
16. Marketing Management I on Coursera
17. Marketing Management II on Coursera
18. Integrated Marketing Management on NPTEL

Skills required to become a Marketing Manager

1. Creative thinking and problem-solving.
2. Leadership and communication skills.
3. Proficiency with social media strategy and online marketing. 
4. Proven experience designing interactive applications and networking platforms.
5. Established press and media contacts.
6. Monitoring critical industry trends.
7. Willingness and ability to travel.
8. Budget management.
9. Strong multi-tasking, project management, and decision-making skills.
10. Prior experience in developing marketing plans and campaigns.
11. Experience with marketing automation and CRM tools.

Common Tools Marketing Managers Must Know

1. MS Excel
2. Google Analytics
3. Hive
4. PowerPoint
5. Trello
6. MailChimp
7. HubSpot
8. FAQ Fox
9. SEMRush
10. Google Keyword Planner
11. Buffer
12. Canva

Marketing Manager Career Path

1. Entry-level job

 

If you want to start a career in marketing you have to start from an entry-level job to break into the industry(if you don't have any prior experience). The entry-level marketing jobs task includes  doing administrative tasks, assisting with research, customer service, and reporting to account executives, media planners, and/or client services managers. 

2. Marketing manager

He establishes, maintains, and evaluates marketing strategies and execution of marketing strategies.

3. Director of marketing

He receives detailed reports on customer data, competitor activities, and market conditions from marketing managers to adjust the overall marketing strategy.

4. Vice President of Marketing

He is the person who bridges gaps by being the spokesperson for the company and strengthening the company’s products and/or services. He is also responsible for interviewing and hiring for major roles within the company.

5. Chief Marketing Officer(CMO)

This is the most senior marketing position. He is the person who is heading all areas of marketing, including planning, developing, and checking the execution of all marketing initiatives, and then reports to Chief Executive Officer (CEO)

Marketing Manager Salary 

The details are taken from the AmbitionBox website.

Designation	Average salary(per year)	Per month salary
Marketing Analyst	8 PLA	Rs 59,020 - Rs 60,509
Business Development Manager	5.3 Lakhs per year (₹44.2k per month)	Rs 44,200
Social Media Manager	4.2 LPA	Rs 31,138 - Rs 32,435
Email Marketing Manager	₹ 6.0 LPA	Rs 45,597 - Rs 46,678
eCommerce Manager	₹ 6.0 LPA	Rs 45,597 - Rs 46,678

Future of Marketing

Jobs in marketing was in trend, are in the trend, and will be a trend in the future also. The only thing that can change is the mode of doing marketing. Previously traditional marketing was being followed; nowadays, we do digital marketing with the advancement in technology. If you are an interactive person who likes to convince people, then marketing is the right field.

Conclusion

As it's an everlasting trending field, you can make your career. You should explore this field and learn new tactics by doing different courses in the market. Enhance your skill set even if you are in this field by taking different courses. That will pay you at the time of promotions.