Are You Cut Out for a Career in Marketing?

Dr. Lisa Witzig is one of our expert faculty members at Colorado State University-Global Campus and today she’s giving you valuable information to begin working in marketing. Her years of experience span from the CIA to consulting, to now owning her own marketing and communications firm. Dr. Witzig’s list of educational accomplishments include a Ph.D. and two masters degrees with her third in the works. Join our Virtual Career Fair on October 27^th to hear Dr. Witzig speak. Get all the details at the bottom of this article.

What are the different types of jobs? 1. “C-Level” Officers: The Chief Executive Officer, or CEO, is the highest-ranking executive in a company. Their responsibilities usually include high-level business strategies like making corporate decisions, managing operations, budgeting the company’s capital, and leading the senior executive team. Experience and education are crucial to landing this high level position. The Chief Marketing Officer, or CMO, is the executive who handles the marketing activities for an entire organization. This position is typically only found in large companies, however, the trend of having a C-level marketing professional is growing. 2. Director of Marketing or Director of Communications: Directors are responsible for managing and overseeing the marketing department. This includes channel-specific strategy, supervising marketing managers, and reporting up to leadership. 3. Marketing Manager: A marketing manager manages projects, campaigns, and portfolios for the marketing team. A person in this role should be somewhat knowledgeable of current industry-specific strategies, tactics, and techniques. Consultants often fill this role. 4. Copywriter or Content Writer: The lines between copy and content have blurred in recent years, but simply put, a copy or content writer writes. Anything from ad copy to blog content, to video scripts, website pages, and newsletters are written by these types of writers. The goal is to provide the reader with enough valuable information about a brand or topic that they want to take action. 5. Specialists: This umbrella term refers to many positions including, but not limited to, search engine optimization (SEO) specialists, graphic artists, web designers, copy editors, social media editors, coordinators, etc. People in these positions have a variety of skills and can wear many hats in their roles. Describe a typical day in the life of a marketer. What does a marketer do? There’s no such thing as “typical” in this industry, no matter what your role. For example, despite the fact that I’m currently the CEO of Ideen, LLC, a marketing and communications firm, I often fill in as marketing manager at a client site. One day I’m drafting a press release and negotiating the price of release with a wire service, and the next I’m setting up social media releases. I might be in meetings with the business development team to ensure that product development, pricing, and releases are coordinated. In the evening I might be chatting up a potential client over drinks. As a CEO, it’s non-stop and there’s always a lot of variety. If you’re just starting out in the field, you may be hired as the content writer for a company’s website. In that case, you could be researching relevant news both inside and outside the company. You’ll probably meet with fellow employees or clients to brainstorm content ideas or to review what you’ve written. You’re most likely working with a graphic artist to design visual representations of your articles, website content, or blog posts. You may be attending a company event to capture photographs, or contacting the media to call attention to your latest press release. Marketers use a broad range of skills on the job and nothing is off limits. Regardless of whether you’re just starting out or a seasoned vet, you’ll always be moving, learning, and working with a team. What type of person would excel in the field of marketing? The best people for marketing jobs are outgoing and can easily move from the strategic level to the tactical level. They have to be able to see the big picture for planning, while also not overlooking the details. Creativity helps a lot, but that can take many forms. A lot of people might think they’re not creative enough for marketing, but I find that a lot of creative people just don’t know how to express themselves. Because marketing is so varied, there are many ways to express what you do best. What would you tell a prospective student hoping to join the field of marketing? Jump in! The field is growing, the salaries are good, and you can progress up the career ladder. Work hard and hone your skills. Learn how to do one thing really, really well, and two things pretty well. You’ll learn the rest as you get experience. If you’re ready to jump in like Dr. Witzig suggests, advance your career quickly with a bachelor’s degree in marketing from CSU Global. You could also earn an accelerated Certificate of Completion in Marketing if you’re not ready to commit to a full degree. Hear Dr. Witzig in Person! Dr. Lisa Witzig will be presenting at CSU Global’s Virtual Career Fair on October 27, 2016. Her presentation, Creating Your Personal Brand and Elevator Pitch, reveals how to impress potential employers to earn the job you deserve. If you’re a CSU Global student, alumni, staff, or faculty member, register here for Dr. Witzig’s presentation and four more that you can watch from the comfort of your home.