How to Become a Marketer

Recently, we explained why marketing is so important, how it actually works, and what you can do for work after earning a bachelor’s degree in the field. 

Here, we’ll explain how to actually become a marketer, which should help you break into this challenging, but very rewarding industry.

Marketers play an absolutely critical role in helping companies design new advertising campaigns, develop accurate pricing strategies, and increase sales for products and services.

In this post, we’ll explain why you should think about becoming a marketer, what you would be responsible for doing in this role, why you should get your degree before applying for related jobs, and what you can do to help improve your odds of launching a successful career in the field.

After you’ve learned everything you need to know about becoming a marketer, fill out our information request form to receive additional details about our 100% online Bachelor’s Degree in Marketing.

If you’re ready to get started, submit your application today.

What Is Marketing and Why Is It Important?

Marketing is a broad discipline that involves getting people interested in a company’s products or services. More specifically, marketing is the art of putting a company’s product or service in front of the right customer at the right time, then convincing them to buy it. 

Some specific examples of marketing applications include:

• Branding – Marketing is used to help companies create brands that customers will recognize when shopping.
• Pricing Models – It can be difficult to determine what price a specific product or service should be sold at. Marketers may be used to determine various pricing models based on competitive pricing and researching consumer willingness to pay certain prices.
• Market Research – Marketers are often asked to help conduct market research to help companies determine what their competitive advantage is, what their customer’s needs are, and how they can serve their customers better.
• Product Development – Developing products customers will want to buy requires creative insight and in-depth knowledge of what consumers are looking for. Marketing can help bridge the gap between what products and services are designed and sold.

As the list above makes clear, marketing principles and best practices can be used across many different industries, and they play an absolutely critical role in the process of ensuring organizational success.

Is Becoming a Marketer a Good Career Option?

Yes, the role of a marketer is an excellent career opportunity for anybody interested in helping a business better connect with its customers to increase sales of its products or services. 

There are three great reasons to think about becoming a marketer:

1. Marketers get to play an incredibly important role in modern businesses, helping them develop creative new marketing campaigns designed to grab the attention of their target market.
2. This is an excellent career for anyone looking to earn a considerable salary, as Glassdoor.com reports the average salary for a marketer was $138,501 per year, as of May 11th, 2022.
3. Demand for marketers is set to see strong growth in the coming decade, with the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) projecting that employment of “Advertising, Promotions, and Marketing Managers” will rise 10% between 2020 and 2030.

If you’re interested in a fast-paced career and you want a role that will experience strong growth in the coming years, then you’d be hard-pressed to come up with a better target than the role of a marketer. 

What Do Marketers Actually Do?

As a marketer you’ll be asked to work with multiple different departments as your job will consist of a wide variety of tasks including compiling demographic data, promoting the brand of the company, monitoring trends, developing pricing strategies, and more.

Typical tasks for marketers include:

• Preparing and presenting market research reports to upper management, outlining the success of current marketing campaigns and areas for improvement.
• Leading media planning and contract negotiation, including designing and positioning various advertising mediums including billboards, ads on radio and TV, and launching campaigns.
• Managing, supervising, and coordinating various marketing campaigns for different products and services.
• Conducting market research to determine the specific needs, habits, and interests of customers.
• Consistently analyzing and improving important marketing metrics like online traffic conversion rates, engagement per post, and impressions.

The role of a marketer requires very specific technical skills and expertise, and this is clearly not a role that you can simply find your way into without prior training.

If you want to break into the marketing industry, you’re going to need to develop a set of advanced skills and abilities before anyone is willing to give you a chance as a marketer.

The best way to develop the skills you need for this industry is to get your degree in marketing.

What Skills & Abilities Are Needed to Become a Successful Marketer?

To succeed at landing a job in this complex and competitive industry, there are several important skills that you will need to develop.

According to Indeed.com, you should focus on developing each of the following skills: 

1. Customer-Focused Thinking – Understanding the needs and wants of your customer base is crucial to a marketer. You’ll need to understand how customers perceive your brand and develop strategies to strengthen brand loyalty and customer retention.
2. Communication Skills – As a marketer, you will constantly have to share your vision, ideas, and strategies with other team members, as well as individuals from other departments. Being able to clearly communicate complex advertising projects and pricing strategies is critical to the success of any marketing campaign.
3. Project Management Skills – Large-scale marketing campaigns can become complex very quickly. Having strong project management skills will ensure deadlines are met and any problems are identified and resolved quickly.
4. Budgeting Skills – In your position as a marketer, you’ll need to ensure marketing goals are met while staying within budget. Understanding the basic principles of creating and updating a budget will help ensure your marketing campaigns remain on budget.
5. Creativity Skills – Being a marketer will require you to consistently find creative new ways to engage with your current audience, as well as find new ways to expand the reach of your brand and find new customers. You’ll need to leverage your creative skills to constantly develop new ideas.
6. Technology Skills – Successful marketing consists of meeting the customer where they spend their time, so you’ll need to understand how to leverage popular technologies and applications to connect with your target audience in the most efficient way possible.

The best way to build the foundational knowledge, skills, and experience you’ll need as a marketer is to complete a degree in the field, like CSU Global’s Bachelor’s Degree in Marketing.

Our fully online program was designed to provide you with everything you need to launch a successful career in this competitive industry.

Completing our program ensures that you’ll be capable of delivering real value to any organization as a professional marketer from your first day on the job.

Do I Really Need a Degree in Marketing to Get a Job in The Industry?

Not necessarily, but getting your degree in marketing could significantly increase your chances of getting one of the good jobs in this extremely competitive industry.

According to the U.S Bureau of Labor Statistics, candidates for jobs in marketing typically need at least a bachelor’s degree to be considered for a position in the industry.

Should you decide to pursue this path, obtaining a Bachelor’s Degree in Marketing would be an excellent way to begin your career.

No matter what your overall career goals might be, the best way to start a career in this industry is to first develop a detailed understanding of the foundational knowledge of marketing, and getting a degree is the best way to do that.

Completing your degree isn’t just the best way to develop the fundamental knowledge, skills, and abilities required to succeed in the industry, but it’s also the best way to demonstrate to hiring managers that you are ready to provide real value to their organization from day one.

How Will CSU Global’s B.S. in Marketing Help Prepare me for a Career as a Marketer?

Our online Bachelor’s Program in Marketing focuses on training you to handle the most important job responsibilities of marketers, including tasks like:

• Implementing market research tools to estimate market potential, forecast demand, and clearly communicate findings.
• Leveraging market research reports to design innovative marketing campaigns designed to accurately target key audiences.
• Compiling and interpreting important analytics such as engagement, conversion rates, SEO, and more to improve current advertising and marketing initiatives.
• Adapting marketing campaigns and pricing strategies based on the shifting priorities of consumers.
• Using marketing data to identify potential new products or services not currently offered.

Once you’ve been accepted to the program, you’ll be provided with the chance to develop all the knowledge and skills you’ll need to succeed as a marketer, as we’ll train you to:

• Apply modern marketing practices and strategies geared towards defining buyer behavior, evaluating market segments, and building effective marketing campaigns.
• Understand the importance of competition, market forces, and other external factors that can make or break the success of marketing initiatives.
• Leverage digital technologies for marketing campaigns.
• Determine appropriate strategies and practices to meet the shifting priorities of a business.
• Interpret key analytics used to measure the success of marketing campaigns and to find potential areas of improvement.

Armed with the foundational knowledge and critical skills needed to succeed in this competitive and challenging industry, your marketing degree from CSU Global could play a critical role in helping launch or advance your career in the field.

What Else Can I Do to Increase My Chances of Success?

Completing a degree in marketing is certainly the best way to prepare for a successful career, but it’s not the only thing you can do to help improve your odds of achieving success.

According to marketproinc.com, completing a marketing certification program could help you build key skills and acquire the hands-on experience you need to build a more compelling resume. 

Market pro inc explains that the work you’ll do in a certification program will allow you to demonstrate your mastery of important marketing concepts and principles, helping make your application more competitive.

They suggest considering the following marketing certification programs:

• Hootsuite Social Marketing Certification
• Google Ads Certification
• Digital Garage: Fundamentals of Digital Marketing Certification
• HubSpot Content Marketing Certification
• Facebook BluePrint Certification
• Google Analytics IQ Certification
• HubSpot Inbound Marketing Certification
• Bing Ads Accredited Professional (BAAP) Certification

While you don’t necessarily need to complete a certification program to get a job as a marketer, this is an incredibly competitive industry so you should consider doing anything you can to help make sure that your job applications stand out.

The amount of time and level of effort that you dedicate to developing your skills, abilities, and academic credentials could also not just help you get hired, but also improve the chances that you’ll be able to achieve success working in the field.

Should I Get My Degree in Marketing Online?

Yes, no matter what degree or certification program you choose to pursue, we suggest getting your academic credentials online instead of in person.

Why? Because studying in person is a less efficient way of earning your academic qualifications when compared to studying online.

Should you decide to study with us at CSU Global, you’ll get to enjoy several benefits provided by our unique, 100% online programs, including:

• No requirements to show up at set times or in physical locations.
• Monthly class starts.
• Accelerated courses.

These advantages are extremely helpful for anyone who has a busy schedule or who thinks it may be difficult to find the time to attend in-person classes. 

If you’re worried about balancing a busy schedule and finding the time to further your education, then you should definitely consider studying with us at CSU Global.

Why Should I Choose CSU Global’s Marketing Program?

Our 100% online Bachelor’s Degree in Marketing was designed to provide you with everything you need to launch a successful, lifelong career as a marketer.

This program is regionally accredited by the Higher Learning Commission, which ensures that your degree will be respected by hiring managers looking to employ skilled experts in the field.

Our program is also widely recognized as one of the best programs in the industry, as it’s been awarded several excellent rankings, including:

• A #2 ranking on Most Affordable Online Bachelor’s in Marketing from The Best Schools.
• A #2 ranking on The 20 Best Online Bachelor’s Degrees in Marketing from Best Marketing Degrees.

CSU Global itself is also widely regarded as an industry leader in higher education, having recently achieved several important rankings, including:

• A #1 ranking for Best Online Colleges & Schools in Colorado from Best Accredited Colleges.
• A #1 ranking for Best Online Colleges in Colorado from Best Colleges.
• A #10 ranking for Best Online Colleges for ROI from OnlineU.

Finally, we offer affordable tuition rates, and a Tuition Guarantee that promises your low tuition rate won’t increase as long as you remain enrolled with us.

To get additional details about our fully-accredited online Bachelor’s Degree in Marketing, please give us a call at (800) 462-7845, or fill out our Information Request Form.

Ready to get started today? Apply now