Marketing is a complex field that is constantly evolving and calls for consistent innovation. With so many different aspects of marketing, there are quite a few essential skills that are sought after in the profession and the industry. Let’s take a look at some marketing skills that have been deemed as "must have" from the most successful and effective marketing experts in the field today.
Market Research
Market research is a crucial skill for marketing professionals to have in the profession, as it allows them to collect and analyze data on customers, competitors, and the market as a whole. This data is the driving force behind every important business decision that can be made. Other departments within marketing companies such as sales teams also heavily depend on customer data to formulate a basis for their sales strategies. But in order to become a good market researcher there are a number of abilities you must master to be able to perform good market research. You must have the ability to develop and carry out rigorous and ethical research investigations. You must have the ability to analyze data metrics, create and implement surveys to capture meaningful data. Having great attention to detail Is also a plus, along with a strong knowledge of statistical methodologies and tools to assess data and make data-driven decisions.
Cross Channel
There has been a huge demand for marketers who can fill multiple roles, especially in digital marketing. The demand is high for performance marketing and paid media professionals who can work across multiple areas of marketing such as paid search and paid social. The bottom line is that there isn’t a one-size fits all approach to careers in digital marketing. Having experience and a mastery of skills in multiple areas, is a skill in itself and can provide you greater opportunities in the field.
Campaign Strategies
Campaign strategies are crucial to marketing. These are essentially the blueprints to a campaign’s success. Campaign strategies can be broken up into three different skill sets, including roadmapping, forecasting, and planning. Knowing each one of these different areas and becoming skilled in all of them are necessary if you are looking to progress in an agency environment. Mastering every part of this skill set will demonstrate an in-depth understanding of the whole campaign process, including the expected results.
Social Media
Social media continues to evolve and become a huge player in a brands marketing strategy. Having an understanding of how these apps work and how to properly use them is crucial in ensuring that your content will reach your desired audience. TikTok, for example, is one of the fast growing social channels, especially with younger audiences. The reality is that there are not many paid social professionals that have experience working with this app on the market. This opens doorways for individuals who do have experience with this popular application, to be needed in the digital marketing world. The more familiar you are with a diverse range of social media platforms, the greater of an asset you can have to brands digital marketing.
Artificial intelligence
AI is the latest technology that has seen exponential growth over the past few years and is changing the marketing field rapidly. Having an understanding of how to properly utilize these technologies for your benefit is a skill that is highly sought after. AI can be used for a variety of important tasks such as enhanced personalization and automation in email marketing, chatbots, and text based marketing. AI also can be used to browse a vast amount of customer data such as purchase history and browsing habits that can lead to uncovering patterns and insights that can lead to accurate predictions in future customer behavior and identifying key target audience segments during marketing campaigns. All of this can be done within a short period of time, proving that knowing how to use AI properly can become one of the most valuable skill sets in the industry today.
Communication
Effective communication is extremely important across the entire marketing industry. Internal and external communication is one of the most highly sought after skill sets for marketers, especially those who work closely with clients. Clients may not understand all the technical jargon and concepts within the industry. Agencies are always looking for individuals who can break down the in-depth technical jargon and industry knowledge in a way that can be easily digestible and understandable. Also having high communication skills will enhance your ability to work with other departments, which can lead to better opportunities and growth within the industry.
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Meet the Author
Erik Rudolph
Marketing Assistant Student Worker
Erik is a senior advertising student with a minor in communications, he also is a part of the MSJ 4+1 program at WVU. He is currently the marketing assistant student worker for the WVU Marketing Communications Graduate Programs. Erik loves the sport of boxing and works closely with a local boxing promotion in Morgantown, Real Fight Promotions, as a color commentator and a social media manager.
Marcom Today
Marketing Communications Today is a collection of resources for marketing communications professionals filled with industry research, marketing trends, and career information about integrated marketing and data-driven communications. Learn industry insights through the Marketing Communications Today blog, podcast, as well as Integrate Online.
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