STYLETHREAD -- LET'S TALK SHOP!

Metric · Gucci

Is anyone in marketing?

Kitty · Hermes

I'm a Marketing Communications Specialist, but I don't have a degree in marketing.

Basically, I'm in charge of all marketing communications - brochures, flyers, Web site, e-newsletter, etc.

kenzie · Chanel

There are two sides to marketing-- sales/promotions and communications, the first is more the business side, the second is the creative side. Which one are you looking to do?

I work in marketing communications and I write and design brochures, flyers, websites, direct mailers, ads, newsletters, etc. I also do event planning (trade shows, open houses, grand openings, annual client meetings, etc), account management (for clients who utilize our marketing services), creative direction, project management, budget management and I develop, implement and track new marketing programs for our clients and for my company. So, I have a little bit of the business side thrown in, too. I don't have anything to do with sales, though (thank goodness- it's not my favorite thing).

So, I guess the question is, are you looking at the business side or the creative side of marketing b/c they are two separate career paths-- the first could lead to brand management, sales & marketing management, etc; the second would go more the direction of creative director, communications management, etc. Hope that makes sense. My degree, by the way, is in magazine journalism/design and I did three internships in marketing communications.

-- Edited by kenzie at 20:31, 2007-02-25

lynnie · Chanel

i have my bachelors in marketing. its a good, practical major. I am a creative person that can be business minded. While some classes were interesting (i had a case studies class i really liked where we studied things like boeing vs. airbus, the cola wars, a big marketing flop where maytag i think gave away vacations to anyone that bought their refridgerators and lost a ton of money..), some were just really boring. I don't think you need a degree in it per se to do marketing work, and while i use marketing at my job, its not exclusively what i do, and to me, its intuitive. However, if you are changing careers entirely, it might be good to study it.

mikacat · Coach

My undergrad major was Economics with a minor in Marketing and then I decided to get my MBA in Marketing and took classes like Internet Marketing where a topic might be shopping cart abadonement rates, Database Marketing--studying Market Basket Analysis, Statistics and Data about your customers, Brand Marketing, Category Management or Consumer Packaged Goods Marketing. This would be helpful for being a Buyer, Brand Manager or Category Manager for a Major Retailer or CPG company like Proctor and Gamble where you might manage a brand like Tide Detergent. There you would run you brand like a company where you would be responsible for decisions about the brand, directions to take the brand, the Income Statement, profitability of the brand, working with Advertising to increase awareness of your brand and Promotions to promote special events.

-- Edited by mikacat at 13:48, 2007-02-25

travelgirl · Kate Spade

I am a regional marketing manager-basically I manage manufacturer's reps. I LOVE my job because I work from home (but I am on the road traveling 80% of the time but only about 10% is overnight travel), I have a flexible schedule, I manage a great group of people, and the work is just fun and enjoyable.

I actually have a Bachelor of Liberal Arts but I wish I would have majored in marketing because I find marketing really interesting (and I feel like it would have helped me more with the jobs I have had then my liberal arts degree has). I have tossed around going back for an MBA but I decided not to because I am 34 and feel like I'm told to bother with it and to be honest I REALLY like the job I have now and I don't want to feel pressure to move into a higher paid, high pressure position just because have an advanced degree.

Kitty · Hermes

travelgirl wrote:

I am a regional marketing manager-basically I manage manufacturer's reps. I LOVE my job because I work from home (but I am on the road traveling 80% of the time but only about 10% is overnight travel), I have a flexible schedule, I manage a great group of people, and the work is just fun and enjoyable.

I actually have a Bachelor of Liberal Arts but I wish I would have majored in marketing because I find marketing really interesting (and I feel like it would have helped me more with the jobs I have had then my liberal arts degree has). I have tossed around going back for an MBA but I decided not to because I am 34 and feel like I'm told to bother with it and to be honest I REALLY like the job I have now and I don't want to feel pressure to move into a higher paid, high pressure position just because have an advanced degree.

Hehe..now you've got me curious! So how exactly did you get into this? Can you elaborate a little more about what exactly you do?

Thanks!

bex · Chanel

travelgirl wrote:

I am a regional marketing manager-basically I manage manufacturer's reps. I LOVE my job because I work from home (but I am on the road traveling 80% of the time but only about 10% is overnight travel), I have a flexible schedule, I manage a great group of people, and the work is just fun and enjoyable.

My job is somewhat similiar to travelgirl. I manage 4 states for my position and work with over 100 sales reps. i'm on the road traveling 80% of the time and most of my is overnight. But I manage my own schedule so I schedule myself home when I need to be.

I have a BA in marketing and am planning on going back to get my MBA by the time I'm 32 (i'm 27 now).

travelgirl · Kate Spade

Kitty wrote:

travelgirl wrote:

I am a regional marketing manager-basically I manage manufacturer's reps. I LOVE my job because I work from home (but I am on the road traveling 80% of the time but only about 10% is overnight travel), I have a flexible schedule, I manage a great group of people, and the work is just fun and enjoyable.

I actually have a Bachelor of Liberal Arts but I wish I would have majored in marketing because I find marketing really interesting (and I feel like it would have helped me more with the jobs I have had then my liberal arts degree has). I have tossed around going back for an MBA but I decided not to because I am 34 and feel like I'm told to bother with it and to be honest I REALLY like the job I have now and I don't want to feel pressure to move into a higher paid, high pressure position just because have an advanced degree.

Hehe..now you've got me curious! So how exactly did you get into this? Can you elaborate a little more about what exactly you do?
Thanks!

I help hire, train, and manage a team of people who go into retail stores and help with merchandising, product trainings, and inventory management. I manage a territory that consists of 3 cities (and vicinity) and I check in with the stores (there are about 85 of them) to make sure everything is going smoothly. Basically, along with managing my team of direct reports, I also do public relations (making sure each store is being serviced well, conduct product presentations and trainings, attend trade events, and give out freebies). I travel overnight once every other week which is the perfect amount of overnight travel for me. I am physically on the road 60% of my week (I put about 500 miles on my car per week). The rest of the time is spent on the computer and on conference calls.

I fell into this job after being a manufacturer's rep myself for almost 10 years. My degree is in liberal arts but I feel that my experience in retail (sold Clinique for several years during college), biz to biz sales, and being a rep myself prepared me for my current job more than anything else.

I love my death but it may not be a dream job for everyone. It takes someone who loves a different day every day, a person who is disciplined enough to work independently (my boss is several states away), and a person who likes to be in her car for most of the day. It is a custom fit for me though!