Don't Cut Corners with Marketing
The Marketing Department is probably the most broad area in the business world. Marketing is defined as the management process through which goods and services move from concept to the customer (BusinessDictionary.com). This process can be divided into areas such as product creation, content publication, promotion, customer service, and more. With an area so broad, is it possible to have just one dedicated "marketer" for your business that can devote attention to each area?
A Marketing Manager is a position most companies use as a band-aid to improve business or clean up their current promotion plans. When I graduated from college, I saw multiple job openings for a marketing position. All of them had a list of responsibilities which included: creating marketing strategies, managing online and print advertisements, copy editing, comparison analyses on competition, and assisting with new product launches. These were all things I was educated and prepared for, so I landed my first job in the real marketing world. Fast forward to a year later, and my role had changed a good bit. My job now consisted of handling all marketing activities as well as the following: working a front desk to accept payments for products, keeping up with customers' debit accounts, creating invoices, cleaning the building, answering all phone calls, sending emails to all employees about company announcements, filling in for the secretaries at other locations when they were out, picking up lunch for the boss, and so forth. I quickly learned that yes, I was a runt and had to put in my work, but that I no longer had the devoted time to successfully market this company because I was overran with these additional responsibilities.
As I mentioned above, a Marketing Manager is a critical aid to business growth; however, it is also the #1 position that becomes a catch-all position. This can be looked at as a smart move for companies wanting to scale back budgets and reduce payroll by combining multiple jobs into one position. It is a not-so-smart move if a business truly wants to see increased sales, improved customer relations, and inflated profits.
If your company is searching for a Marketing Manager, I beg you to let that person immerse themselves in their role with minimal excess duties. Your business deserves the 102% dedicated attention, and you will see direct results because of it!
Muscadine Marketing has been recognized as one of the Top 10 Alabama Digital Agencies.