What is the future of marketing graduates?

Marketing is a broad career category, and the role of a marketing manager or professional varies greatly depending on the company and industry in which they work. Ask any marketing manager or professional what they do at work, and they’ll give you different answers. Marketing is no longer a one-size-fits-all job, and its role is constantly changing with the advent of new technologies. Undoubtedly, technology has dramatically impacted the marketing landscape and forever changed how marketers work. Now, marketing teams have to respond faster because the industry is so fast-paced. Many marketing graduates aspire to be managers one day, and these are the jobs they may have:

Channel Marketing Manager

Channel Marketing Managers are generally responsible for increasing revenue and lead generation across various B2B channels from resellers or intermediaries such as wholesalers, retail buyers, and affiliates. Their job is to effectively market their products and services to other companies who ultimately sell those products and services.

In addition to lead generation marketing efforts, the Channel Marketing Manager creates and manages product launch plans for distributors, develops and manages sales incentives, campaigns, and loyalty programs, and ensures that all production standards are met. Channel marketing managers should understand the sales process and different target sales markets.

Product Marketing Manager

Product marketing managers drive customer demand, acceptance, and growth for specific products within the organisation’s portfolio. This includes the development and execution of go-to-market strategies and overall product positioning during the pre-launch and launch stages.

When a product is released, the product marketing manager develops campaigns and programs to drive demand, drive product acceptance, and ensure sales meet or exceed expectations. They must have a deep understanding of the products they’re marketing, the competitive environment in which they operate, and the customer buying cycle.

E-Commerce Manager

E-commerce managers are primarily responsible for driving sales through online e-commerce channels. This includes developing marketing plans and online merchandising strategies that can be effectively implemented through digital storefronts and online marketplaces selling products directly to consumers.

Daily duties include managing product listings and updates, working on conversion rate optimisation tactics, monitoring functional online transaction processes, product sales performance testing, and managing the overall online user experience.

Marketing Operations Manager

A marketing operations manager’s primary task is to optimise the overall marketing process in a large organisation. As marketing automation becomes more prevalent, organisations need professionals who can act as a liaison between marketing and information technology to ensure that marketing technology tools achieve desired business outcomes in the most efficient manner.

Marketing Operations Managers are generally more tech-savvy people who understand the marketing process. Creative skills are good, but a deep understanding of analytics and software technology is more important for this position.

Growth Marketing Manager

Another role that has not yet been defined but is prevalent in many organisations is that of the growth marketing manager. In most companies, this position is responsible for improving overall revenue growth. This is achieved by developing specific growth strategies targeting acquisition and retention.

Growth Marketing Managers rely heavily on data and performance analysis to find short-term and long-term sales growth opportunities in specific target areas that need improvement. These experts test and experiment with campaigns to optimise the marketing process and maximise return on investment.

The bottom line

The marketing field is diverse and offers opportunities to marketing graduates with different interests. There are many excellent schools that offer marketing degrees and marketing qualifications, including several accredited online schools. The IMM Graduate School strives to be the learning provider of choice and the centre of excellence for African marketing, supply chain, and business disciplines. Click here to find out what marketing degrees and qualifications the IMM Graduate School offers.