Marketing Managers

Description

Plan, direct, or coordinate marketing policies and programs, such as determining the demand for products and services offered by a firm and its competitors, and identify potential customers. Develop pricing strategies with the goal of maximizing the firm's profits or share of the market while ensuring the firm's customers are satisfied. Oversee product development or monitor trends that indicate the need for new products and services.

Tasks

Formulate, direct and coordinate marketing activities and policies to promote products and services, working with advertising and promotion managers.
Identify, develop, or evaluate marketing strategy, based on knowledge of establishment objectives, market characteristics, and cost and markup factors.
Direct the hiring, training, or performance evaluations of marketing or sales staff and oversee their daily activities.
Evaluate the financial aspects of product development, such as budgets, expenditures, research and development appropriations, or return-on-investment and profit-loss projections.
Develop pricing strategies, balancing firm objectives and customer satisfaction.
Compile lists describing product or service offerings.
Initiate market research studies or analyze their findings.
Use sales forecasting or strategic planning to ensure the sale and profitability of products, lines, or services, analyzing business developments and monitoring market trends.
Coordinate or participate in promotional activities or trade shows, working with developers, advertisers, or production managers, to market products or services.
Consult with buying personnel to gain advice regarding the types of products or services expected to be in demand.
Conduct economic or commercial surveys to identify potential markets for products or services.
Select products or accessories to be displayed at trade or special production shows.
Negotiate contracts with vendors or distributors to manage product distribution, establishing distribution networks or developing distribution strategies.
Consult with product development personnel on product specifications such as design, color, or packaging.
Advise business or other groups on local, national, or international factors affecting the buying or selling of products or services.
Confer with legal staff to resolve problems, such as copyright infringement or royalty sharing with outside producers or distributors.
Consult with buying personnel to gain advice regarding environmentally sound or sustainable products.
Develop business cases for environmental marketing strategies.
Integrate environmental information into product or company marketing strategies, policies, or activities.
Recommend modifications to products, packaging, production processes, or other characteristics to improve the environmental soundness or sustainability of products.

Knowledge

Sales and Marketing: Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
Customer and Personal Service: Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
English Language: Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
Administration and Management: Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
Clerical: Knowledge of administrative and clerical procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and other office procedures and terminology.
Personnel and Human Resources: Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.

Skills

Critical Thinking: Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
Monitoring: Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
Reading Comprehension: Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
Active Listening: Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
Persuasion: Persuading others to change their minds or behavior.
Speaking: Talking to others to convey information effectively.
Active Learning: Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.
Social Perceptiveness: Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
Management of Personnel Resources: Motivating, developing, and directing people as they work, identifying the best people for the job.
Judgment and Decision Making: Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.

Abilities

Oral Comprehension: The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
Oral Expression: The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
Deductive Reasoning: The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
Written Comprehension: The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
Fluency of Ideas: The ability to come up with a number of ideas about a topic (the number of ideas is important, not their quality, correctness, or creativity).
Written Expression: The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.
Problem Sensitivity: The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem.
Originality: The ability to come up with unusual or clever ideas about a given topic or situation, or to develop creative ways to solve a problem.

Work Activities

Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships: Developing constructive and cooperative working relationships with others, and maintaining them over time.
Communicating with Persons Outside Organization: Communicating with people outside the organization, representing the organization to customers, the public, government, and other external sources. This information can be exchanged in person, in writing, or by telephone or e-mail.
Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates: Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person.
Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work: Developing specific goals and plans to prioritize, organize, and accomplish your work.
Thinking Creatively: Developing, designing, or creating new applications, ideas, relationships, systems, or products, including artistic contributions.
Selling or Influencing Others: Convincing others to buy merchandise/goods or to otherwise change their minds or actions.
Making Decisions and Solving Problems: Analyzing information and evaluating results to choose the best solution and solve problems.
Coordinating the Work and Activities of Others: Getting members of a group to work together to accomplish tasks.
Scheduling Work and Activities: Scheduling events, programs, and activities, as well as the work of others.
Developing Objectives and Strategies: Establishing long-range objectives and specifying the strategies and actions to achieve them.

Work Context

Telephone: How often do you have telephone conversations in this job?
Electronic Mail: How often do you use electronic mail in this job?
Face-to-Face Discussions: How often do you have to have face-to-face discussions with individuals or teams in this job?
Indoors, Environmentally Controlled: How often does this job require working indoors in environmentally controlled conditions?
Contact With Others: How much does this job require the worker to be in contact with others (face-to-face, by telephone, or otherwise) in order to perform it?
Letters and Memos: How often does the job require written letters and memos?
Work With Work Group or Team: How important is it to work with others in a group or team in this job?
Structured versus Unstructured Work: To what extent is this job structured for the worker, rather than allowing the worker to determine tasks, priorities, and goals?
Time Pressure: How often does this job require the worker to meet strict deadlines?
Freedom to Make Decisions: How much decision making freedom, without supervision, does the job offer?

Interests

Enterprising: Enterprising occupations frequently involve starting up and carrying out projects. These occupations can involve leading people and making many decisions. Sometimes they require risk taking and often deal with business.
Conventional: Conventional occupations frequently involve following set procedures and routines. These occupations can include working with data and details more than with ideas. Usually there is a clear line of authority to follow.
Artistic: Artistic occupations frequently involve working with forms, designs and patterns. They often require self-expression and the work can be done without following a clear set of rules.
Social: Social occupations frequently involve working with, communicating with, and teaching people. These occupations often involve helping or providing service to others.
Investigative: Investigative occupations frequently involve working with ideas, and require an extensive amount of thinking. These occupations can involve searching for facts and figuring out problems mentally.
Realistic: Realistic occupations frequently involve work activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions. They often deal with plants, animals, and real-world materials like wood, tools, and machinery. Many of the occupations require working outside, and do not involve a lot of paperwork or working closely with others.

Work Style

Dependability: Job requires being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations.
Attention to Detail: Job requires being careful about detail and thorough in completing work tasks.
Cooperation: Job requires being pleasant with others on the job and displaying a good-natured, cooperative attitude.
Integrity: Job requires being honest and ethical.
Leadership: Job requires a willingness to lead, take charge, and offer opinions and direction.
Initiative: Job requires a willingness to take on responsibilities and challenges.
Persistence: Job requires persistence in the face of obstacles.
Achievement/Effort: Job requires establishing and maintaining personally challenging achievement goals and exerting effort toward mastering tasks.
Adaptability/Flexibility: Job requires being open to change (positive or negative) and to considerable variety in the workplace.
Stress Tolerance: Job requires accepting criticism and dealing calmly and effectively with high stress situations.

Work Values

Working Conditions: Occupations that satisfy this work value offer job security and good working conditions. Corresponding needs are Activity, Compensation, Independence, Security, Variety and Working Conditions.
Achievement: Occupations that satisfy this work value are results oriented and allow employees to use their strongest abilities, giving them a feeling of accomplishment. Corresponding needs are Ability Utilization and Achievement.
Relationships: Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employees to provide service to others and work with co-workers in a friendly non-competitive environment. Corresponding needs are Co-workers, Moral Values and Social Service.
Independence: Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employees to work on their own and make decisions. Corresponding needs are Creativity, Responsibility and Autonomy.
Recognition: Occupations that satisfy this work value offer advancement, potential for leadership, and are often considered prestigious. Corresponding needs are Advancement, Authority, Recognition and Social Status.
Support: Occupations that satisfy this work value offer supportive management that stands behind employees. Corresponding needs are Company Policies, Supervision: Human Relations and Supervision: Technical.

Related Occupations

Advertising and Promotions Managers

Sales Managers

Wholesale and Retail Buyers, Except Farm Products

Public Relations Specialists

Demonstrators and Product Promoters

Lay Titles

Account Supervisor

Assistant Marketing Manager

Brand Manager

Bridal Consultant

Business Developer

Business Development Director

Business Development Manager

Business Development Specialist

Category Manager

Channel Manager

Commercial Director

Commercial Lines Manager

Commercial Marketing Specialist

Community Relations Director

Director of Business Development

Director of Sales and Marketing

Director of Sales Marketing

Fashion Coordinator

Fashion Marketer

Fashion Stylist

Head of Marketing

International Trade Specialist

Internet Marketing Manager

Market Development Manager

Market Research Manager

Marketing Administrator

Marketing Agent

Marketing Assistant

Marketing Communications Manager

Marketing Coordinator

Marketing Director

Marketing Executive

Marketing Manager

Marketing Officer

Marketing Planner

Marketing Representative

Marketing Sales Supervisor

Marketing Vice President

Media Buyer

Media Marketing Director

Media Planner

Pricing Analyst

Pricing Manager

Pricing Specialist

Product Development Manager

Product Line Manager (PLM)

Sales and Marketing Manager

Sales Officer

Sports Marketer

Strategic Planner

Strategist

Supervisor of Sales

Trade Specialist

Vice President of Marketing

World Trade and Maritime Division Manager

National Wages and Employment Info

Median Wages (2008):: $57.44 hourly, $119,480 annual.

Employment (2008):: 171,430 employees