Branden Wetsel

Professor Nelson
Business 1010
Term Project Paper – Marketing Executive
Job Description

A Marketing Executive is meant to be the brains behind selling or promoting

products/services within a company. According to Alex from Targetjobs.co.uk “Marketing

executives develop and oversee marketing campaigns to promote products or services.” The

responsibilities and details of each Marketing Executive changes depending on the company and

how big the product or service is, but the general responsibilities remain the same. Some of these

responsibilities are “overseeing and developing marketing campaigns, promotional activities,

managing campaigns on social media, and organizing events and product exhibitions” (Alex,

2017) According to Charterselection.com a Marketing Executive should be able to “use the full

marketing mix for the company’s marketing communications” I would say that the biggest

responsibility that Marketing Executives have is keeping up with trends in business and making

sure that they are promoting a product or service in the most effective way possible. A Marketing

Executive can be key in a product or services success or failure.

General Career Path

Getting to the position of a Marketing Executive is not a simple task, there are many

different entry level jobs that start on that career path and require working the way up the ranks.

It is also important to note that “depending on the size and type of employer, a marketing

executive may or may not be an entry-level or graduate role” (Alex, 2017) To start on the

marketing path, I would begin with an entry-level job involving marketing. Some examples of
these are “Account Coordinator, Social Media Coordinator, Project Coordinator, Marketing

Coordinator and Marketing Specialist” (AgencySparks, 2016) Most of these positions are entry

level but do prefer some experience in the related field. Whether that is on the job experience or

learning through a college or institution. The next step in the career path requires moving up to

management in anyone of those respected positions listed above. Some examples of Marketing

management are “Advertising Manager, Public Relations Manager, Promotions Manager, Social

Media Manager and Product Marketing Manager” (AgencySparks, 2016) Depending on which

path was chosen will change the type of manager or marketer that I will become. From

management positions, we would then move our way into a director position. Some examples of

director positions are “Director of Marketing Research, Director of Advertising Sales, Director

of Media, and Director of Public Relations” (AgencySparks, 2016) We begin to see the patterns

of Media, Marketing, and Public Relations. All of these paths are a part of marketing in itself,

just slightly different and more specified variations. After director, we would work our way into

a Vice President spot. The Vice President position is very specified and is the last step before

reaching a CMO or Chief Marketing Officer. The first and most important step in the process of

become a marketing executive is figuring out which field you want to work in. Is it Media,

Marketing, or Public Relations? These are the most specified career paths for a Marketing

Executive.

General Education Experience

“Marketing managers come from a wide range of educational backgrounds, but many

employers look for a bachelor’s degree in marketing or in business with a marketing emphasis”

(Marketingcareeredu.org) This does not necessarily mean that a bachelor’s degree is required

to get your foot in the door. There are many different companies looking for different things,
upon researching jobs for myself when I graduate Salt Lake Community College, I found a lot of

different Social Media jobs that only wanted an associate’s degree to get started. It all depends

on the size of the company and the need to fill the position. I intend to look for the entry-level

jobs requiring an associate’s degree in marketing, communication or business with an emphasis

on marketing. It will most likely be in communication as that is my major, but I do have a few

marketing classes thrown into the mix. As you get higher up the ranks as a marketing-based

employee, you will find that the higher ranked jobs want a bachelor’s or master’s degree, but that

can be nullified with experience in the position.

Average Salary

I have found on payscale.com that the median or average salary for a Marketing

Executive is “$59,102” Again, everything depends on experience and knowledge of marketing as

you move up the ranks. The higher level Marketing Executives are making “$132,000 annual

salary” (payscale.com) “The salary a marketing manager can earn varies greatly, depending on

factors such as the industry, the size and location of the employer, and the education”

(Marketingcareeredu.org) There is a lot of many to be made if you can get yourself in the right

career path as a Marketing Executive or Manager. The schooling does not matter if you can get

into an entry-level position and work your way up through experience and hard work. There is

only one position that requires constant schooling and that is if you want to be certified in the

marketing world. This can be done by passing an exam and it usually requires certification to be

redone every year. “Renewing the certification requires a minimum of 20 hours of continuing

education each year.” (Marketingcareeredu.org) Certifications are sure fire ways to bypass all

the entry level steps and start making the big bucks immediately. The one downside is they need

to be renewed each year and require schooling to do so.

Career Outlook

The industry is a difficult one to get into and continue to be in, but if you have the skills

and drive to do the job it has a very positive outlook. Growing as a Marketing Executive is

difficult to do, but the benefits of the paychecks make it worth your while. According to bls.gov

there was a reported “249,600 jobs in the marketing field in 2016” that may seem like a lot of

jobs but the career paths is only growing at a “10% rate” (bls.gov, 2016) which makes it

extremely difficult to get into the jobs. “Overall employment of advertising, promotions, and

marketing managers is projected to grow 10 percent from 2016 to 2026, faster than the average

for all occupations. Advertising, promotions, and marketing campaigns will continue to be

essential for organizations as they seek to maintain and expand their share of the market.”

(bls.gov, 2016) The career outlook is very positive and has a chance to become one of the best

jobs you could ask for which is what makes the hard work and determination to succeed worth it

in the end. With the growth of businesses everywhere in the world we are starting to see the need

for marketing positions open up, meaning there is becoming more and more opportunity to grow

within this career path. I would say the outlook is positive and only getting better.

Bio of someone in the profession

One of the most famous marketing executives out there is Kelly Bennett, he is the Chief

Marketing Officer for a company we know as Netflix. He is a big part of the reason that Netflix

became so popular. “Whether it was plastering cocaine hotspots from the '90s with punny one-

liners to promote Narcos or partnering with Spotify, Snapchat, and Lyft to build excitement

around "Stranger Things 2," 2017 was the year that Netflix truly made entertainment transcend

our screens.” (Dua, 2017) Bennett was behind all the big ideas to lift Netflix off the ground and

it was done through his innovative ideas of how to market. He patterned with big name
companies in which people use their services everyday to promote Netflix. He used subliminal

advertising to get Netflix and all of their hot new shows into people’s minds. Bennet now “leads

global marketing and social media for Netflix across more than 150 countries.” (Dua, 2017)

Pros and Cons

There are many pros and cons to the career path of a Marketing Executive. The biggest

pro is being in charge of your own campaigns and marketing teams, but this can also be a con as

you cannot fail with that much freedom over a team. There is a lot on the shoulders of a

Marketing Executive which is a big con, but one I think I could get past as I enjoy having control

over my own situations. Another pro that I retrieved from hays.co.uk is that “Sales and

Marketing Managers tend to command decent starting salaries” This is in large part of how big

the job they need to accomplish is, and if they are successful at that task, more money will come.

This could also be a con as being in a higher-level position, more is expected of you and if you

don’t succeed then less money will come. One last thing I could see as a pro is “Sales and

Marketing Managers often have to travel” (hays.co.uk) In my opinion that would be pretty cool

to travel for my job, to some it could be a con but I see it as a pro.

Your “fit” with this career

I think I would fit well with this career for a few reasons. Number one, I enjoy bringing

new ideas to the table. It is something I have always wanted to do and a marketing position fits

that description perfectly. Number 2, with my degree in communication I have learned a lot of

different ways to bring new content and ideas to the company I currently work for and I am not

in a marketing position, therefore, I think I could do it with my specified focus in

communicating. Last thing, is the freedom of being in control of myself, giving me true creative
freedom could bring out the best in me and truly help me grow as an employee and a person. So,

to summarize, I really liked everything I read and researched when looking at this career and I

would say it is the perfect fit for what I am looking for in a career.
References

Advertising, Promotions, and Marketing Managers: Occupational Outlook Handbook: (n.d.).

Retrieved from https://www.bls.gov/ooh/management/advertising-promotions-and-marketing-

managers.htm

AgencySparks. (2016, October 11). The Marketing Career Path: From Entry-Level to Chief

Marketing Officer. Retrieved from https://www.agencysparks.com/blog/the-marketing-career-

path

Average Marketing Executive Salary. (n.d.). Retrieved from

https://www.payscale.com/research/US/Job=Marketing_Executive/Salary

Becoming a Marketing Manager. (n.d.). Retrieved from

https://www.marketingcareeredu.org/marketing-manager/

Dua, T. (2017, November 28). The 50 most innovative CMOs in the world in 2017. Retrieved

from https://www.businessinsider.com/50-most-innovative-cmos-2017-10#6-kelly-bennett-cmo-

netflix-45

Marketing Executive Job Description - Marketing Job Descriptions. (n.d.). Retrieved from

https://www.charterselection.com/marketing-job-descriptions/marketing-executive-job-

description

A. (2017, September 07). Marketing executive: Job description. Retrieved from

https://targetjobs.co.uk/careers-advice/job-descriptions/276073-marketing-executive-job-

description
Pros and cons of being a sales and marketing manager. (n.d.). Retrieved from

https://www.hays.co.uk/features/HAYS_008575