Marketing manager

Knowledge

The Marketing Manager requires an understanding of:

Marketing Concepts & Theories

• The principles and theories of marketing that support the strategic marketing process, e.g. the extended marketing mix (7P’S: Product, Price, Place, Promotion, Physical environment, Process, People), marketing management processes, product development and how to apply and align these to the business plan and strategic objectives
• Brand development and safeguarding, including the analysis and planning of how a brand is perceived in the market, value propositions and delivery of tangible elements such as product pricing, packaging etc
• Consumer and organisational behaviour theories and concepts, including the customer (business 2 business/consumer) decision making process and how that influences marketing strategy
• Advanced stakeholder management and the application of customer relationship management (CRM), both internal and external, to facilitate the delivery of marketing plans
• Marketing Communication planning models and budgetary methodologies.

Business understanding and Commercial Awareness

• Their organisation’s vision, mission, values, strategy, plans, stakeholders, customers and competitors to support the decision and planning process
• The wider business perspective in which marketing operates nationally and internationally, including the influences of the internal and external market/sector, the opportunities, challenges and issues it faces, and how marketing can address these
•  How to measure and deliver Return on Investment in relation to marketing activities and plans
• The relevant industry/sector specific legal, regulatory and compliance frameworks within which they must work, including current Data Protection regulations.

Research & Insight

• Effective market research and evaluation techniques and methods and how to use the results to inform marketing planning and activities
• Reliable information sources and how to use these to deliver measurable improvements to marketing activities, including how metrics are used to measure these
• New and emerging trends and themes in marketing.

Product and Service Development

• The principles of product and service design and implementation and portfolio management
• The features and benefits of different marketing communications, and routes to market, and how to leverage these to maximum effect, including the use of appropriate digital channels and systems.

Skills

The Marketing Manager is able to:

Marketing Strategy

• Lead and implement a clear marketing plan and strategy, linked to business requirements to sustain a marketing advantage
• Develop effective marketing campaigns and channels, assessing their features and benefits to best meet business requirements and customer needs
• Develop detailed integrated marketing plans for all products/ services using offline and digital media tools  – works with marketing team/ specialist agencies to do this.

Advanced Interpersonal and Communication Skills

• Influence, negotiate and persuade at senior level collaborating with a wide range of stakeholders internally and externally to gain support/backing for marketing delivery
• Act as a consultant, providing professional marketing advice to stakeholders around the business or to external clients as relevant
• Present complex information in an understandable and stimulating way whether through effective verbal presentation or creative written copy.

Service Delivery and improvement

• Oversee, manage and approve key marketing activities/projects
• Deliver measurable marketing outcomes against key performance indicators and identify and drive continuous improvement, challenging existing processes and procedures where needed.

Resource Management

• Effectively plan and manage the marketing budget, to deliver on strategic objectives, and evaluate and justify return on marketing investment
• Effectively engage, negotiate and manage third party suppliers and internal stakeholders.

Planning & Analysing

• Effectively evaluate marketing activities using measurement data and analytics to identify relevant key performance indicators (KPI) and return on marketing investment (ROI) in order to meet business objectives
• Assimilate and analyse complex data and information from a range of sources to evolve, lead and plan marketing activities.

Commercial Approach

• Seek out opportunities to increase income generation and gain new business e.g. new products, markets and services as relevant
• Construct a robust buness case in support of marketing activities/plans
• Effectively manage and develop stakeholder relationships at senior level
• Assess business risks and reputational impacts of marketing activities.

Leadership

• Inspire and motivate internally and externally to deliver marketing plans effectively, acting as a role-model for marketing best practice and taking responsibility for improving their own and the team’s and/or stakeholder performance, as relevant.

Systems and Processes

• Effectively use appropriate business systems and software to deliver marketing outcomes efficiently, for example to analyse data, inform search engine marketing, produce reports and deliver copy
• Actively interrogate systems and information sources to make judgements on when to introduce new ways of working/identify new systems/processes to improve marketing activities or address those new requirements and /or marketing trends.

Behaviours

The Marketing Manager is able to demonstrate:

Agile and Flexible

• An ability to anticipate and adapt to change
• A highly motivated and driven approach acting with courage to drive through necessary changes and deliver difficult or long-term projects.

Creative and Commercial Thinker

• A creative and innovative approach
• An analytical mind, with an insight and ideas driven approach to meet business benefits and inspire action in others.

Resilience and continuous improvement

• A willingness to learn from mistakes, as not all activities go to plan, and improve future delivery/campaigns as a result
• They act as a role model for marketing activities and business changes within the team and organisation, taking others with them. 

Professionalism and Emotional Intelligence

• A high level of professionalism, reliability and dependability with a passion for the customer, also encouraging those behaviours in others
• A collaborative approach is central to how they work, showing empathy and being mindful to the needs/views of others
• Ethical behaviour in the way they approach marketing activities and their work, valuing equality & diversity, they act as a role model for that behaviour.