Business Marketing Career

The goal of marketing is to make a product or service appealing to current and future customers. Some areas in which marketing is regularly used include:
  • event organization
  • international business
  • Internet and search engine marketing
  • retail.
 
With the emergence of online marketing, a number of new opportunities in the sales and marketing industry have arisen. Whether you want to be a marketing manager, a marketing coordinator for a dynamic e-commerce firm or an insurance marketing agent, there are plenty of career options in this exciting field.
 
Types of Marketing The field of marketing can be divided into four different sections:
  • advertising : Advertising involves any type of promotional media you see from TV commercials to billboards. Those who work in advertising concentrate on advertising strategy both creatively and from a business point of view.

    For example, some advertising jobs revolve around coming up with new ways to sell a product, while others will focus on negotiating deals, ad space and time with big name companies. Some jobs that fall under the advertising category are Media Planner and Advertising Sales Director.
 
  • brand management : Brand management focuses on the selling and development of particular brand names through market research and media attention. Brand managers typically direct all aspects of marketing a brand, from purchasing to distribution. Product development is also a part of brand management.
 
  • market research : Society is continuously changing, and market researchers strive to identify these changes and keep up with the interests of the public. Market Research Directors create and organize a company's marketing policies and objectives. Another example of job in market research is Market Analyst.
 
  • public relations : Jobs in public relations involve creating and selling an image of a company or individual. Public relation firms and specialists work heavily with the media to find opportunities to represent a company or individual in a positive light, whether it is through interviews, high profile events or advertising. Job duties include writing press releases, planning events and tracking trends.
 
Some companies simply have a marketing department that deals with all things marketing, from design to budgeting. In this case, marketing degree graduates can be hired as marketing assistants and can move on to become marketing managers.

Education in Marketing

For students attending college for the first time, most colleges and universities offer associate or bachelor's degrees in marketing. These marketing programs are designed to teach students the fundamentals of marketing, including strategy and theory.
 
Related Areas of Study
Even if the school you are interested doesn't offer marketing as a discipline of study, there are other majors that are closely related to marketing and can be applied towards a sales marketing career. These areas of study include:
  • business
  • communications
  • design/graphic design
  • journalism.
 

In some cases, colleges will offer degrees in these areas with specializations in marketing.
 

Associate's in Business/Marketing

An associate's degree will usually take two years to complete, while a bachelor's degree takes at least four years. Courses may include topics such as:
  • economics
  • global marketing
  • market research
  • marketing strategy
  • marketing communications
  • sales management.
 

Bachelor's of Science in Business/Marketing

Earning a Bachelor of Science degree in business/marketing may be required to work in certain companies. The business marketing program will give you a deeper understanding of marketing and how it relates to general business. Completion of this program takes about four to five years.

Coursework for B.S. in Business/Marketing

Universities may offer courses through classroom or online settings. The education you receive will cover many areas of marketing and may include the subjects:
  • computer models
  • consumer psychology
  • economics
  • leadership
  • operations management
  • production management
  • statistics.
 
Earning a bachelor's degree from a state university may cost $16,000 or more, while private institutions usually have higher costs than public universities.

Graduate Marketing Certificate

Further education beyond a bachelor's or associate degree is recommended for those who want to build a career in marketing. Earning a graduate marketing certificate can help you gain marketing skills and knowledge in a more concentrated program. In some cases, you do not need a four-year degree to obtain a marketing certificate.
 
School curriculums differ, but acquiring this certificate may take anywhere from five to ten months.
 
Coursework, either in class or online, may cover the following:
  • consumer behavior
  • internet marketing (including Pay Per Click, or PPC, search engine internet marketing)
  • marketing communication
  • marketing management
  • marketing research
  • marketing strategy.
 
The cost of certification programs vary from school to school, ranging from a hundred to several thousand dollars.

Master's of Business Administration/Marketing

For those who want to pursue graduate education in marketing, an MBA in marketing is a great choice. People with advanced degrees are eligible for higher-paying, managerial jobs. This holds especially true in the marketing field because there are many skills that need to be acquired in order to be successful.
 
Students enrolled in a master's program will be educated in business research methods. To graduate, some schools may require a written business research thesis, while other schools require that students pass an all-inclusive final exam.
 
Completing an MBA may take two years or longer, with costs starting at around $16,000.


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