by Erna George. A recent chat to the sales team about the journey to our current careers was both a great ‘blast from the past’ and an eye-opener for the younger team members.
In between laughing about the days of presenting acetate sheets on overhead projectors, it was so interesting to hear the stories of how people started across marketing and sales. Whether you had a degree or not, you were required to work across tasks, from counting stock in factories to packing shelves in-store, amid taking your first orders and attending your first agency meeting — a serious case of more mundane basics mixed in with the magic.
Everyone who ‘grew up’ with this blend (in my experience with them) displays a fantastic understanding of which levers to pull to enable success. Is there a case for balancing pragmatic grounding, built upon experiencing basic tasks, with fresh thinking to unlock relevant and significant opportunities?
Some of my first ‘jobs’
Many in my team were surprised to hear that I started as a student merchandising shelves, managing the returns box in trade and shadowing across various meetings and projects. Some of my first ‘jobs’ as an ABM (assistant brand manager) were to manage the display cabinets, filing and board taste sessions.
Swapping historic tales, we agreed there is a strong argument for experiencing the basics across various business functions. Engaging in multiple fundamental tasks and spending time across tasks for a marketing person yield several positives:
- Fresh eyes on the process allow for fresh thinking on what is possible
- Understanding the obstacles and opportunities make for better project management and promotional opportunities identification eg understanding if packing a promo gift in pack is possible on the manufacturing line without a significant impact upon efficiency
- Stronger relationships with cross-functional teams and better teamwork across projects
This approach may be humbling and it reflects an understanding beyond what some believe marketing is all about. There are still many who believe marketing is only about making beautiful ads, impactful packaging and new launches, all via multiple partner agencies and leaving extensive time for lunches and good times. Not everyone gets to see the guts in marketing — the in-depth competitor reviews, trackers, budget reconciliations or research analysis used as the basis of numerous decision-papers or presentations.
Understanding of roles
While there is a real opportunity to show broader teams the marketing-thinking journey, the opportunity to reflect an understanding of their roles is greater. A view that marketers only come up with blue-sky ideas that others must make implementable may be balanced by reflecting consideration of other functions within the value chain. Pushing the boundaries is one thing; doing this with an appreciation of the challenges in the system shows a business maturity and respect that win you many battles and wars to drive change, new innovation and even delivering on time.
To an extent, this is part of the premise of internships and apprenticeships. Many in marketing have gone down the ‘internship’ route and many join direct from university. I do not want to disparage either approach. I simply contend that merging book-smarts with experiencing daily-grind processes is potentially a great way for creating efficiency and amplifying team strengths. In fact, when interviewing fresh talent, those who do not have a hunger or willingness to engage in the basics may make me more hesitant to appoint, as effective marketing is about the guts and glory. Taking time at the outset of one’s career and reengaging every now and then with fundamental aspects provide the context for good decisions that are relevant to the business operation, consumers and trade.
The marketing team are in the often-enviable position of seeing the final idea come to life, grow wings and take off. Not everyone gets to share in the glory, so sharing in some of the pain and toil allows eyes on the hurdles, the gaps and (putting it all together) the horizon or way forward.
Blending basics with magic
Blending the everyday basics with the magic means:
- You learn the rules so you understand how to “break” these properly for best impact
- Even blue sky solutions are made applicable
- Everyone can feel involved for optimal team motivation and connection
So, let’s encourage new starters and entrenched marketers to spend time on or go back to the floor to see how things really work in order to craft great change.
Erna George is the new marketing executive of Pioneer Foods’ Cereals & Other division. She has worked on both client and agency sides with diverse brands and categories — from FMCG, alcohol and agriculture to financial services and entertainment — in countries across many geographies, including South Africa, Mozambique, Nigeria, Kenya, India, Philippines and Brazil. She contributes the monthly “Fair Exchange” column, concerning business relationships and partnerships in marketing and brandland, to MarkLives.
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