Trust Your Marketer (and All the Marketers said, Amen!)
Do you know the person who irrationally believes they can do anything?
You know the type, they yell at athletes during a game and then slump back on their couch and think, I could have made that shot.
I see that mentality often when it comes to marketing. It really is one of the few industries where everyone has an opinion and thinks they are a designer. I get it. There are aspects of marketing that are subjective which means opinions do matter. Also, there is the obvious. Marketing is sexy and people want to be part of campaigns because it's just plain fun. But that does not mean everyone can or should do marketing.
Companies need to trust their (good) marketers and marketers need to stand their ground.
Marketing is a Skill
I am closing in on 9-years of marketing experience and 3-years owning my own business, Elisha Consulting. Over the years I have worked on enjoyable campaigns which led to increased revenue - that is marketing.
I have also met people with amazing skills in their profession and trust them to do their job. Yet, that same trust does not always reciprocate to marketers. We are told how to complete a project and to just make it look nice.
That's called production not marketing.
Marketers, let me re-phrase that, excellent marketers listen to their clients and/or supervisors. They listen to needs, goals, and vision. Understanding where a company wants to go is essential to marketing. After they listen, the marketer will do even more research and craft a strategy that meets the goal/s of the company. That strategy is then executed and analyzed to see if it is working or not. If it's working, then keep running. If it's not, then adjustments need to be made.
The above is a rudimentary explanation of the marketing process and can be broken down into five steps:
- Discovery Research
- Strategy
- Execution
- Analytics
- Maintenance
Within each of those five steps are intricate details which take skill to be done correctly. An individual marketer will likely excel in one or many of the steps and have crafted their talent through education and experience. Marketing is no different than any other profession as it takes dedication to do great work.
Yet, many times, marketers are not viewed as skilled workers. Why is that?
I wonder if it's because internally we are all creative and want the opportunity to express ourselves (I know you loved finger painting as a child, you are creative). Therefore, when a marketing professional is in the room they are not treated the same as an accountant or lawyer because people feel they are just as creative as the marketer. Just a thought.
The point is marketers should be trusted because our intention is to take an abstract goal and make it a reality through strategic execution. Whether a website, app, social media posts, print design, sales proposals, or 100 different items which get the job done.
Who do You Trust Professionally?
Did you hear there were a lot of tax regulation changes this year? You know what my wife and I did, we called an accountant who is an expert in tax laws. Why? Becuase they have the knowledge we don't.
It's the same reason I have a financial adviser, real estate agent, tailor, and take my wife to restaurants with amazing chefs. All of those professionals have skills I don't and I trust them to provide outstanding service.
I didn't write this to make anyone feel bad or call out individuals. Instead, the intention was two-fold, 1) provide freedom to executives, and 2) encourage young marketers.
On the first point, executives and managers are busy. It seems like each year more and more is being asked of people. So why would anyone want to do someone else's job? If you hire a marketer, then trust them until they don't deserve your trust. Tell them your goals and have them design a strategy to accomplish them.
On the second point, if you are a young marketer, believe in your skills and execute to the point you deserve trust. It becomes a lot easier to stand your ground when you have a portfolio of successful campaigns.
As Always - Close with a Call to Action
My marketing card would be revoked unless I had a call to action :)
You are in the right spot if you haven't found that excellent marketer who can be trusted. The team at Elisha Consulting obsesses over our clients as we want them to succeed. Become one of those clients who receive concierge service by contacting us today.
Matt Avery
