When I started working as a marketing manager at a large construction company over 20 years ago, many of the veterans there (and I, too) wondered, \u201cWhy do we actually need someone just to place ads?\u201d<\/p>\n
Back then, I enjoyed giving a short presentation on the wide-ranging responsibilities of marketing, which culminated in the statement: “EVERYTHING in a company is marketing<\/strong>. “<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n The construction workers found that hard to believe\u2014but it remains true to this day and applies to every company. Including yours! <\/p>\n Marketing is what you (have to) do to tailor your products, prices, distribution channels, and communications to your market\u2014and first you have to get to know that market.<\/p>\n With such a comprehensive definition of marketing, it\u2019s clear that marketing should be of concern to everyone in the company.<\/p>\n All too often, however, marketing is still confused with “sales” or “advertising” and assigned to departments or individual people. If you’re a sole proprietor, you might put on your “marketing” hat from time to time. <\/p>\n But I am convinced that this attitude is not enough. Marketing is what connects the company to \u201cthe people out there.\u201d And those people out there are supposed to pay you for a service or a product\u2014without which (the money) you won\u2019t survive for long. So it\u2019s everyone\u2019s business how the company presents itself to the outside world, what it offers, and how. <\/p>\n To know what your product or service needs to look like, you need to understand what \u201cthe market\u201d looks like: who your customers are (or should be), where they are, what makes them tick, and how and through which channels you can reach them.<\/p>\n Understanding the market is therefore also\u2014and especially\u2014important for the development \u201cdepartment\u201d (which is usually you). The task is to align what you offer with the needs of your potential customers. And that\u2019s much harder than convincing yourself that your brilliant idea isn\u2019t catching on with customers simply because they\u2019re too stupid to understand it. <\/p>\n Not everyone is involved in product development. But everyone interacts with your customers at some point. So even administrative staff can contribute to effective marketing. After all, it\u2019s quite simple\u2014and, unfortunately, often overlooked: it matters how you talk about your company on the phone or even in your free time\u2014not to mention on social media. Customers should be treated well, regardless of who happens to be \u201con duty\u201d at the moment! <\/p>\n Of course, you need to take responsibility for this issue, whether you tackle it yourself or delegate it to others. It\u2019s important to truly get everyone in the company on board so that everyone acts as a unified team in the marketplace, whether they\u2019re visible or not. <\/p>\n It’s even better when everyone contributes to building your unique position in the market\u2014in other words, when everyone helps create your “brand.” More on that soon. <\/p>\n Warm regards<\/p>\n Yours,<\/p>\n Ulrike Hudelmaier<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" When I started working as a marketing manager at … <\/p>\n