Question

Topic: Other

What's The Proper Scope Of A Marketing Manager?

Posted by biggermiao on 7/28/2017 at 11:33 PM ET 500 Points
Hi, thanks for the help in advanced.

So I just became the marketing manager of our team and hope to get insight on both what unique values the MM brings to the team and also the level of involvement/engagement necessary on a day to day basis. My actual question is at the end of this writing as I want to provide more background on what I've already planned on doing/done as a basis.

Planning Stages:

I've done the research, decided on our strategy, positioning, target audiences, set our objectives and our main tactics for the year, outlined our monthly task schedule and divided the team members into focals for different functions as well as put forth new hire requests to HR. Also, currently I treat myself as another resource and am the focal of a particular function myself.

Quarterly/Monthly Stages:

Looking at how well we hit our objectives, analytics, what worked and what didn't work so well, which dimensions, etc and make adjustments to direction and tactics.

Weekly Stages:

Each week I open with a weekly meeting to assign tasks and due dates for each team member based on the strategy, we also take this time to discuss specific ways to tackle them within the predefined direction.

We also look at the previous week's performance and work out ways to adjust.

Daily Stages:

I try to get in touch with each person 3 times a week to see how things are going, provide suggestions and coaching to ensure things are on track. Every time a task is finished, I review it and sign if off. I also try my best to be visible and involved by going with them on events, meetings with partners, etc.

Hourly Stages:

Most of the time, I'm actually just doing the work I assigned to myself as part of the tasks, mostly from a specific function but also things that impact the entire team like technology, budget, getting resources and coordination, etc. In other words, I'm not interacting with them for about 85% of the day.

Ok, now comes the question:

1. Is this the differentiated value that a marketing manager should bring, or is there something more? (I was previously just a team member churning out work all day, I worked pretty independently, chose my own tasks, so I didn't really see much value to be honest that my previous manager brought.. and I still have trouble seeing it.. aka what if I know better?)

2. How engaged should I be with their work? e.g. being involved at each step of a task, or only giving a bit of advice and critiquing it for last changes during sign-off time?

3. Should I also consider myself a resource and be responsible for a particular function, i.e. campaigns or events, or should I be solely horizontal and work with each function from a higher level perspective?

4. I don't want to micro-manage, but I don't want to become that guy that disappears into that high-level cloud of an office that simply gives tasks once a week and steps back into the corporate thing. I want to be involved, but that's tricky.

5. Finally, is the marketing manager supposed to be a better content writer than the content manager, a better event planner than his event guy, a better landing page planner than his web guy, etc? I'm better at lots of things, but not all. And if he/she isn't better at these things than his team members, what is the value he brings to the table on a day to day basis other than the high level corporate objectives, strategy and plans?

Thanks so much for answering this extremely long and involved question. I promise when I get this down, I will create content around your answers and attribute it to your names : )
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RESPONSES

  • Posted by mgoodman on 7/29/2017 at 3:50 PM Moderator
    What a marketing manager should do depends on the company's objectives, the MM's skills, the skills of others in the department, and what other managers in the company expect or need from him/her. If your team needs training, then you become mostly a trainer. If the team needs strategic direction, then you become the chief strategist. If the team needs a skill you happen to have, then pitch in and do the job.

    No need to refer to some textbook definition of what a marketing manager does. Do what needs to be done to deliver the objective.
  • Posted by biggermiao on 7/29/2017 at 11:32 PM Author
    Thanks alot mgoodman for the fast and concise response as usual. In summary, the MM is chosen to lead and help the team reach its objectives and what leading means is situational. cheers!
  • Posted by Gary Bloomer on 7/30/2017 at 12:02 PM Member
    I agree with Michael. I'd also add the importance of keeping eyes and ears out for the needs of clients and customers.

    What are these people saying about your company, in public or in private?

    What needs, traits, or qualities do they need or expect that the company isn't currently filling, offering, or providing?

    What industry standards do you exceed that clients don't know about? What standards could you exceed if you knew about them and how might this new level help clients?

    How much of an open door, open idea policy do you think you have, versus what your direct reports think you offer? How could you improve?
  • Posted by mgoodman on 7/30/2017 at 1:11 PM Accepted
    One more thought, building on the point Gary made: Many companies are too inward focused. They are fixated on their products, their sales processes, their promotions, etc.

    One important role of the Marketing Department is to stay close to the customers/consumers, to identify emerging and unmet needs, to identify customer beliefs, values, habits, practices, attitudes and awareness that could impact the activities of the company -- in product development, pricing, distribution policies, etc.

    Are customers beginning to gather information online? Do they need just-in-time delivery? What factors go into their brand purchase decisions that might not have been important in the past but are now beginning to play a role? Etc.

    Very often in our consulting practice we find that attention to customers' changing needs and behaviors end up providing our clients with the highest value of all. We have even come to expect that the "inward focus" factor could be holding our clients back. It takes the outside perspective to identify those kinds of opportunities. As a new marketing manager perhaps you can play that role for your company. (If not, maybe call on an experienced consultant for just that purpose.)
  • Posted by telemoxie on 7/31/2017 at 7:39 AM Accepted
    I don't have her much information about your industry or company, and some shooting in the dark. But I would suggest that you also consider the following.

    Much of what you originally wrote was describing the interactions within the marketing department. Yes, I also believe it is important that you also be engaged in some way with customers and prospects. In addition, The marketing department needs to stay in close contact and develop good relationships with other company departments. It is one thing for the marketing department come up with their own internal ideas of where the company should go and what the company should be and now the organization to fit into the market. But there are other people with ideas as well. Your R&D department probably has their own ideas. Your sales department may be yelling for more highly qualified leads. Your position description alone will not give you the gravitas and authority and ability to reshape and redirect the business as you see fit. You will need to work closely and collaboratively and cooperatively with other departments and functions. You might want to be seen as more of a service organization rather than positioning yourself as a guide and leader to the rest of the organization.
  • Posted by telemoxie on 7/31/2017 at 7:40 AM Member
    Sorry, I meant to say, "and so I am shooting in the dark".
  • Posted by Mike Steffes on 7/31/2017 at 10:18 AM Accepted
    You don't have to be better than your reports. You do, however, have to be able to recognize good work (work capable of getting you to your objectives). You should be capable of collaborating with your reports, when needed, to improve aspects of their work.
  • Posted by Gary Bloomer on 7/31/2017 at 7:09 PM Accepted
    Another point: be willing, able, and ready to empower people, to lift them up, to give them autonomy. The more you trust your people to make sound, solid decisions, the better and sounder decisions they will make.

    In your one-on-one meetings, keep these things short (under 10 minutes). Make decisions WITH your people and make those decisions QUICKLY so that you can test more new ideas and fail fast while failing forward. When your reports are reporting to you, the notes they work from need to be one sheet of paper, with a simple list of actionable bullet points. Far too many business meetings drag on and bloody on for NO GOOD REASON. Right now, you are primed to become the person who gets stuff done. The more you become this, the more your people will trust, like, respect, admire, and follow you.
  • Posted by Shelley Ryan on 8/18/2017 at 6:18 PM Moderator
    Hi Everyone,

    I am closing this question since there hasn't been much recent activity.

    Thanks for participating!

    Shelley
    MarketingProfs
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