Question

Topic: Career/Training

Young Man Wants To Be A Marketer!

Posted by Anonymous on 5/30/2007 at 1:28 PM ET 50 Points
I am a young 26 year old looking to break into Consumer Product marketing, ideally in the umbrella of Brand Management. I have a University degree in Finance. I also have worked for a F500 company in Commercial Sales for over one year, travelled for one year then spent the last 6 months working as a Field Rep in event promotions. I have built an excellent network of contacts and have recently been turned down for 2 Assistant Brand Manager roles in favour of more qualified candidates. My understanding was that this role used to be for someone fresh out of school and now is being filled with older more experienced professionals. Am I being too ambitious targetting this role? Should I consider a Marketing Analyst position to gain experience? I have had coffee with well over 15 people in the industry, I know it is what I want. How can I get someone to give me a chance? What are the entry level positions for consumer goods companies? I want in !!! Thanks in advance for your responses. PS I am in the Toronto area.
To continue reading this question and the solution, sign up ... it's free!
SUBSCRIBE
Or, SIGN IN

RESPONSES

  • Posted by telemoxie on 5/30/2007 at 4:44 PM Member
    ... hmm... I'd sure like to help you out... have you read any books on marketing, or taken any college level or online courses, or taken any action (other than drinking coffee) to move this forward?
  • Posted by ilan on 5/30/2007 at 5:23 PM Accepted
    First, people in marketing drink martinis...so maybe you want to check it out...
    But more seriously, I teach branding at the University of Chicago (Graham School) and many of these courses are full of young people like you who are fighting their way into the business. You are not alone, and don't lose confidence nor patience.
    The more you know, the better appreciated and respected you will be, face it: you are only 26! I won't suggest that in order to learn the retail business you have to bag groceries at some local supermarket, but start observing businesses not just from the consumer perspective, imagine that you are the marketer of the businessd you watch and write something about it. Your resume is never going to sell you as some deeper thought put on paper.
    Invest in yourself!
    The second thing you should do, join professional clubs and organizations like the BMA, AMA and so on. Once you are participating in activites such as lectures etc. you start to rub shoulders with people in the business on less formal grounds. That's where openings are.
BACK TO TOP

Post a Comment

Related Discussions

Community Info

Top 25 Experts
(Career/Training)