Starting your marketing career

Starting a career in marketing can be daunting especially if you do not have much knowledge of the industry and you keep coming across scary terms and phrases like SEO, ROI, SEM and PPC, but the great thing about starting a marketing career is that it is an industry that anyone can join! You do not need to have a specific degree, qualification, or experience, if you’re willing to learn and are highly motivated and passionate about start a marketing career, you’ll be off to a great start.  

 

We’ve come up with a few ideas and resources that will help you kickstart your marketing career today. 

1. Build a portfolio of experience

No matter what career you want to get into, it is important to show that you have some knowledge or experience of the industry, even if you have not had a role in this area yet. There are plenty of ways you can show that you would be ideal for career in marketing. 

You can start by thinking about previous personal projects you have worked on, school/college projects, social media pages you have managed, content you have created, or you’ve started or helped with a blog – anything related to marketing will show you are passionate about starting a career in marketing. 

If you have not got any experience just yet, we have some suggestions to help you build your portfolio of marketing experience: 

  • Take online certifications or course: There are plenty of low-cost short courses and certification available online that you can do in your own time to provide you a baseline of marketing knowledge. We recommend our library of online marketing courses, which you can check out here. 
  • Attend marketing mentoring sessions at School of Marketing: Our completely free mentoring programme, Mentoring Gen Z, is designed to allow those looking to start a career in marketing connect with giants in the marketing industry. We hold completely free, online session every Wednesday. Learn more here 
  • Apply to internships or work placements: Lots of companies offer internship programmes that allow you to gain between 3 – 6 months of work experience in the marketing industry. These are a fantastic way to get an on-the-ground learning experience in a variety of companies, and the best part is, internships sometimes offer you the opportunity to continue with a full-time role after completing the internship.  

2. Update your CV

When applying for any new role, it is crucial your CV is up to date with all your newly acquired marketing knowledge and experience – whatever that may be. But what’s more important is that your CV stand out from the crowd.  

Hiring and recruitment managers will be going through hundreds of CV’s every week, so ensuring your CV is memorable is crucial, and it doesn’t just have to be with your experience, why not try standing out with a creative design? After all, you’re going for a marketing role so demonstrating your creative skills is definitely going to help increase your chances of being hired! 

 

Remember to highlight your personal and professional achievements while showing off your personality, remember it is human that will be ready your CV so find a way to build a connection with the reader. If they can get a sense of who you are, they might want to know more through an interview.  

3. Consider which route is right for you

The world of marketing is not straight forward, there’s so many avenues you could go down when building a marketing career so finding an area that you are passionate is going to make all the difference.  

Consider which areas you want to go down and whether you want to become an expert in a particular area or stay a generalist. Both are great options, but it is important to understand what kind of person you are what will keep you motivated and excited. 

 

Here’s some options to consider: 

 

  • Data and Data Analytics 
  • Social Media 
  • Content Creation 
  • Events Marketing 
  • SEO (Search Engine Optimisation) 
  • SEM (Search Engine Marketing) 
  • PPC (Pay Per Click Advertising) 
  • Copywriting 

How can we help?

Starting a marketing career can be scary, but at School of Marketing we offer a range of service to allow you to kickstart your marketing career. 

 

  • Mentoring Gen Z: If you’re looking for advice on how to get started in the marketing industry, or looking to connect with leaders in the industry, Mentoring Gen Z is perfect for you. We hold completely free online mentoring sessions every Wednesday that connect you with a different mentor each week and give you personalised career advice. You can register for Mentoring Gen Z here.  

 

  • Library of courses: If you’re looking to gain some extra marketing knowledge and skills, through online certifications, you can take advantage of our library of online courses that you can complete in your own time. Check out our plans here. 

 

  • Apprenticeships: Our Level 3 Digital Marketing Apprenticeship is ideal for anyone looking to gain a recognised qualification while starting their new role. This allows you to apply all your new knowledge and skills in your day to day and demonstrate to your employer you are passionate about growing your marketing career. We hold regular tutorials, guest speaker sessions, live simulations and give you a dedicated skills coach who will help your progress throughout the programme. Learn more here. 

 

As a final note when starting your marketing career, never be afraid to stand out and make sure you’re always learning as our industry is rapidly changing every day. You can keep up to date through podcasts, newsletters or even following big names or companies on LinkedIn – you never know what you’ll come across.  

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