Need Leads But Don't Know Who To Hire

Having the right people on board will help you to scale your business and start freeing up your time, but I find that the more CEOs I talk to the more I come to realize that most small business owners don't even know whom they need to hire to start freeing up their time.

They are confused about the role that person should play in their business and which direction to take, so they just land up running around in circles and feel as if they are stuck.

That no one in their business has a clear job title and everyone in their business is wearing many hats. They understand that more people are needed but feel too overwhelmed by trying to figure out what role these people will play to get started in making these changes.

Marketing is quite possibly one of the most important functions in any business. In today’s article, I am going to dive deep into the 5 functions of marketing and 21 of the most common job titles that make up the marketing department and their responsibilities. 

If your business is at a standstill due to a lack of leads or clients coming through the door but you have no idea what or who to hire, hopefully, this article will provide some clarity on the matter.

Firstly it's important to know the role that marketing plays in a business.  

Marketing functions are all the different stages of getting a product to a customer. Every product has a story, and that story starts long before you even put it on shelves. Marketers research the market and create a strategy to appeal to their customer base, then promote the product through advertising.

The size of a marketing department varies depending on the business. A small to medium business might begin with a handful of marketing professionals, while a large company may employ several teams which specialize in certain areas. 

Different Areas Of Focus For Marketing Might Include: 

• Product marketing: Planning for new products and analyzing existing ones
• Digital marketing: Working on websites, social media, SEO, and paid search advertising
• Content marketing: Creating blogs, e-books, videos, and other informative material relating to the products
• Customer marketing: Engaging with the current customer base
• New business marketing: Focusing on getting the attention of new potential customers.

5 Key Functions Of Marketing

In general, marketing means creating value and delivering it to customers. The primary functions of marketing comprise five categories, which include research, product, distribution, management, and sales promotion. These areas form the basis of marketing, what it's about, and how these functions work together to develop products that meet the needs and expectations of the customer."

Here are the key functions of marketing and how they work:

1.Research

In the research stage, marketers uncover consumer behaviors and practices. The goal is to figure out who will buy what and when. For example, a pair of boots made from a leather alternative.

They would look for groups of people they define as the target market or persona. A lot of factors go into this, such as age range, profession, location, average salary, and lifestyle.

This type of market research involves gathering data to back up what they've found and form the basis of the marketing strategy for that product. Tasks you might do to conduct research include

• Conducting surveys and asking questions.
• Running focus groups.
• Sampling competitor products.
• Writing up reports.
• Communicating findings.

If you have efficient analytical skills and enjoy the process of researching and finding out what motivates customers, you may thrive in this area of marketing. It involves working methodically and drawing conclusions based on the gathered data.

You may also possess other skills such as observation, organization, and communication to convey the information to others accurately.

2.Product

This involves planning for new products and analyzing existing ones to find out if there is still a market for them. When adding a new product, marketers draw on their research to plan for how they can bring something new to what's already out there.

You may also find opportunities to update an existing product that may increase sales. For example, partnering with a current designer or popular franchise to create a limited edition pair of shoes. Tasks you might do within product marketing include

• Analyzing research findings.
• Coming up with ideas.
• Developing marketing plans.
• Presenting marketing strategies.
• Taking on and giving feedback.

Working in this area of marketing offers opportunities for creativity, innovation, and collaboration. It also involves planning and being part of building strategies right from the beginning. Useful skills for this role include creative thinking, planning, presenting, and building knowledge.

3.Distribution

Distribution is all about selling the products. A lot of work goes into deciding on pricing, where to sell it, how many items need manufacturing, and how many varieties there are. For example, going back to the new pair of boots - the company needs contracts to stock them in shoe shops.

They also find out how much of each size they'll need and how many they might sell over a period of time. Tasks you might carry out within distribution include:

• Making and maintaining contacts.
• Negotiating contracts.
• Managing a budget.
• Reporting on sales performance.
• Writing sales plans.

The distribution function involves a lot of organization, planning, and liaising with different people.

If you're efficient with numbers and take action to achieve results, you're likely a suitable candidate for this role. Good people skills, organizational ability, and an eye for sales are key to thriving in this area of marketing.

4.Management

This focuses on managing both the marketing department's activities and the people in it. Depending on the size and structure of the company, there might be several managers or a mixture of team leaders and managers.

Management handles recruitment, overseeing day-to-day activity, and providing sign-off for plans and feedback on work. Roles in management require a lot of experience and knowledge in the field. 

Tasks you might do within management include:

• Recruiting new staff members.
• Managing teams.
• Supporting career development.
• Providing reports to upper management.
• Making decisions,

Succeeding in management requires good interpersonal skills and leadership ability. It involves being confident and knowledgeable in taking the right course of action and leading others to do the same.

Key skills include the ability to prioritize, good organization, and people skills.

5.Sales promotion

This area of marketing is all about promoting the products to help them sell. There are several methods of sales promotion, including advertisements, social media, email marketing, online content, reviews, and events.

Marketing teams often use marketing campaigns to promote products in different ways to the people they've defined as their target market.

For example, a campaign to market leather-free boots might center around the values of people who advocate for animal rights by using language to relate to this group. Tasks you might conduct within sales promotion include

• Copywriting and content writing.
• Designing and video production.
• Managing social media.
• Managing projects.
• Monitoring performance.

If you have effective creative skills and are knowledgeable about digital media, marketing may also be a great fit for you.

They often involve working as part of a team and collaborating on projects with a variety of people. Communication, writing, and attention to detail are important skills for sales promotion.

Here are the 21 most common job titles that make up the marketing department: 

1.Marketing Assistants

• Are responsible for tracking existing marketing campaigns and analyzing data to reveal industry trends for future campaigns. 
• You'll use market research studies conducted by surveys and online applications and other statistical data to determine what has worked in the past, and predict what's likely to achieve the best results moving forward.
• They also use market research data to create reports and develop and implement strategies to improve on existing and past efforts.

2.Brand Ambassadors

• They increase brand awareness and sales. 
• They use promotional strategies to strengthen customer relationships and influence trust in a particular product or brand. 
• Other characteristics of a brand ambassador include excellent social media and writing skills to create effective content that accurately communicates information about products and promotes the brand online. 
• They might also act as a spokesperson for the company at trade shows or other events. 
• They must portray a positive image of themselves, the brand, and the company at all times.

3.Marketing Manager

• Responsibilities and tasks are creating and implementing marketing strategies to achieve sales goals. 
• Often, they hire and train marketing and sales team staff, set expectations, delegate tasks, monitor progress, and deliver feedback. 
• They oversee market research to determine the needs and wants of consumers and decide how best to fulfill their demands and satisfy trends. 
• They also maintain a budget, analyze competition and how it drives or influences the industry and keep customers satisfied.

4.Product Marketing Manager

• They help launch new products and orchestrate product updates. 
• They're similar to marketing managers, except instead of handling marketing procedures and activities for an entire company, they focus on a particular product. 
• They're generally involved in decisions related to various steps of the process of a product release, including the product marketing campaign, competitive pricing, product positioning, target audience, messaging, and branding. 
• Often, they manage some post-launch follow-up connected to customer relations and retention.

5.Public Relations Specialists

• Handle communications with the public on behalf of a company or organization and its leaders. 
• They also secure media coverage to create or support the business's positive reputation. 
• They might also be responsible for running a PR campaign by writing press releases, planning press conferences or public events, and building relationships with influential people. 
• Also known as PR specialists, they use data from, surveys, polls, and social media to gauge public opinion and determine how to respond.

6.Communications Manager

• The role of a communications manager role is very similar to that of a public relations specialist. 
• In addition to public relations duties, such as drafting press releases and identifying press opportunities, communication managers also create and distribute company newsletters, devise and implement social media strategies and act as a spokesperson on behalf of a business or entity. 
• A communication manager must ensure that all messaging and content align with the company's brand and business objectives.

7.Content Marketing Specialist

• Content marketing specialists create content for a particular audience. 
• Content marketing often includes different forms of digital copy such as blog articles, newsletters, evergreen pages, infographics, and more. 
• Content should be valuable, relevant, and helpful in driving traffic to the company's website, building awareness of a brand or cause, and calling readers or followers to action or securing sales. 
• They create strategies, follow style guides, and research trending topics to draft high-quality targeted content that's superior to that of competitors and aligned to the needs of a business or digital campaign.

8.SEO Specialist

• Search engine optimization (SEO) specialists increase the quality and quantity of web traffic for a company or organization via search engines. 
• They use research and data to determine the highest ranking keywords related to their products or services, and then they focus on creating compelling to improve their chances of appearing in top search results. 
• Additionally, SEO specialists research and analyze competitor pages and then implement link-building strategies to increase their competitive edge.

9.Market Research Analyst

• A market research analyst collects and analyzes data to determine what products and services people need, want, or prefer. 
• They use research, surveys, focus groups, and other data collection methods to figure out what's trending and what people are willing to pay for the products and services that appeal to them. 
• Analysts create graphs, charts, and reports to communicate results. They develop strategies and actionable steps to take based on the interpreted data.

10.Social Media Coordinator

• Social media coordinators post engaging content, images, and videos on various social networks, and they might also be tasked with managing a content publishing calendar and planning future posts. 
• They also help determine the most effective social networks to maintain accounts, what content to post at a specific time, and in what form to post content in order to maximize reach to their target audience. 
• They monitor comments, respond to questions, interact with customers and track engagement with their followers.

11.Digital Media Manager

• Digital media managers produce photos, videos, logos, infographics, and other visual content to tell a story about a company's brand, services, products, or sales objectives. 
• They aim to appeal to an audience, drive growth and build awareness using digital marketing channels. 
• They use web analytics tools to measure traffic and optimize future campaigns.

12.Marketing Coordinator

• A marketing coordinator works with management teams to improve marketing efforts by creating and managing advertising campaigns.

You Generally Get 5 Types Of Marketing Coordinator Roles: 

• Content marketing coordinator: Manages content creation on blogs, social media, and other media. 

• Product account coordinator: Supports the sales team to improve customer relationships and the buying process.  

• Influencer marketing coordinator: Maintains and manages influencer relationships. 

• Digital marketing coordinator: Designs and implements digital marketing strategy with the goal of driving traffic and/or brand recognition. 

• Social media marketing coordinator: Creates successful social media campaigns to grow a brand’s audience. 

13.Copywriter

• Put simply, people and businesses use content to educate and entertain themselves, and to connect with products and services. 
• The people responsible for this content are likely to be marketing copywriters. 
• A copywriter creates clear, compelling copy to sell products and/or educate and engage consumers, flexing persuasive writing muscle on websites, blog posts, product descriptions, email blasts, banner advertising, newsletters, white papers, PSAs, social media platforms, including Twitter and Instagram, and other marketing communication vehicles.

14.Content Specialist

• Content specialists create content for digital sites and social media platforms using background research they perform as needed. 
• They create content strategies, research trending topics, and write content for the corporations, companies, and entities where they work.    

15.Email Marketer/Manager

• An email marketing specialist is a digital marketer that focuses on building email lists, creating emails, and nurturing leads through written communications.
• To me, this is one of the most vital roles in a business these days. Converting email sign-ups into sales. It is said that 75% of sales are made from email marketing. 
• The email marketer would also need to be brilliant at copywriting, they would need to know how to convert people through language and their writing skills. 

16.Client Relations Specialist

• Evaluate client profiles to understand and recommend new product offerings to increase revenue flow. 
• Provide clients with excellent experience and facilitate client retention by building strong customer relationships.

17.Graphic Designer: 

• Graphic designers create visual concepts, using computer software or by hand, to communicate ideas that inspire, inform, and captivate consumers. 
• They develop the overall layout and production design for applications such as advertisements, brochures, magazines, and reports.

18.Creative Director

• A Creative Director is an advertising professional who is in charge of a company's advertising and marketing efforts. 
• They plan out advertisements, monitor campaigns that use their company's assets for promotion purposes, and revise presentations as needed along with shaping brand standards.

19.Promotions Manager

• A promotion manager plans and directs campaigns to promote products and services they are selling through contests, giveaways, or coupons.

20.Campaign Manager

• A Campaign Manager, or Campaign Director, is responsible for planning and coordinating events to promote a particular project, including advertising initiatives and political campaigns. 
• Their duties include coordinating the efforts of various agencies and marketing roles, hiring internal team members, and developing strategic plans for communicating a brand message.
• A Campaign Manager’s primary duty is to ensure marketing campaigns achieve their objectives. 
• They work with the Marketing Manager to create, execute and monitor the performance of campaigns and provide all the resources required to meet sales targets. 

I hope that after reading today’s article you will have a bit more clarity on who you may need to hire next to get the leads coming into your business. But as always, if you have any questions please feel free to reach out at any time!

I will be posting articles like this in the weeks to come, with the aim of helping CEOs out there with their hiring decisions. I hope you like it!

We are also in the process of launching our entry course called The Full-Capacity CEO,  for business owners who are ALWAYS BUSY BUT STUCK. 

The course will be a quick and extremely effective step-by-step strategy teaching stuck business owners how to create a clear path of who to hire next in their business so that they can stop being busy, reactive, and stuck.  

The course's aim is to help you stop guessing and being confused about who you need to hire next and what skills they will require in your business Instead learn an easy and fast step-by-step process on how to create a clear path of exactly who you need to hire next, what skills they will require, and how to manage them so that you can start freeing your time to focus on the growth of your business, travel and spend time with family. 

Take the first step needed toward removing yourself from being so involved in the day-to-day. You can sign up for the waiting list here and receive a 50% off coupon: Join our waiting list for The Full-Capacity CEO

Until next time, I am wishing you peace, happiness, freedom, and success. 

Shannon Teague, 

CEO of Scaling Up Simplified.