Marketing

Marketing acknowledges the huge importance of company and product image. It aims to continually improve the public perception of an organisation, product or service by creating and promoting products that will appeal to customers. Marketing executives seek to increase ‘brand awareness’, a hugely effective marketing tool whereby the public develops a relationship with a product, and continues to purchase it out of ‘brand loyalty’.

Education

Marketing courses are designed to provide students with the practical knowledge and skills to enable them to design, implement and manage marketing plans in a variety of companies and organisations. Third-level marketing courses are available at levels six, seven and eight, including both certificates and degrees. Marketing is also often a core subject on general business courses.

A degree or certificate in Marketing features subjects such as Marketing Theories & Strategies, Consumer Psychology, Organisational Behaviour, Research Methods, Accounting, Communication Studies and Marketing Management. Group and project work forms a major part of any marketing course.
Getting the message across to a target market effectively and efficiently is a key goal of marketing, and so these programmes produces graduates who are therefore strong and assured communicators.

Information Technology also plays a key role in marketing. Students are introduced to the latest e-business techniques, such as utilising online social media (e.g. blogs, internet forums, YouTube, etc) for marketing purposes. DCU’s Marketing, Innovation & Technology is particularly strong on this increasingly important area of the industry. Industry-specific marketing courses are available in Retail Management (DIT), Food (UCC) and Tourism (DIT/Waterford IT).

Marketing is also widely available as a PLC course subject. Students receive a good understanding of the basic principles of this key business activity. Typical subjects in a one-year, Level 5 Certificate include Behavioural Studies,
Statistics, Customer Service and Marketing Practice. A two-year Business & Marketing Diploma provided by Rathmines College of Further Education includes the opportunity to record radio advertisements as part of its Advertising & Promotion module.

The Work

Every company or organisation has an interest in publicising its activities, products or services, so marketing graduates can find work in a huge variety of business sectors. Many big companies have dedicated marketing departments, and there are also a number of dedicated marketing agencies in Ireland. Other organisations – from charities to government agencies and to sporting bodies – also employ marketing staff.

It can be difficult to move into a marketing executive job straight from college, so many graduates work in related areas such as telemarketing, sales or public relations, before moving to a dedicated marketing position. Some large companies employ marketing graduates and provide on-the-job guidance through graduate training programmes. Other areas where marketing skills are required include advertising, market research and business development. As careers progress, marketing experts may have the opportunity to move into senior management positions within companies and organisations.

Research plays a key role in marketing. Different products or ideas are tested using focus groups and surveys. The data collected is then analysed before a decision is made to launch, for example, a new washing powder that gets whites even whiter than whiter than white. Marketing executives might then organise the product launch and work on its advertising and promotional campaign.

An outgoing personality is a valuable asset as conducting effective presentations and communicating with the public are fundamental parts of the job; social and communication skills are vital in marketing careers.

Did you know?

There are many different studies on how many advertisements the average person is exposed to in a day, but the reported figure is normally in the 1 to 3 thousand range.

Further Resources

• Marketing Institute (MII): www.mii.ie
• Marketing Magazine: www.marketing.ie
• Advertising Standards Authority for Ireland (ASAI): www.asai.ie