Employments management and marketing Plan: start-up marketing management Marketing employees

Employments management and marketing
Plan:
1 Start-up marketing management
2 Marketing employees
3 Marketing manager roles and responsibilities

1 Start-up marketing management
Sales and marketing are critical to the success of any business. As a business owner or manager, you have a vital role to play in leading the marketing effort and maximising the effectiveness of your sales and marketing team

Start-up marketing management

In small businesses, the owner-manager typically has a direct role in marketing, as well as managing other employees' marketing activities.
Business founders in particular are often keen enthusiasts, with a deep understanding of their product (or service) and a natural feel for the market. You are likely to be prominent in:

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  defining the USP of the business;
  
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  developing your marketing strategy and creating a marketing plan;
  
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  representing the business and networking with key contacts;
  
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  directly pursuing sales.
  

In the context of managing marketing employees in a start-up business, you'll need to strike a balance between retaining your creative power and giving your juniors a level of responsibility. Look for tasks that can be done by others without your input. These could include assisting with content promotion, such as pitching to publications or the organisational aspect of marketing, like scheduling posts ahead of time.

Marketing employees

As the business grows, sales and marketing activities increasingly need to be delegated. You may need to step back, allowing your sales and marketing team the freedom to operate without constant interference. This will allow your marketing employees to begin thinking about ideation, as well as the execution of campaigns.
The role of the owner-manager (or board of directors) changes. It typically includes:

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  retaining ultimate responsibility for overall marketing strategy;
  
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  continuing to take a keen interest in day-to-day sales and marketing activity;
  
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  identifying where and how you need to strengthen your capabilities;
  
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  recruiting, training and leading marketing employees, and working with external suppliers;
  
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  being the public face of the business.
  

In many businesses, the primary focus is on building your sales team and then customer service. Marketing support - such as marketing communications and PR - is more likely to be contracted out.
As your business grows, you develop a more structured approach to marketing management. One-off activities are linked into marketing campaigns. Investment in marketing systems (such as customer relationship management software) becomes increasingly important.
Larger businesses can invest more in building in-house capabilities. For example, you may want to take more direct control of day-to-day website management, while still using outside suppliers for short-term projects or specialist expertise.
Needless to say, as your business grows you'll need to become more adept at  hiring marketing team employees. Unlike other types of recruitment, hiring for your marketing department isn't straightforward. An ideal candidate won't be as apparent as a bubbly sales rep or an analytical administrator. Marketers need to possess a complex blend of skills that allow them to control their creative flair. You'll need individuals with inventiveness and the ability to innovate, yet someone who doesn't lack business acumen.
To find the right person, you'll need to get creative with your interview questions and consider conducting multi-stage interviews with practical tasks and an opportunity for more than one senior manager to vet candidates.