Post on 22-Jun-2015
description
#socialstrategy series | jeromepineau.com
“TOP 12 TRAITS OF GREAT MARKETERS”
@JeromePineau
an enterprise perspective
caveat
the following are based on my 20+ years of
experience working with all sorts of
marketing people most of which have taught
me a lot of what I know.
it’s only my opinion. your mileage might
vary. and I could be wrong.
1. discerning
in a sea of numbers, KPIs, goals,
pronouncements, trends, opinions, and other
numerical noise, great marketers can
quickly identify an organization’s core
economic driver(s) then strategize and
execute against them.
there are usually only one or two
fundamental drivers at most no matter how
complex the organization.
2. listener
contrary to popular belief, successful
marketing people are first and foremost
keen listeners.
you cannot market exclusively from a desk.
marketing is being out in the field and
walking the plank with both staff, customers,
and prospects.
marketers are customer advocates. to
advocate, you have to know your tribe inside
out. and many times, they’re a fickle bunch.
3. analytical
you don’t need a PhD in analytics, but you
do have to love data.
far from being spreadsheet junkies,
successful marketers know how to respect
yet tame data.
they understand both its power and its
limitations.
they use it to strategize, persuade, protect,
and compete. but never to intimidate or
impress.
4. opportunistic
“we jump out of the trees and hijack passing
stagecoaches” is how one marketing genius
described to me what working with him
would be like.
having a knack for smelling then seizing
opportunity in real time without causing
damage is virtually essential in this
marketing day and age.
5. manager
great marketers are talented managers
because the profession is a team sport and
successful teams have each others’ backs.
they know how to give out clear, crisp
tactical direction all of their people can
quickly understand and follow.
they’re rabidly loyal to their staff and often
“out there” with their people whenever and
wherever needed.
they know how to nurture, coach, mentor
their teams, and ensure their visibility in the
organization. and they don’t suffer fools
easily.
6. communicator
a great marketer must be an inspiration to
his people, his customers, and sometimes
even his competitors.
this requires exceptional communication
skills as the essence of marketing is
communication.
great marketers are compelling, passionate
speakers and excellent writers.
7. high-velocity
great marketers understand they evolve in
space and time. the latter being critical.
analysis time, reaction time, execution time,
turn-around time, correction time – all these
require an appreciation of speed as a major
competitive weapon.
8. intuitive
by nature or nurture, great marketers are
intuitive beings. the best ones navigate
elegantly between hard cold data and what
their hearts and experience tell them.
that left-brain/right-brain juggling act often
defines the best in the business.
9. workaholic
great marketers are always “on”. partly
because great, out-of-box ideas always
come in the shower, or in the middle of the
night, or while eating, or during a flight – but
never during a regular business meeting.
10. deciders
there’s an art to decision making – as it is
usually emotion-driven notwithstanding
claims to the contrary – and great marketers
know how to make good decisions quickly
and consistently.
they cut through the noise and nonsense
with a knife.
indecision kills in this business. but then so
does rash behavior. great marketers know
how to walk that line.
11. design flair
for some reason, great marketers seem to
have a flair for great design that can pull
emotional chords at the right time and
place.
they’re painters. they have “good taste” and
associative qualities with an obsession for
detail and a “got to look just right”
acceptance criteria.
this is true no matter what industry you look
at.
12. passion
maybe a no brainer, but I’ve met marketers
who were just in it for the money. they just
didn’t care about product.
but I’ve never met a great marketer who
didn’t have passion for whatever he or she
was selling.
no matter how good you are, you cannot
market a crap product or service. these days
are long gone.
the best marketers never even get involved
with junk.