Fedonchik’s 8 Tips to Make a Great Career in Marketing
My career has spanned some incredible organizations. I've been lucky to lead marketing, creative, and communications teams at iconic brands, emerging brands, and brands looking to reshape their identity. Across all these experiences, I've gained valuable insights from mentors, collaborators, and thought leaders who’ve shaped my approach to work and life. The following eight traits are the guideposts I rely on to motivate my thinking, and I return to them when facing new challenges. These are not "marketing tactics" as much as they are a foundation for building a lasting marketing career.
Message until you're tired of it – that's when people finally see it.
Marketers, and the executive they work with, can get caught up in "shiny object syndrome" – chasing the new thing and forgetting their core business proposition. The best marketing is grounded in your "why." Building campaigns that hammer home your brand promise to the point that you get sick of it is often when your audience begins to internalize it. So, before you decide to switch gears, stop, and push even harder on the messaging you invested brainpower and resources in developing. Allow it to break through the noise.
Be the CIO of your life (Chief Information Officer) – be the most well-informed person in the room.
Books, articles, memoirs, and news surround me. I look for information and inspiration from many sources, both directly related to the subject and sometimes wildly off-topic. Absorbing as much information as possible from a deep well of resources can help you connect to ideas that have a magical way of expanding possibilities and creativity. And by building this knowledge base, you're likely to avoid getting tripped or blindsided by not knowing a topic. Fluency in information builds confidence in your ability to solve problems and also in those who rely on your expertise.
Own the 2% moments – learn how to present and master your craft.
Most of life is filled with ordinary and mundane tasks and projects we have the competency and skills to accomplish. But now and then, you're called to a moment. It could be a webinar you're hosting, a Board meeting, a company all-hands, or a panel discussion at an industry event; these are the moments to shine. To own these moments, you need to know your materials inside and out, distill them down to your crucial points, practice them until they flow like water, and then deliver them with energy, confidence, and conviction. Passion is infectious, and if you want to leave a mark on an audience, you must rise to meet the moment.
Let your work speak for you – but find advocates to work on your behalf.
Having confidence in your work while maintaining a humble grace takes work. The best marketers, by nature, are extroverts. We love the limelight and want the ball in our hands at clutch moments. But nobody likes a braggart. So, work as hard as possible to find your champions and influencers to work on your behalf, especially when you're not in the room. Results speak volumes, and while essential to share your results and provide visibility into your plans and impact, having a few key advocates working on your behalf (like the finance department or executive team members) can open up doors that your words alone may not. Nurture your relationships and make sure you reciprocate for them.
Your network is your IP – you don't know how valuable until you need it.
Building lasting and deep connections inside and around your areas of expertise is a business essential. Networking is a two-way street. You must give and receive. When asked to do a favor, find a way to accommodate the request or at least try to move the ball forward for your contact. There will be times when you need that in return, and people have long memories. It all comes down to a spirit of generosity; most people want to help one another. Throughout my life, I have always been grateful and sometimes surprised by those who passed me a lifeline, a tip, or a lesson as I navigated a tricky situation.
Keep a learner's mind – try new things to remember what it's like to learn.
At its heart, marketing is about teaching. You're trying to help someone learn how to do something new that will make life better, easier, and more enjoyable. But learning new things is hard. So, challenge yourself to learn new things and keep your mind sharp. How to make sushi? Flyfishing? Golf? Building a bookshelf? All hard. But as you push yourself to learn, you will find helpful resources that bring you along on the journey. Learn from those resources, why they helped you (or didn't), and apply that thinking to how you market a product or service. Keep learning, keep teaching.
Surround yourself with funny – life is too short to be bored.
Work can be a grind. Finding humor in it can make it all palatable. Yes, you want to find meaning and value in your work, but for the most part, we're all just silly people doing silly jobs. Be sure to maintain a healthy work-life balance, and in your professional life, seek to work with (or hire) people with a true sense of humor. The ability to laugh your way through hard times, everyday work challenges, and tough decisions is the immune system that helps restore your ability to get up and do it all again!
Look for the orange cord – don't stop asking, "Why?"
A mentor of mine told me "the story of the orange cord," and it always stuck with me. You start a new job and spot an orange electrical cord running to a supply room. You ask far and wide why it's there, and nobody has a clue. It's just always been there. Your job is to pull on that cord and figure out what it does. You never want to become someone who does not know why the cable is there. Pull on it. Ask the questions. Don't settle for easy answers. Maintain this mindset far into your tenure, and don't become complacent. And, when you've pulled all the cords, it might be time to pull them somewhere else.
That's the journey I am on right now.
