Keri Hasson, CM, Marketing Manager at The Osborne Group, discusses the importance of the CM designation in instilling confidence and pride. She emphasizes the need to adapt to innovations like AI and machine learning and stresses the importance of a growth mindset and continuous learning for success.

Boosting Credibility

The Chartered Marketer designation helps boost the credibility of Canadian marketing professionals. In the past, anyone could say they had marketing skills or experience, however, completing the CM program indicates to employers and clients that you have the knowledge, dedication and commitment to see something through to completion.

Highly Rewarding

I began my career as a graphic designer but there was always an overlap in marketing to a certain degree. Over the years, I found that I had an innate ability to come up with ideas for marketing campaigns that helped to enhance an idea or take a concept in an entirely new direction. Eventually, the campaign ideation process became more of a passion and something I knew I needed to focus my efforts on. I recognized the desire for a new set of challenges and the opportunity for professional growth. Marketing allows me to apply my design skills in a broader context. Instead of just creating visuals, I can work on entire campaigns and be involved in strategy, content and analysis. Being able to see a project through from beginning to end is highly rewarding.

Needs, Wants and Desires

Marketing is like meeting up with a friend. If your friend talks only about themselves, you tend to tune out or get annoyed, quickly looking for the escape hatch. On the other hand, if your friend engages you in conversation, shows interest in your life, and asks how you are, the interaction is positive and enjoyable, making you want to continue or meet up again soon. In marketing, the focus should always be on the consumer, not on you or your company. It’s tempting to highlight all that you can offer, but this approach is rarely effective. Over the years, I’ve learned that the best results come from addressing the consumers’ needs, wants, and desires ahead of anything else.

Quantify the Results

The marketing profession has a unique set of challenges. Namely, the need for defining and defending marketing’s ability to drive growth for an organization. Often, marketing can be undervalued or even in some cases misunderstood. It’s difficult to quantify all that goes into the preparation of a video campaign, digital ad or social post to anyone who doesn’t understand the creative process. It all comes down to the numbers and communicating to senior leadership how well marketing is contributing to the overall business objectives. Using data visualization tools to help make complex data more digestible and easier to analyze is the key. Ultimately, if you can’t quantify the results of your efforts, you’re not doing your job as a marketer.

Adapt and Innovate

To stay current in the marketing profession, you need to have a desire to continually learn new things. By staying current with industry trends, you can quickly adapt and be innovative. Being adaptable means, you can manage new technologies with ease, and improve efficiencies or service quality. I prefer taking online courses and certifications as I like having a tangible certificate that solidifies my learning journey. I also enjoy the opportunity to test and improve my abilities with the courses. It’s a way of checking in with your skill sets to see where you already excel and pinpoint areas for improvement.

AI and Machine Learning

Early on in my career, roughly 20 years ago, developing campaign creative involved a lot of guesswork. We relied on our best judgment to choose the right headline, visual imagery, and media placement, then waited weeks or even months to gauge effectiveness. Limited attribution measurement options made it difficult to assess success and posed challenges in justifying funds for future marketing endeavours. Now, AI and machine learning have transformed the creative campaign development process by making it data-driven, efficient, and highly responsive. It eliminates much of the guesswork by leveraging vast amounts of data to predict what will work best, allowing us to create more effective campaigns with confidence. This evolution not only justifies marketing expenditures but also maximizes its impact, making future marketing endeavours more strategic and evidence based.

Growth Mindset and Continuous Learning

Dealing with organizational restructuring, and mergers, have been some of the most difficult challenges I’ve faced in my career. These sudden and abrupt changes often left me feeling rattled and uncertain about the future. In many ways, these experiences required me to reinvent myself. I had to acquire new skills on the fly and enter new territories, often in industries where I had no prior experience. Some of the job changes I experienced turned out to be for the best, although it wasn’t always evident at the time. These periods of what I will call “forced learning” pushed me out of my comfort zone and made me confront my doubts and fears. These instances made me more resourceful and better equipped to handle future uncertainties. I learned the importance of maintaining a growth mindset and being open to continuous learning, no matter how daunting it may seem.

Confidence and Pride

Earning my Chartered Marketer designation was a significant milestone culminating two years of dedication and hard work. The rigorous process of earning this designation equipped me with advanced knowledge and skills, reinforcing my expertise and credibility as a marketing professional. Being a CM designation holder provided an extensive network of industry peers and mentors, enhancing my professional growth and enabling me to stay at the forefront of industry trends and best practices. This designation validated my abilities and instilled a profound sense of confidence and pride in my work which makes it the defining moment of my career.

Trends to Watch

The marketing trends I’m most excited about revolve around the advancements in AI and Machine Learning. Specifically, how AI’s efficiencies can be used to connect on a more human level with consumers. While AI and ML bring remarkable efficiencies to marketing operations, I strongly feel their true power lies in enhancing the human connection between brands and consumers to strengthen brand loyalty. This fusion of advanced technology and human-centered marketing is what excites me most about the future of our profession.

Variety of Work

For anyone contemplating switching to a career in marketing, know that while it can be highly rewarding, it requires multiple skills such as strategic thinking, problem-solving, and data analysis.

On the other hand, marketing also provides opportunities to be creative and push the boundaries of innovation. On any given day, I could start by working on an analytical task and switch to something artistic the next. The variety of the work keeps things stimulating. Since there are so many skillset requirements within marketing, there is an opportunity to specialize in a particular area. I recommend zeroing in on what you’re good at and running with it. For me, it’s all about chasing the next great idea. What could be better than that?

Keri Hasson, CM
Marketing Manager at The Osborne Group

 

Becoming a Chartered Marketer not only boosts your credibility but also ensures you stay competitive in this evolving field. Download the CM Brochure to learn more about the pathways to becoming a Chartered Marketer program today and take a significant step in your marketing career.