Your Questions About Direct Marketing Companies

Jere answers:

Marketing. Find a niche and market to it. If its say architecture then direct mail or door knock Architects.

Write a business plan and implement it – should have been done before you started. In it you have a marketing plan.

A

Jere answers:

I’d think it’s a definite asset because it required that you understand people, and having a background in something other than marketing means you’re better connected to a broader range of personalities and mentalities. So I think that’s an asset.

I found an article that has some suggestions that could help you out, especially in regards to getting additional training beyond your current certificate:

It will take determination and persistence, but it can be done. You will find that a start in marketing will normally put you in a position as a market research assistant, print buyer, general management trainee, or you can enter a program as a graduate trainee.

A few companies that offer Marketing Graduate Trainee programs are:

Mars

Mars doesn’t have a specific marketing training program for graduates.
They fun a cross-functional management development program, through which graduates have access to opportunities in marketing. Recruits to the program are typically given three to four assignments, the first of which may be related to their experience or studies. The remaining assignments will be in other areas, and one may be overseas. Their goal is to broaden trainees’ experiences.

Nestle

Nestle has recently changed its approach to hiring graduates. Nestle recruits in a similar fashion as to how they recruit other employee levels. Each department now recruits graduates throughout the year on an ‘as-required’ basis. Vacancies will be posted and advertised throughout the year.

Proctor & Gamble

Procter & Gamble’s graduate training program recruits graduates into one of eight career tracks, including consumer and market knowledge and marketing. Consumer and market knowledge involves sophisticated and proactive market research-based work to identify business opportunities, including new product development. The marketing function involves growing the value of brands within the P&G product range. Marketing trainees will learn about advertising, PR, consumer bonding, direct marketing and project management within their first two years. The applicants are selected according to application form, a problem-solving test, interview, and site visit, where they will meet prospective managers and colleagues.

If you decide that the graduate training program route is not for you; you can still break into the field of marketing by being persistent. You will need to be willing to take on an entry-level position in most marketing agencies and work your way up. If this isn’t a problem then it’s time to begin your first marketing assignment, which is marketing you using your resume.
Http://marketing.about.com/cs/marketingjobs/a/breakinmrktg_2.htm

I think the important thing to take away from the above is that you’re probably going to need to build experience by starting out at entry-level jobs. Ideally, based on your background you should look for entry-level jobs with companies that are targeting university students. Your experience working with students will make you stand-out when looking for that job. Try thinking about some of the businesses in your area that make products or have services that are geared towards students and finding out if they’re looking for any new marketing trainees.

Good luck!!

Jere answers:

Depending on the company, lead generation likely will be the hottest topic in marketing. Branding may come second – depending on the size of the company, how established they are, and the person you’re interviewing’s thoughts on branding vs lead generation

For lead generation, there are many great sources for marketing a construction company. Here’s a few thoughts:

– Online – 3rd party lead providers. Company’s such as ServiceMagic,com, RenovationExperts.com, Contractor.com – provide performance-based “pay per lead” marketing services. These are a great source to get instant results, and only pay for the leads generated.

– Online – Pay Per Click advertising can be, by far, one of the best sources of advertising any construction company can do. You simply bid to advertise on words that relate to your business, and only pay each time a person clicks on an ad to go to your website. If your website converts the visitors into leads, it can be very cost effective.

– Online – Search Engine Optimization – ranking organically for the keywords related to your business can bring massive results. It’s a full-time gig and requires a bit of time to “build up steam and results”, but the payoff can be monstrous. It’s a good thing to include in the mid-to-long term plan, but expect a delay of 3-6 months before you see the big results from the efforts.

As you can tell, I’m a big advocate of online marketing for construction companies.

Offline, here’s some other sources that can work well for lead generation:

– newspaper ads
– Magazine advertisements
– yellow page ads
– trade shows/builder shows/fairs
– direct mail/coupon mailers

For the branding push, these typically work best:

– Radio
– Television

As a wrap-up, if the company deal mainly with the residential market, social media approaches are typically not my biggest recommendation. Think about it. When’s the last time you went onto FaceBook looking for someone to replace your siding? Additionally, since most construction companies are not a “residual”-based sale (where the customer buys multiple times), staying in front of existing customers from this approach doesn’t give much value.

Social media can be very valuable, however, for networking and connecting with professional contacts that you could partner with. For example, if engineers refer work to the company, you could connect with engineers on the social media sites, build report, and give yourself the opportunity to earn their referrals.

Hope this helps. If you like the answer, give it a thumbs up!

Jere answers:

Print this article

Prepare for a Marketing Job Interview
Marketing interviews are harder than other interviews because if you can’t sell yourself, then you won’t do a very good job selling the company’s products or services. But if you have any talent at marketing, you should be able to approach the interview as a sales pitch. Follow these steps.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy
Instructions

Things You’ll Need
Portfolio
Resume
Thank you notes
1
Study the company intently. With the advent of the internet, there is no excuse for not knowing the company you are interviewing with thoroughly. Create a cheat sheet of important facts such as revenues, competitors, new product releases, good and bad press and annual report data. Mock up an organizational chart so you can begin to understand the management structure within the company.

2
Dress professionally. Invest in a good business suit, accessories and shoes. Women should dress modestly and should wear hosiery. Both men and women should have clean and styled hair as well as clean manicures. Do not try to stand out by wearing something outlandish or trendy.

3
Polish your resume, pointing out your practical experience as well as appropriate college classes. If you are light on practical experience, list class projects and volunteer work instead.

4
Gather your best work–either from college or at past jobs and create a professional portfolio. Choose your best writing samples, business plans, collateral materials and research projects.

5
Bring your professional references on a separate sheet of paper. Also collect current and old data that might be needed for an application. This includes former addresses and phone numbers, the addresses and phone numbers of past employers, your driver’s license number, past salaries, GPA, university addresses and contacts and personal references. You never know what you will be asked on an application form.

6
Prepare questions for the interview process. Remember that you are interviewing them just as they are interviewing you. You want to make sure it is right job for you. Ask all the questions you need to know to determine if the job would be a good fit for you.

7
Sell yourself. Be prepared to point out your best qualities. Give examples of how you solved problems or saved money at your last job. Offer real world examples instead of giving vague cliché answer to interview questions. Bring out samples of the work you have created and the positive effects it had on your last position.

8
Send a thank you note to the people you interviewed with. Collect their business cards during the interview and send a note promptly. Thank them for their time and their insight into the company. Reiterate your interest. This action alone will help you stand out from the pack.

Read more: How to Prepare for a Marketing Job Interview | eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/how_2049049_marketing-job-interview.html#ixzz1UT5b79fi

Jere answers:

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