To an outsider, marketing and advertising can seem like a sexy profession. Glamorized by shows like AMC's Mad Men, the job description seems filled with schmoozing, brainstorming the next amazing ad campaign, and — in more recent times — sending out clever social media messages.
But time may have been unkind to the field of marketing. Over the last three years, marketing professionals' "intent to stay" at their jobs has dropped — meaning they were the least likely to be engaged and loyal to their jobs, according a study of employee engagement by the Corporate Executive Board.
There is no question the role of marketing has shifted in recent years, with the rise of the "data scientist" and all of the dizzying changes in technology.
But are marketers really more unhappy than all of their corporate counterparts? Has marketing become a field of overworked employees endlessly crunching numbers and trying to adapt to the latest feature on Instagram?
As the role continues to evolve, so do the demands facing marketers today. Here are some of the unique challenges the profession is witnessing.
'Anyone can do that'
In order to climb through the ranks of a marketing department today, a four-year degree in advertising, marketing, media studies or a related field is a minimum requirement. But going into high-level meetings with other departments, marketers say they don’t always feel like they are treated as equals with just as much education and know-how as their colleagues.
“Marketing is the one profession where everyone else thinks they can do a better job,” Debra Kinney, marketing communications manager at industrial conglomerate Siemens, told Marketing Dive.
“Marketers need to realize that they are an expert in a science, and should present it as such. When they can bring that science into a meeting room, then they get the respect they deserve,” she said.
Some marketers vocalized that their departments can be mistaken for the “catch-all department,” much to the chagrin of actual marketers.
"With all of the data-driven innovations, marketing is getting grayer and grayer. All the while, the communication role is getting broader," Kinney said. “Now more than ever, you must clearly define your role. If you can’t define your role, you’re going to be miserable."
People people
It’s an unfortunate, but common, effect of the working world: with all the departments and divisions at big companies, things can get siloed. This does not bode well for marketers, who tend to thrive in collaborative environments.
“When marketers get to be involved in strategic procedures, that’s when they are happiest,” said Jennifer Garay, senior communications manager at Stanford University. "I know I'm unhappiest when I just feel like I'm taking orders from the top-down."
Though marketers may be happiest when working with others, their job is, after all, all about business.
"We deal with competition all the time. From the market, from within your department, and internal competition," Garay said. "There is always something you could be doing, more research to be done, which can drag us down."
The bottom line
Marketers are stereotyped as an enthusiastic and positive bunch and, in the end, promoting a product they feel enthusiastic about makes all the difference.
"My job is to help people save money and help the environment, two things I feel passionately about," said Benjamin Lack, manager of digital marketing at Opower, a provider of customer engagement software to the utility industry. "Because my mission in life is aligned with what I actually do, I really enjoy my job."
"Marketers I know whose job requirements are essentially to maintain the status quo aren't happy," he said. "Execution of campaigns, reaching audiences, finding ways to communicate with that audience, these are the things that marketers care about."
Perhaps figuring out a way to not feel like a cog in a machine is one way marketers can successfully — and more happily — navigate this brave new world.
"At the end of the day, our job is to convince someone they need something," Garay said. "If we believe the public needs what we're selling, it makes us more invested, which in turn makes us happier."