How many Marketeers does it take to create a buzz?

ByClaire Fuller |Marketing |03 June 2019

During my years in Marketing, I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve heard the phrase “Claire will do that, she does Marketing”!

I’m the first to admit that I’ll give most things a go and can struggle to say “no”, but it still surprises me quite how broadly the term “marketing” can be applied. To name just a few examples, over the years I have been:

Designer - an expert at “colouring in” according to some
Developer – creating web pages and email newsletters
Copywriter – writing blogs, fliers, brochures, proposals…
Event Manager (and Team Member)
Caterer
Craftsman - or “Blue Peter” presenter owing to my expertise with sticky backed plastic!
Campaign Manager
Presenter/Public Speaker
Fundraiser
Finance Manager
Social Media Manager
"Brand Police"

Of course, elements of these diverse areas do fit within my skill set and my qualifications, however, to answer the question of “how many Marketeers does it take to create a buzz”, I’d definitely say it’s more than just the one. In fact, I’d even go so far as to suggest it takes a whole organisation and that we are all, in one way or another, Marketeers within the places we work or volunteer for.

Allow me to explain…

…I expect that when you chose to work (or volunteer) somewhere there was a reason behind your decision to go there. It might have been the appeal of the role itself and how it fit with your individual skills, the salary/benefits of the position, or the location of the office; but most people would also say that the aims/values/mission/ethos of the company or charity has a strong bearing on their decision to apply to join it. After all, it’s very difficult to motivate and commit yourself to do a job (day in, day out) if you fundamentally disagree with the organisation you are working for.

Therefore, it seems that everyone who’s employed or volunteering within an organisation could be seen as in some way acting as an ambassador for them. Even if you don’t think you directly support their aims/values etc, the likelihood is that anyone who knows you work there will naturally assume you support what they do.

It’s not a big jump to say that team members generally have a common goal to see an organisation thrive and achieve its objectives. As Investopedia says, “Marketing as a discipline involves all the actions a company undertakes to draw in customers and maintain relationships with them”. So, if everyone is working towards success, surely we must all be Marketeers in one way or another!

Who can forget John Maxwell’s phrase “teamwork makes the dream work”? With an entire team being involved in marketing surely this presents a greater capacity to reach your audience and meet your goals.

But a note of caution, as you’ll have seen from my recent blog “what is it they say about “too many cooks”?”, there can be a point where collaborating with an entire team and including everyone can be problematic. It’s important instead to recognise people’s skills, strengths and availability and to divide your marketing activities accordingly, ensuring that “many hands make light work”.

5 Simple ways to get the whole team involved in Marketing:

Effective team leadership is of course vital for ensuring that people know where you’re going and how they can help you get there, but here are a few tips for involving other members of the team in your marketing activities:

Writing – Each member of your team will be a specialist in a different subject. By having them write (or provide information for you to write) a blog about their area of expertise, it is likely to be fresher and more passionate than a similar blog written by someone who has less breadth of knowledge. This is likely to encourage your audience who will sense this enthusiasm and see expertise in action
Social Media – Most people are now on at least one social media channel and will be aware of the sort of content that is popular and engaging. You might not want to allow many people to be administrators of your social media accounts, but it can help to share the load regarding gathering content and drafting posts
Photography and Filming– People have many different skills and hobbies, so there may be a budding photographer/videographer or two within your team. By providing some guidance around what you’re looking for, there can be many great opportunities to involve aspiring photographers, videographers or vloggers in your marketing activities
Ideas Generation - It can be hard to think of a theme for a campaign, but with many minds working together this can make it easier to find or develop that perfect idea. It may be the Marketeer who takes an idea forwards, but people outside of the “marketing bubble” who provide a range of great ideas for them to choose from in the first place!
Strategy Development – Organisations are often encouraged to involve and listen to their whole team, and within the development of Marketing Strategy this may be particularly appropriate. Team members are likely to have some great examples of effective marketing that they’ve experienced (which could be appropriate to explore and develop for your own strategy), whilst giving them a forum to share their ideas is also likely help strengthen team morale and respect

What does marketing look like in your workplace? Are you sharing the load amongst your team? Do you know about your team’s skills, passions and motivations? Have you asked other members of the team to get involved?

If you’d like to discuss your marketing requirements and explore how our team could help yours to make an even greater impact, we’d love to hear from you. Please give us a call – Not everything is fixed with sticky backed plastic, but I’ll give it a go!!