One of the most prevalent for me was that of brand management. Navigating a brand image
is applicable in so many instances as it can apply to both a business and one's own life. It's
important when maintaining a brand’s image to assess the possible risks associated and
work to mitigate these before they occur. Another aspect of marketing that I was intrigued to
learning about were digital marketing strategies and inbound marketing.
These various marketing strategies were truly unique in the approach that allows them to
attract customers to them. Search engine optimization has some true benefits and is one of
the most useful marketing techniques available currently. I believe in future organization
that incorporate this into their workflow would be able to utilize this tactic to discover
keywords that would benefit the organization and its brand. Taking the HubSpot
certification, was awesome that’s another bonus gained from this course at least for now I’m
HubSpot certified. It gave me more in-depth information about inbound marketing with
specifics of where a call-to-action may be applicable.
Looking back on the course further, I truly thought that there was an easy one size approach
to marketing. This course has opened my eyes to the numerous layers that marketing entails.
Research on consumer data must be collected prior to moving forward with a marketing
strategy, and then a strategy must be crafted based upon the specific demographics you're
targeting. However, the hope is that your product or service is applicable to a large audience
so that numerous people want to partake in the service you're providing. Looking at
marketing in greater detail it seems as though there need to be marketing specialties in every
department to ensure that all strategies are implemented to their highest potential. Having
several people who are generally great at marketing is fine, but it may be better to hire
people who specialize in digital marketing, traditional marketing mediums, or data
segmentation.
Leadership can manifest itself in a variety of ways, everyone develops their own leadership
skills in their own way and on their own time. However effective leaders typically share
similar skills that imbue them with the ability to enact positive change within an
organization. Some of these are an innate ability to demonstrate empathy with others and
connect with those different from themselves. This is a critical tool for leaders in marketing
as being able to identify with someone other than yourself will allow a marketer to target
different demographics. They may also possess strong communication skills and are very
articulate. One personal brand as a leader as well is typically very cohesive as every action
has a purpose that contributes to the brand's overall image. No one skill or attribute that is
attained is random. I think this is critical for a successful brand to i developed, creating this
cohesive image allows consumers to identify with someone’s brand easier when they see it
in the future.
As for my personal brand, this is something I hope to continue to make attainable. I have
always envisioned the direction of my professional career and business, so this for me was a
gateway in understanding what can not be explained within oneself. Focusing on lifelong
learning gives professionals the opportunity to know that the growth journey never ends.
There is always more that can be done to grow one’s personal brand. I have now seen the
potential that lies within continued education, as I work through the remainder of the MBA
program, I know that my focus will be on the next learning opportunity presented rather than
knowing that my educational journey will shortly be over.
