Top jobs in marketing management

With an eye on the future and a keen understanding of past performance, marketing managers can devise ways to put the right products and services before the public at the right time and the right price.

Their responsibilities include gauging public demand, knowing what their clients' competitors are offering and finding new customers as products develop. Customer satisfaction and trends in the marketplace also figure into their realm of decision-making, as do pricing strategies that benefit their company's bottom line, yet remain attractive to those buying their products.

About 166,790 workers made their living as marketing managers in 2008, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. By far, the largest concentration in the profession is in management within companies and other private enterprises, according to the BLS. But marketing managers also work in industries that range from scientific and technical consulting to information technology to financial and insurance services.

They earn an average annual salary of $118,160, but the highest end of the pay spectrum in the field is from mid-$140,000's to mid-150,000's, largely in the telecommunications, motion picture and video industries, financial investment services, and scientific research and development.

Certain locations of the United States have the highest concentrations of marketing managers nationwide. The BLS reports Connecticut, Delaware, New Hampshire and Massachusetts have significant numbers of these workers, but California -- with 31,340 marketing managers -- is by far the leader in employment for these jobs,

Professional training benefits marketers trying to move into management

College graduates with experience in marketing and related fields, such as public relations and promotions, compete for management positions that command high earnings, but that can also be marked by substantial work-related travel and long hours. The field is expected to grow by 13 percent in the coming decade as public demand grows for as well as domestic and foreign goods and services. 

Often, the most competitive candidates for management jobs have master's degree in business administration (MBA). But the American Marketing Association, the country's largest trade group with more than 30,000 members, also provides professional training, as well as networking opportunities with marketing educators, researchers and managers. Companies also look favorably on college grads who've gained practical experience through marketing internships.

Marketing managers need to be adept at monitoring trends on the horizon that will create the need for new products and services and shift their spending into new forms of media to capture the attention of today's consumers. An AMA survey last year found chief marketing officers nationwide are increasing their Internet marketing budgets by 10 percent and expect their social media efforts to triple from 3.5 percent to 13.7 percent in the next five years.

As they continue to work collaboratively with colleagues in sales and product development, today's marketing managers must absorb new media skills to be effective. The AMA survey found that "the five most frequently reported uses for social media tactics are brand building, customer acquisition, new product introductions, customer retention and market research."