20 Things Every Graduating Marketing Student Needs to Know

It's college graduation season! Graduation caps are flying through the air, names are being mispronounced, and awkward questions about future careers are being asked. What's missing? A crash course when it comes to what marketing students actually need to know to enter the real world of marketing.

Unfortunately, featuring your fancy new diploma with the words "B.S. in Marketing" does more for fantastic graduation photos than it does for fantastic post-grad jobs. The sad truth is that most marketing students aren't adequately prepared for the real world.To all you current and future marketing students, here's a list of 20 things, under the umbrella of five key categories, of what you actually need to know before entering the professional marketing world. The list is a collection of advice from current members of the HubSpot marketing team -- including full-time marketing professionals who have graduated in years past as well as marketing interns who are graduating this year or in the future. 

Academics

1) Don't be afraid of numbers.

I can't tell you how many students I've come across who tell me they avoid taking any classes that involve quantitative analysis or statistics. News flash: marketers need statistics.

You need to be prepared to analyze everything you do. Don't use the excuse that you plan on being a "social media marketer." When I was on the social media team at HubSpot, and I spent every single day looking at and interpreting charts and graphs. You need to be able to look at a spreadsheet of numbers, make the proper calculations, and analyze what they mean.

Otherwise, you're wasting a whole lot of time making decisions without proof that they work and/or benefit your business in some way. So pay attention in your stats class.

2) Don't obsess over the 4 P's or C's of marketing.

Whether your marketing courses preach the P's or C's of Marketing, it doesn't matter. While they can help introduce you to the core concepts of marketing, the chances of you brainstorming how you meet price, product, place, and promotion in the a real-life marketing situation is unrealistic. You need to be thinking about much more, which will come in later parts of this list.

3) Don't think your classroom experience mimics an actual job.

Simulate "real-life" scenarios as much as you want, but you won't actually learn to make important decisions in tight time frames until you're managing real dollars, working to uphold a real company's reputation, and investing your energy in real projects.

You can't practice it either. You have to be there and do it a few times, and then you'll learn. Use internships as an opportunity to do this, which takes us to our next section.

Experience

4) Having an internship on your resume isn't "impressive."

You had a summer internship at a marketing agency last summer? Great! So did everybody else. The fact that you had an internship isn't impressive, it's what you did while you were there that is (or isn't).

Students have accepted this false notion that even if you're just answering phones, the fact that you had some big company's name on your resume will get you a job. It might get you in the door for an interview, but if you can't share the benefit you provided to the company, you won't be seen as a valuable resource.

5) Having the multiple marketing internships isn't "impressive."

Okay, so we've already established that it's not just about having an internship; it's what you do there. A subcomponent of having great internship experiences is gaining diverse experiences and perspectives.

If you're interested in marketing, don't just apply to internships at marketing agencies every summer. Switch it up and test your skills in different marketing environments, such as at a company that executes its marketing in-house.

That way, you're staying true to your ultimate goal while also using your talents in different types of environments. Another great thing about this is you'll learn which type of marketing job you're best suited for.

6) Having endless extracurricular activities doesn't make you an "expert."

I get it -- you love being involved in every organization you can possibly be a part of. You think putting it all on your resume will show your great versatility and extensive experience.

But all it really does is confuse recruiters.

I've heard employers say they get turned off by students who seem too involved because they don't show any one true strength they can bring to the table. Instead of being an expert in one area, they just have their toes dipped in a bunch.

Employers are looking for something unique that you can do, not that you have tried everything -- that's what marketing teams are for. If you've participated in a lot of different activities in college, narrow down the few that you can actually say you've learned from, excelled at, and helped you grow.

7) Having a standard resume doesn't exemplify modern marketing.

Is your career advisor handing you a template for your resume to adhere to? Ignore it.

Marketing is changing. Buyer behavior is changing. That means your entrance into this evolving industry should be changing, too. Create your own resume template. One that highlights your uniqueness and is set up to show, not tell, what your value is.

While paper resumes will always hold their own value, you also need to be present where marketing employers are looking. In fact, 89% of all recruiters report having hired someone through LinkedIn, according to Herd Wisdom.

Beyond LinkedIn, think about other unique ways to present your experience: infographics, tweets, slideshares, or even ebooks (which is what I did).  

Marketing

8) Marketing moves fast.

Chances are, whatever your professor taught you your freshman year of college no longer applies. Need an answer to a pressing marketing problem? You won't find it in that years-old textbook.

Effective marketing isn't about looking up the answer, it's about creating the answer. For example, social media wasn't taught in a classroom until recently, yet it's been around for years. Nobody taught professional marketers already in the business how to "do social media"; they had to figure it out on their own.

That's your future: figuring out marketing. Forever.

9) Marketing isn't about pretty pictures and viral videos.

Effective marketing campaigns focus on creating content that benefits your audience. You can't spend your marketing career creating humorous videos for the sake of bringing attention to your brand. You need to be prepared to think critically and analyze the needs of your target audience. What do they want? What are they confused about? How can you best serve them while serving your business? Answer one of these questions correctly, and your content will naturally become viral.

10) Marketing is not just about branding or awareness -- it's about making money.

Gone are the days of going to the marketing department for happy messages and to Sales for revenue -- today, the two must work together.

We keep talking about how everything you do should benefit your company, but haven't said what that benefit is. The benefit is simple: revenue. What is the return on investment of that email send? That tweet? That press release? Each of these efforts should be positioned to represent your company culture, but they need to fit into the sales cycle. They need to have a monetary value.

11) Marketing doesn't have to be evil.

The negative connotation surrounding "marketer," "public relations professional," etc. is pretty pervasive. But that doesn't mean it's okay to act out these stereotypes. Don't lose your morals and ethics when you graduate -- they need to be omnipresent in your marketing career. And yes, it is possible to create marketing that people actually like.

12) Marketing is more than big brands and agencies.

Yes, you can work at a marketing agency. And yes, you could work for a big brand like Nissan or Pepsi. But there are SO many more options. What about working in-house at technology company? A small business? A hospital? Just because your professors only talk about the campaigns big brands have executed, doesn't mean those are the only marketing jobs out there. 

13) Marketing is a balance of art, science, and tech.

Many marketing curriculums focus on the art. You craft advertising campaigns, brainstorm billboards, and storyboard commercials. In modern marketing, this art is critical in visualizing calls-to-actions, writing landing page copy, and launching products. 

But marketing is more than that. On the science front, we already discussed the importance of a data-driven mentality in point one. Beyond that, you need to embrace the infusion of technology in marketing.

In an article by Marketing Magazine, Jamie Kenny writes, "On the one hand, new technology offers marketing fresh and more efficient routes to market, along with exciting prospects such as the capability for personalised, one-to-one marketing at scale. On the other hand, the marketing department is having to learn new skills, take on responsibilities and build other relationships within the organisation."

As an emerging marketer, being tech savvy can help differentiate you from the crowd.

Personal

14) Don't be afraid to be wrong.

How many times have you said, "I thought the same exact thing ... but didn't say anything." '

Well, if you ever get to that point, it's too late. If you have an idea or opinion on something being discussed at an internship or on at your first job, speak up! Experience helps create proper judgment, not ideas. Anyone is capable of thinking of the next big thing; it's just a matter of not being afraid to share it.

15) Grow thick skin.

As a marketer, you'll have to deal with complaining customers, social media bashers, unresponsive sales reps, frustrating clients, the list goes on and on ... and through it all, you have to bite your tongue and let them feel like they are always right.

If you get too emotional over how people treat you, you won't last in the business. Take all negative feedback as constructive criticism, and spin it into something positive. I failed at this big time when I was interning at HubSpot -- but I learned from my mistakes.

16) Be your own best case study.

Prove your skills by marketing yourself. Don't wait for someone else to give you the opportunity. There's a number of ways to accomplish this:

• Write content -- on your own blog or for an existing blog -- demonstrating your knowledge and writing ability.
• Build your social media reach. Start conversations on Twitter or leverage LinkedIn to connect with other professionals. 

17) Never burn bridges.

You know that annoying teacher's pet who never stops talking in class next to you? She may end up being your manager one day. Or your co-worker. Or the woman who gets to decide if a company hires you.

You never know where people may end up. In fact, last year I received a LinkedIn message from a young man who wasn't the nicest to me in high school. All of a sudden he was a total sweetheart and asking for a job referral -- you can imagine my response was, well, nonexistent.

18) Network with everyone. 

Yes, you've heard this before. But the important part of networking is doing it with everyone. If you decide you want to work at XX company, don't only find ways to talk to people from XX company. Maybe that random stranger in the corner from Y company will one day be an employee at XX company, and then you'll be bummed you missed the opportunity to tell that person why you rock.

Point is, you never know who could end up helping you out the future. Get to know as many people as you can.

Miscellaneous

19) Get familiar with HTML/CSS.

You don't need to be a full-on engineer, but you do need to understand the basics. What happens when your web designer goes on vacation? What happens when you need to make a quick fix on your website? Or even just need to talk to your web designer?

You don't want to sound like a complete doh-doh head. Understand how coding works and be prepared to make little tweaks. If you end up in a product marketing role, this will be even more critical.

20) Understand the difference between B2B and B2C.

I'm surprised I was never exposed to such basic acronyms at school, but most businesses are classified this way. B2B = business-to-business. B2C = business-to-consumer. Look up the difference; it'll teach you a lot about different forms of marketing, and possibly where you want to work one day.

From the marketing team at HubSpot, we hope you found this list beneficial in planning your marketing career. Cheers to you!

To make your resume even more appealing to potential employers, become a certified inbound marketing professional with HubSpot's free marketing certification. Get started here.