Transferable marketing skills

How to ensure your marketing skills are transferable

In today’s dynamic market, not everyone wants to be working in the same sector/industry for a long period of time.

We are seeing a rising trend of marketing professionals seeking out new and exciting roles. But how do you ensure that your marketing skills are transferable?

Movement to new sectors is particularly prevalent in certain industries and job functions, such as marketing. For example, professionals with a solid consumer background are easily absorbed into multiple sectors such as B2B marketing and financial services. It is wise when starting your career in marketing to gain broad consumer experience. As a result, you can later have the choice to specialise in varying sectors. The important question is - are your skills transferable?

Professionals in certain areas such as a PR, corporate affairs or direct mail specialist within marketing, can often shift sectors while staying in an in-house role. A PR specialist will find it relatively easy to move from a large financial services company to, for example a government or commercial sector, as their responsibilities and key drivers largely remain constant.

There are always certain attributes that will make your experiences easily transferable. If you are looking to move from a local role into a regional role, show that you are well travelled and aware of cultural differences. Proving that you are cosmopolitan and multilingual will always give you an advantage. Other skills which are crucial in every role and therefore aid you in transference are being confident, dynamic and having sound time management skills.    

Skills that are transferable include:

• Communication: understanding verbal instructions, empathy, speaking effectively, persuasiveness, assertiveness, information sharing, networking, customer focus
• Planning and organisation: goal setting, planning, managing work, managing others
• Technology: computer literacy, experience with new technologies and marketing techniques
• Initiative and enterprise: initiative, self-sufficiency, business acumen, creativity and innovation

It might be a good idea to get involved in new projects and cross-functional teams in your current job to ensure you have a strong set of transferable skills. Be flexible with the types of tasks you're willing to undertake and try new things. This will expand both your skills set and your network.

Understanding your strengths and weaknesses is crucial to a successful career change.