According to a recent report from the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE), marketing degrees are one of the most attractive bachelor’s degrees for getting hired this year.
If you’re about to graduate from college and you haven’t figured out your first job yet, don’t panic. We’ve done some of the legwork and found four tech companies that are great places to launch a career in marketing.
SimpliSafe designs home security systems that are wireless, cellular and can be set up by in minutes.
Responses via Fabien LaPointe,Talent Acquisition at SimpliSafe
Why is SimpliSafe a great company for recent marketing grads?
Working here won’t be boring. We are a company disrupting a $13 billion-dollar industry. We can’t do things the old way. We are forging a new path and that requires thoughtfulness, boldness and creativity. You’ll never be told, “do it the way it’s always been done.” New ideas are rewarded and tested, and failure is totally encouraged — it’s the only way to learn. And learning is the key to our success.
What career development opportunities do you have for entry-level workers?
We offer challenging roles where marketers get to actually make decisions. Copywriters, designers and media buyers are all able to make important decisions without needing to get layers upon layers of approvals. We work incredibly hard behind the scenes to protect and manage a very flat organizational structure. You’ll have a short incubation period where we show you the ropes; after that, it’s off to the races, and you get to own your wins and losses.
What is your marketing culture like?
Test, measure, learn, optimize. Do it again, and again and again. We never rest on our laurels, because we know our work can always be better.
What types of projects does your marketing team work on?
We work on everything that touches the customer. We’re very lucky, because we manufacture, market and directly sell our products and services. We get to create our ads in-house. We even have our own video team that makes TV commercials and social videos. But we also get to sell, right on our website, and gather the data to iteratively improve our storytelling abilities. Having data at our fingertips makes us better. You’ll know if your work is good or not, and that’s really exciting feedback to have. Most marketing jobs don’t offer that.
What interviewing tips do you have for recent marketing grads?
Be brave enough to be your truest self in the interview room. Show your warts. Reveal your oddities. The right employer will find them an asset. Remember that a job and a paycheck are super important, but you’ll only get a career from landing a gig inside of a culture where there is a great fit. So reveal yourself, and ask questions that force potential employers to reveal themselves.
Wistia has built a leading video platform for businesses to create and share videos.
Responses via Heather Adams, VP of Marketing at Wistia
Why is Wistia a great company for recent marketing grads?
Recent grads often dream of working with a fun, adventurous brand where they can let their creative juices flow freely – that's one of the reasons why Wistia is such a great fit for a marketing grad. We encourage all new employees to work hard and grow by letting them take the reigns from day one. We believe that marketing (and business in general) should be about making meaningful connections with customers and prospects, forming relationships, and educating our audience so they can get the most out of our product. As a recent grad, you'll have the opportunity to grow within a fast-paced and creative work environment, while also learning from your hard-working, talented peers. We push each other every day by giving and receiving open feedback, trusting one another to try new things, and by taking risks.
What career development opportunities do you have for entry-level workers?
We encourage employee growth across the company, whether that means becoming more senior in your current role, or exploring new opportunities within Wistia. Over the years, Wistia employees have moved up the ranks from within their own department, or even across business units. We want people to feel happy and inspired in whatever role they take, even if that means shaking things up a bit. We also encourage our employees to further educate themselves through external resources on our dime if it means they're setting themselves up for success in their role.
What is your marketing culture like?
It's easy to see how each member of the marketing team's success is contingent upon one another, and that's why we work so well as a unit. Every member of the marketing team is willing to pitch in, help one another out, and experiment with new ideas on a daily basis. We all believe in the power of teamwork and trusting each other to do our best work. One of the biggest pillars of success on our team is creating unique and compelling educational content. We all work together to create, design, promote, and share our content so that our audience can succeed with video!
What types of projects does your marketing team work on?
Instagram stories to growth hacking and co-marketing content, our team works on a little bit of everything. We host an annual conference called WistiaFest that nearly everyone on the marketing team touches in some way, and that's been something we can all really rally behind.
What interviewing tips do you have for recent marketing grads?
It sounds like a no-brainer in this day and age, but we always love to see applicants go above and beyond with an introduction video to showcase who they are and why they want to work at the company they're applying to. As a video platform company, of course we are bought in on the power of video – it's the most human form of communication next to chatting in person. And putting in that extra effort can go a long way and will very quickly set you apart!
Placester is a real estate marketing platform that provides the ability to advertise online using automated distribution with performance tracking. This lets advertisers focus on lead management, while Placester drives traffic.
Responses via Frederick Townes, Co-Founder and COO of Placester
Why is Placester a great company for recent marketing grads?
With a flat team structure and incredible growth potential, new additions to the Placester marketing team are given the opportunity to learn and contribute from day one. We have a dynamic team that’s always looking for new ideas and ways of thinking, so recent college grads are able (and encouraged) to express their opinions from the very beginning. Even better, no matter how long you’ve been with the company, you’ll quickly be able to see the impact of your work on the team’s success — a huge motivator for our new team members.
What career development opportunities do you have for entry-level workers?
In many cases, Placester provides reimbursement for staff interested in attending professional development courses and webinars, as well as educational conferences. Placester also welcomes employees to shadow colleagues from other departments, including and especially our sales and support teams, to better understand both our internal processes and the challenges facing our customers.
What is your marketing culture like?
At Placester, we constantly question ideas, embrace change and empower one another to add value every day — and the marketing team is no exception. Marketing tactics and best practices are always changing, and our culture thrives off this fluidity. The changing landscape fuels a team of creative minds that aren’t afraid to think differently. With this mindset, even the newest members of the team are encouraged to suggest new tactics or make improvements to our marketing strategy. Creating such a flexible work environment is incredibly valuable for the team’s professional development, and it’s something that Placester is really proud of.
What types of projects does your marketing team work on?
Content Marketing. Planning and composing articles, ebooks, webinars, and podcasts for Placester’s Real Estate Marketing Academy, a leading educational resource for real estate professionals. Social Media: Creating paid and organic campaigns and managing interactions with Placester on social media. Events: Producing print and digital marketing collateral to support Placester’s presence at local, regional and national conferences, as well as Placester-hosted events. Email Marketing: Planning and executing emails and email marketing strategies to create awareness of and demand for Placester’s solutions. Product Marketing: Developing messaging around new Placester features and product releases and creating collateral to support them. Video Marketing: scripting and producing educational and product-focused videos for the Academy and other channels. Analytics & Reporting: Measuring the success of Placester’s marketing campaigns and optimizing results through data and experimentation.
What interviewing tips do you have for recent marketing grads?
If you claim to be a creative thinker or proactive teammate, be prepared with examples. Regardless of whether these examples are from a schools project or club, it will show that you can substantiate your claims, and bring valuable qualities to your future workplace. Do your research ahead of time. Familiarize yourself with the target audience and marketing messages you’ll be working with. Integrating these insights into your responses will show that you understand the space, and care enough about the position to put in extra time beforehand. Be prepared with thoughtful questions. Your interviewer will likely be looking for a candidate who is curious and eager to learn. Asking specific questions about the industry or the company (if the answers can’t be found online) will show that you are genuinely interested in the field, and will help set you apart from the other candidates.
ownerIQ has created a data-sharing economy that connects retailers, brands and marketers with powerful second-party data that aids decision-making.
Responses via Aidan Bradley, Director of Marketing Communications at ownerIQ
Why is ownerIQ a great company for recent marketing grads?
We teach you the building blocks for your career in marketing and digital advertising. You are able to experience so many different facets of marketing very quickly that you would never get to experience at larger corporations as a new grad. We move fast and expect a lot, but you get incredible experience in return. For example, Mikayla our most recent hire on corporate marketing has managed over 20 events across the country in the just the past year since joining ownerIQ. Additionally, on corporate marketing, your ideas are always welcomed and discussed. It doesn’t matter if it’s your first day or 900th or if you are entry level or a manager. We are a startup and new ideas always help us innovate, stay creative and get better as a team and individuals.
What career development opportunities do you have for entry-level workers?
Everyone at ownerIQ goes through an extensive two-day training called QU short for Q-Univeristy. Marketing team members are given the chance for career development throughout various ways locally and nationally — attending conferences/webinars and classes in their focus area to help hone their skills and expertise. This could be marketing/CMO breakfasts, Young Professional groups, industry events, design technology conferences, women’s leadership initiatives, salesforce trainings, the list goes on.
What is your marketing culture like?
We work hard, we love what we do and genuinely like working with each other. We also know the value of how important teamwork is. I strive to make sure my team knows their hard work is appreciated and they are an important asset to corporate marketing. Additionally, we keep open communication with each other and admit and learn from our mistakes. After a big project, event or campaign is completed we always re-evaluate — what worked, what didn’t and how do we make it better next time. This is how we get better and raise the bar with every marketing execution.
What types of projects does your marketing team work on?
ownerIQ Corporate Marketing is responsible for all external communications and marketing of the company and brand awareness of the Q within the adtech industry. This includes all messaging, content, creative, corporate website, public relations, analyst relations, events, lead gen, digital and social media, etc. We are constantly working multiple projects whether that is planning our next presence at an industry event, a company rebrand, updating our website, working on a press release, eBook, or lead gen digital campaign — the list goes on.
What interviewing tips do you have for recent marketing grads?
Do you research, find out everything you can about the company, their history, their current place in the industry and who you are interviewing with. Be enthusiastic, this goes a long way. My first boss at The Boston Globe told me always smile — it’s helps you through just about any situation. Promote yourself and your personal brand — but don’t be too full of yourself. Send a thank you. This is really important. As a hiring manager, when I don’t receive a well thought out ‘thank you’ I assume you are not interested and won’t consider you for the role. I always tell my team: skills can be taught, learned and honed — a positive can-do attitude can’t — be a team player and work hard and good things will happen.
Photos via companies
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