The Marketing field might be tricky for those who intend to get to a marketing school or college and expect to learn everything they have to learn with their teachers during the formation years.

Sometimes we might get too much distracted with the idea marketing involves meetings, projections, brainstorming and just planning of actions and strategies, but the job starts earlier or, let's say, lower in the hierarchy, and people who are getting started in the career must be prepared for this kind of requirement: experience selling.

You must never forget marketing is a sale's ritual.
Everything that is planned behind doors in team work is constantly towards goals of selling something or some service, and how can you get started in the career if you have never sold anything and doesn't have experience selling? Most companies in the marketing field are requesting professionals that have experience with that. Selling like an attendant in stores is the base of the career. It looks like it doesn't have any relation, but it makes all sense.

Most established companies in the marketing field already have professionals skilled and trained on the thinking areas, so for newcomers to get there, they have to trace this same path, knowing from the attending desk how things work. Doing this gradual evolution, professional will be able to understand how everything works since the desk stage is the deliver of the so planned product or service.

For this kind of experience is where you will have to struggle to get expertise. Since you will not learn this at school, jobs that offer a career progression on commerce and services for example, are a key factor for this kind of experience on your resume. This also applies to autonomous merchants, doing your own business on internet for example with sales. This is recognized since your ability to deal with customers and understand what the public needs, wants or may not want but can be persuaded to aim.

Formation On and Out Of School

Another interesting aspect of the marketing field for beginners is you don't actually really need a degree to get to work. As we mentioned before, the entry-levels mostly require practical experience, so a highly noticeable degree by a renowned university might not worth a thing if you are a virgin in the field. The key factor here is to look for companies who provide trainee programs. They will be interested in professionals with some aptitude for selling and know most routines of commerce, as well as managing procedures. These companies will train this kind of professionals with all they need to know to succeed inside the company. Notice this is a path people who are really interested in some specific brand and to grow on the hierarchy with these patrons who are about you school you.

People in general who are graduated on prestigious and renowned institutions will have to look for something else to get a job: acquaintances. Surely, most professional areas require this kind of bonus as a strategy but fields strictly related to communication, human resources managing and interrelationships need it the most. On marketing it won't be different. Most graduates will start their career with marketing executive jobs, which vary from assistant to coordinator posts. To get there you must be of the trust of your employees because you will be in entry levels but you won't be a simple trainee, so references and people who know people who know people are always the best way for you to get these chances.

Building your own network is something you will be doing in this field for the rest of your life, and you already must start even before graduation. There are many different specializations inside the marketing field so you must align to specific goals since the beginning and stick to people who will help you excel your knowledge and amount of human sources on that specific interest. Goals are also something you will be working with for the rest of your life so you must really trace your formation plan and take a path to follow as your first lesson.

That doesn't mean you can't later get back and start again specializing in SEO, for example, or market research after reaching the top of your game as a branding manager. You can and you should but first things first. Never try to embrace the world all at once as you will need focus, specially because you will find competitors inside your work. Everybody wants to reach the top and, not like in movies, people won't be cheating and trying to kill one each other to get to the top, your employees will be there to know who has the best timing, knows better and thinks righteous and faster. If you don't follow a lead on your career at this time, you might end up lost in the marketing jungle. So trace your criteria and priorities and build experience and a good networking.