What can an MBA aspirant expect after specializing in Sales & Marketing? In this article we will look at career options and prospects in Sales & Marketing.

For any organization, its major objective is to market and sell their products or services for a profit. Although sales and marketing maybe aligned they are both not the same. 

What do you mean by Sales & Marketing? 

Having a good product or excellent service is not enough. You need to communicate what you have to offer and then sell the same. This in short is a sum of what sales and marketing is all about. 

Sales caters to selling any specified services or products which an individual or organization deals with. In simple terms it is selling what to you have in stock or a service you have envisioned. This process involves research, negotiations, customizations and pleasing a customer.  

Marketing on the other hand is a role which involves projecting the company’s products and services in the marketplace through research, planning and strategizing for future profit. The objective is primarily to create awareness in the market.  Marketing of the products or services will ultimately lead to sales. 

Sales and marketing roles overlap within organisations.  A career in sales or marketing have a lot to offer in terms of positions and career options.  Let’s look at various roles available in both sales and marketing. 

Career Opportunities in Sales & Marketing

There are plenty of options available for an MBA with specialization in Sales & Marketing. A few of the many career opportunities you may want to consider are listed below.  

Sales & Marketing Executive / Sales & Marketing Manager 

As a sales & marketing executive or manager you will have to execute a variety of tasks. The tasks may be the same for both executive and manager by the amount of work done and responsibilities increase as you rise up to the rank of a manager. Some of them include: 

• • Engaging in excellent customer service by making information easily and quickly available
  • Ensuring that product knowledge is easily available to customers and sales teams in various formats 
  • Client engagement, sales and conversions
  • Product / service demonstrations  
  • Creating marketing and sales strategy 
  • Competition analysis 
  • Market research
  • Budget planning 
  • Project management 

Account Executive / Manager or Sales Manager 

Given below are some of the tasks that an account executive may have to perform:

• • Creating detailed business plans to facilitate the attainment of goals and quotas
  • Managing entire sales cycle from finding a client to securing a deal
  • Unearthing new sales opportunities and convert them into long term partnerships
  • ROI research 

Business Development Executive 

The purpose and focus of this job is all about customer acquisition. Tasks include lead generation and prospect management. The job involves (but is not limited to) 

• • Researching client business referrals and networks
  • Working with clients to create solutions for their requirements 
  • Sales consulting and closing 

Brand Manager or Brand Specialist 

Some of the tasks include (but are not limited to) the following

• • Analysing your organizations brand positioning in the market 
  • Analysing customer data and insights for strategic planning 
  • Strategizing on the brand vison, mission, goals and coming with a Brand Strategy
  • Translating brand strategies into branding plans, positioning and go-to-market strategies

Media Planner 

As a media planner, your job will entail executing effective advertising campaigns. You will be tasked with identifying potential target audience, enhancing reach and evaluating campaign success. Some of the tasks include: 

• • Identifying and understanding target audiences – current and potential 
  • Determining the most effective media mix to display ads and share information 
  • Coordinating, monitoring and evaluating media campaigns and strategies

Advertising / Promotion Managers

As an advertising or promotion manager, you are responsible for overseeing all the advertising activities of your organization. Some of the tasks include: 

• Creating business strategy for advertising, promotions, campaigns and supervising the execution of the same 
• Planning and managing an advertising campaign as and when required
• Cost and budget estimation and project management
• Evaluating overall performance and success of the campaign 
• Manage vendors (outside advertising agencies) 

Recruiters for MBA in Sales & Marketing

Some of the organizations that recruited graduates from top MBA colleges in 2017 – 18 included

• Asian Paints
• Colgate-Palmolive
• HUL
• ITC
• L'Oreal
• Marcio
• Olam
• TGI
• AluZinc
• CP Group
• British Telecom
• IBM 

Salary Package estimates

The average starting salary of MBA in Sales & Marketing graduates can ranges between ₹2.5 to 10 Lakhs depending upon expertise and college the candidate has passed out of. The salaries differ based on when the candidate has acquired his/her MBA from. The higher the reputation of the institute, the better is the pay package. Work experience and geographical location also play an important role in how much you are paid. 

List of a few of the top MBA in Sales & Marketing Colleges in India 

• Faculty of Management Studies (FMS), University of Delhi  
• Jamnalal Bajaj Institute of Management Studies, Mumbai
• Christ University, Bangalore 
• Department of Management Studies, IIT Delhi 
• Symbiosis Institute of Management Studies, Pune
• SRM Business School, Lucknow
• ICFAI Business School, Hyderabad
• Institute of Management Studies, Dehradun
• Nirma University, Ahmedabad

Students are selected for this programme based on the entrance exam score. Some of the exams include: 

• Common Admission Test  (CAT)
• Management Aptitude Test (MAT) 
• Common Management Aptitude Test (CMAT)
• Symbiosis National Aptitude Test (SNAP) 

Most institutes look for the candidate’s scores in one of these exams to select students for this programme.  

A few tips and suggestions

While an MBA in Sales & Marketing is open to all, it is best suited for candidates with the following traits.

• Excellent written and oral communication skills
• An aptitude for selling and marketing 
• Pleasing and outgoing personality
• Good analytical skills 
• Creative 
• Ability to work in stressful environment  
• Market and Subject knowledge
• Open to targets 
• Negotiation skills 
• Good knowledge of technical tools such as MS Excel, Project Management tools, Digital marketing tools, data analytics tools, CRM etc. 

Conclusion: 

Sales & Marketing play a very important role in the life of any business be it big or small. There is no point in having a world class product or service if it cannot be sold. This is where the Sales & Marketing team comes in. This team plays a pivotal role in the successful running of an organization. No organization can survive without sufficient efforts being put into Sales & Marketing activities. So, if you have an aptitude for selling, are a good communicator and have a creative bent of mind, then go ahead and explore Sales & Marketing as a career option. 

As Jim Cathcart, the American entrepreneur, best-selling author and speaker aptly put it, “Become the person who would attract the results you seek.”  

Good luck and all the best!