The Glossary: Marketing Manager at The Halley | Hattie Wynter

What does a marketing manager do?
In a nutshell, my job is to get the word out about my brand and share our message with those that align with our ethos. At The Halley we’re constantly working on an array of projects that support different people in the music industry - including our charity partners, young entrepreneurs and artists. My job is to have insight on all aspects of this, create messaging and campaigns around them, ensuring each project has a clear strategy, brief, timeline, and audience -  plus of course managing budgets!

What makes a great marketing manager?
As the marketing industry moves quite fast, I would say a proactive and explorative attitude is key! The current landscape of trends, platforms, and even expected working methods and cultural topics, consistently move on and evolve. My job means I need to stay on top of this and keep my finger on the pulse. Another important trait is being personable and friendly - Marketing Managers are mini brand ambassadors and should lead by example. It’s an important lesson to take into all aspects of life, but relationships are key to successful and authentic work, and you never know who you might meet. Some of the most interesting campaigns and events I’ve worked on have been built through mutual respect and friendship.

Do you have any tips on how to become a marketing manager? What are the professional requirements?
If I’m being honest, I’m not sure. I left uni and managed to get an internship by the skin of my teeth. I didn’t have a traditional marketing background - or even a ‘real’ job beforehand - and used my extra-curricular skills to boost my CV. My experience has been quite vocational and starting as an intern has meant I’ve learnt a lot on my feet and by ‘doing’. I was also lucky to have a strong team around me that all had different skills who I could learn from. Asking colleagues and peers is a great way to improve your knowledge and experience.
If I had to say something that is important right now, I would say having an understanding of how you use metrics is really important. This doesn’t mean you have to be a data analyst by any means, but you should be able to read these figures, understand them, and use them to make data-driven decisions.

What are the common misconceptions about the role of a marketing manager?
I think Marketing can have a bit of a bad rep! Depending on your industry, you can have a hand in shaping important campaigns and working on interesting products. I’m lucky to work in an industry I care about and to use my knowledge and skills to manage global and local campaigns.
Something that I love about my job is how varied it is. I get to work on all sorts of projects, meet lots of different people and have a broad understanding of all aspects of my company.  It’s cliche but no day is the same. From newsletters and social media,  to strategy and campaign management, there’s a little bit of everything involved. Working in music also means I work alongside a lot of like-minded people and hear about interesting projects and events happening throughout the industry.

What changes would you like to see happen within your sector and the music industry in general?
I would love to see more diversity in senior leadership. Whilst I acknowledge that there has been a shift towards diversity in entry-level roles and junior positions, monumental and system change happens top down.