My line of business - the marketing manager

Do you find the multitude of roles that exist in the call centre sector a bit mind-boggling? Well, worry no more. Your new-look CallCentreHelper.com is on hand to give you the low-down on the variety of jobs that exist in the world of call centres. Each month, we’ll be hearing from an individual who works in the sector and will not only discover what they do for a living, but also what their tips are for getting in to that line of work.

This month, we profile Charles Collins, marketing manager at 2Touch (www.2touch.co.uk)

I once overheard a conversation that went something along the following lines:

“What shall I do with this?” “Er, don’t know. Give it to marketing. They’ll know what to do with it.

” Now, I’m not a gambling man, but I’m willing to wager that other marketing managers, working in hundreds of thousands of companies across the country and around the world, have all - at some time or another - been on the receiving end of such glib remarks.

Unfortunately, perhaps these type of sentiments reflect a broader view of marketing among the corporate rank-and-file and top management, both of whom see the marketing department as some kind of creative black hole in to which a company pours its woes and troubles and out of which magically emerges an Eden-esque vision of the future, dripping with honey and burning bright with new hope and ambition.

It’d be nice if it happened that way, but of course it doesn’t. Still, it’s a shame that people are prepared to hold such prejudiced views about matters they invariably know very little about.

You see, I feel strongly that the merits of marketing deserve a fairer hearing at both shop and top floor level, and should be treated with more reverence than it often garners.

That’s because, properly planned and executed, marketing possesses the power to inspire and genuinely change perceptions.

The role marketing plays in business

Marketing is seminal to the life cycle of a busy call centre and is so much more than just a convenient dumping ground for those things that somehow find their way into a business and that no-one really knows what to do with - except to give it to marketing.

It’s undoubtedly important to the long-term success of a business - and call centres are no different - to embrace the power of marketing. Without it, there could be no vision of the future or road map to the Promised Land.

Marketing plays a pivotal role in setting the corporate agenda and then presenting it to the world. It sets the tone and image of how a company is perceived, and then carefully nurtures and manages those perceptions over many years to ensure they remain consistent and true to core values and ideals.

I think that’s why I like being a marketeer. It’s a terrific career and provides the opportunity to take on the challenge of creating and building something worthwhile.

It’s also a career where two days are rarely ever the same; where creativity has its rightful place and the boundaries of what are achievable are almost limitless (given, of course, a decent budget and sufficient time to go at it).

Developing and implementing marketing strategy is my chief responsibility at 2Touch. But what does this actually involve? My job - which is very hands-on - entails developing robust marketing plans to position the business at the forefront of the outsourced contact centre industry.

I also look after the advertising, PR and direct marketing plans that are put in place to support the implementation of the strategy. This involves regular meetings and liaison with external consultants who provide advice about reputation management, advertising and design, among many other things.

Another of my key roles is to provide marketing support and guidance to other areas of the business, such as people development and client services. I oversee the planning and delivery of 2Touch’s exhibition programme, attending trade shows such as the Direct Marketing Show. Even the ownership and management of client satisfaction surveys falls under the remit of the marketing department.

The allure of the call centre

If you’re wondering why I went down this route: well, I always wanted to be a marketeer and saw a move in to the contact centre industry as an ideal chance to hone my skills within a challenging, dynamic and fast growing sector of the UK economy. It’s certainly been a rollercoaster ride since I came into the industry four years ago.

When I joined, 2Touch was a new name to the sector and I was very keen on the idea of coming in at a time when I could start the marketing process with a clean sheet of paper and build the business in to one of the foremost brands in a very tough and competitive sector.

The journey to achieving this pre-eminent position is still ongoing and will last for sometime yet, but so far it’s been a very satisfying ride that’s given me the chance to develop my own skills and get involved in all elements of the marketing mix - from direct marketing, advertising, exhibition planning and creative design, through to business-to-business telemarketing, market research, sales and PR.

So, what do I get out of it? There’s no doubt this is a tremendously rewarding job: one that offers me considerable scope to present my own ideas. Working with a variety of extremely professional and creative external suppliers, each of whom is committed to delivering results and quality work for us, is something I very much value.

The chance to see the business grow and go from strength-to-strength as sales leads are converted into new clients has also been something that’s given me tremendous satisfaction over the years, as has working with the sales team to provide them with solutions to tough problems.

2Touch is extremely committed to providing an environment in which training plays a seminal role in bringing out the best in people and providing them with new skills, which enhance their own career prospects and ultimately enable the business to improve the quality of service it provides to clients.

This is something that I have been particularly impressed with. I’ve even taken advantage of the training opportunities on offer to learn new skills and top up existing ones.

Ultimately, I guess it’s working as part of a great team and the sense of achievement in seeing marketing campaigns through from concept to execution that gives me a real buzz about this job and keeps me looking forward to the next challenge.