“Brand is the sum total of how someone perceives a particular organization. Branding is about Shaping that perception.”
– Marketing Expert Ashley Friedlein: Entrepreneur, Investor, Speaker, Author and CEO & Founder of Guild
What Is a Brand Manager?
As Ashley Friedlein alludes to in the above quote, brand managers make sure their brand is presenting the desired image. They are constantly analyzing data and statistics. First they must determine the market’s current perception of the brand. Brand Managers study sales and conduct surveys and focus groups for a full depth understanding of the public’s view of the brand. They use this Information, along with other data, to decide the next steps the brand must take to meet its objectives.
What does a Brand Manager do?
Brand Managers focus on the brand’s message and overall growth. If a brand has a diverse audience, a brand manager would capitalize on that. They would be responsible for the oversight of multiple different events, products, messages, or images at a time. By extension, the brand appeals more heavily to the different groups within their audience. Brand managers do this to be more influential to multiple groups and increase the overall growth of the brand.
Brand Strategy is one of their most important tasks. Part of that includes establishing a style guide, an established set of formatting guidelines. They must also set overarching brand guidelines. This helps focus the brand’s image (the voice behind the product). It’s the manager’s responsibility to ensure the brand has a respectable proposition of value. This is a statement made by the brand to ensure a certain level of product quality. By doing this, the manager provides the consumer security in the condition of the brand and its products. The manager refines the previously mentioned aspects to ensure the brand has a clear and consistent voice. In following, the manager must market the brand appropriately.
Other Responsibilities
It is also the brand managers job to oversee all communications and media as it pertains to the brand. This includes managing and overseeing all brand affiliated posts published to social media or any ads, videos, and promotional events. It’s the manager’s responsibility to make sure these forms of media reflect positively on the brand. Anything the brand produces must be received well by the brand’s audience. Managers must also work closely with the product development team to ensure the goods being developed by the brand are ones of quality. The brand manager must also see to it that these products are appropriately priced. Everything must be released in such a way that their audience will respond in a positive manner.
Although managing the brand’s current affairs is critical, it is not the managers sole responsibility. Brand managers are also accountable for the development and execution of brand objectives. The manager must create marketing collateral to establish product branding. The budget for ads and promotional items must be set by the manager. In order to outperform the competitors, the manager must receive both competitor and customer insight. Managers find this by evaluating sales and conducting surveys or organizing focus groups. The manager will implement studies such as this to find out how the brand compares to the competition. Current sales, projected sales, and other relevant data are analyzed by the manager to determine what course of action must be taken to best grow the brand.
What Qualifies a Brand Manager?
Brand managers usually have degrees pertaining to their field and years of marketing experience in a similar environment. A brand manager will likely have either a degree in Business, Advertising and Marketing, Economics or Engineering from a credible college or university. A postgraduate qualification or MBA is also a sought after attribute of a brand manager. Most brands prefer a manager with the ability to speak English, as well as one or more other languages, as a multilingual manager will have greater communication skills and be able to speak to a wider audience. Brand managers must network and build connections and relationships with people they deem qualified or esteemed in their field.
Brand awareness is a crucial skill the manager must possess. This basically just means how in touch the manager is in terms of brand image and the meeting of brand set objectives. This also includes the manager’s understanding of other brands in the same market and what those brands are doing and how those moves favor those brands. This awareness allows the brand manager to better evaluate the market in which the manager’s respective brand resides. A high level of determination and persistence is required to keep the brand present and growing in the market. The managers relationship management skills are also a necessity in order to maintain a functional work environment and a growing brand. These traits, coupled with laser focus and vast business knowledge, help the brand manager make themselves, and their brand by extension, a powerful, functioning growing entity.
Brand Manager Salary
There is a lot of room for growth in terms of salary in the field of Brand Manager. A lot of factors, such as years of experience, personal and brand performance, the amount of other managers responsible for the brand,and the brand’s overall budget, will determine the yearly salary of the manager. Brand managers on the lower end of the spectrum could expect to make between $42,000- $58,000 a year, though most fall in the middle at about $90,000 a year. Very successful and seasoned managers have the potential to make upwards of $150,000 a year.
Advancement in the Workspace
Brand Managers that go above and beyond in their field can expect salary increases or promotions. Such promotions include marketing manager or marketing director. Brand managers are in very high demand and can expect fast career progression if they produce results. Creative and effective writing is the most powerful tool a manager can possess. Effective managers should have FMCG (Fast Moving Commercial Goods) experience. Managers work with different groups or teams within the brand, so good communication skills are very important. A brand manager must be comfortable working in both the office and from home.
Works Cited
Gesch, Antonia. “22 Best Branding Quotes to Inspire You.” 99designs, 99designs, 9 Mar. 2020, 99designs.com/blog/business/branding-quotes/.
“The Role of a Brand Manager.” Business Advice, Robert Walters, www.robertwalters.com.br/en/career-advice/the-role-of-a-brand-manager.html.
“Salary: Brand Manager.” Glassdoor, www.glassdoor.com/Salaries/brand-manager-salary-SRCH_KO0,13.htm.
Talley, Jenell. “What Does a Brand Manager Do?” Mediabistro, 3 Nov. 2016, www.mediabistro.com/climb-the-ladder/skills-expertise/what-does-a-brand-manager-do/.
