by Francois Karstel | Edited by Oliver Karstel

So what does it take to be a Marketing professional?

Over time I’ve noticed that people, especially in the marketing field, refer to themselves as experts, gurus, and even ninjas on Twitter and various other social media platforms. In this day and age it takes more than just a marketing degree and a few years work experience to consider yourself a marketing expert, you have to live and breathe marketing. It has to be part of your everyday thinking.





According to Malcom Gladwell in his book, Outliers: The Story of Success, it takes 10 000 hours to become a master at anything. Renowned Psychologist Dr. K. Anders Ericsson says it requires at least ten years of deliberate practice to achieve an expert level of performance in any given domain. The emphasis here is on the word “deliberate” which means there should be no mindless repetition.  You have to push yourself relentlessly and make every second count.

When it comes to a more theoretical field such as Ancient History, one could be considered an expert by the amount of reading one has done as opposed to the amount of hours one has put in, considering that you can’t really “do” ancient history.

Marketing, just like mathematics, is something that must be practiced and mastered. You may have read a few marketing books and articles, but you are only truly an expert on marketing when you are successfully in charge of your client’s marketing dollars and a certain deliberate focus is present in your everyday thinking.

So when next you’re on twitter and you see a self-proclaimed “marketing expert,” check out their portfolio; if it doesn’t contain numerous impressive case studies that are fully vouched for by satisfied customers, then keep scrolling…

Sound Idea Digital is a full service digital marketing agency that specialises in content marketing. We can develop a comprehensive content marketing strategy for your company | @SoundIdeaDMA | info@soundidea.co.za | www.soundidea.co.za