When I decided to pursue a career in marketing, I assumed I’d spend my days writing catchy jingles and pitching ideas for commercials. At least that is what I’d seen on my favorite show, Full House.
Surely, this is marketing ⬇️⬇️⬇️
As an entry-level marketer I learned that more often marketing is drowning in emails , fielding “ideas” from everyone, and petitioning for a budget increase.
Are we marketing yet? 🙀
Years later, working with the founders of The Escape Game, I saw it for the first time…Real marketing.
The 3 company founders wouldn’t even consider themselves “marketers,” but they are the best marketers I’ve ever known. They don’t use the latest jargon or subscribe to the hottest newsletters, but they know how to grow a business and sustain its success.
And that’s what marketing is, right?
- They know our customers. 👨👩👧👦
- They ask the right questions. 🤨
- They identify and pull the right growth levers. 📈
- They obsess over the metrics that matter. 📊
Observing these founders has changed my definition of marketing…
Marketing is contributing meaningfully to the success of an organization, product, or idea.
The definition is simple, but it doesn’t simplify things. Real marketing is hard. It’s not a checklist of tactics. It’s not assembling a team with the right technical skills. Marketing is part exploration, part instinct, and part execution.
This definition keeps me in check. When I’m at my best, I never do anything just because it is “good marketing” or because good marketing strategies should include X, Y, and Z.
That’s fluff. That’s vanity. That’s for golf claps from other marketers. And it doesn’t matter.
How do you define marketing?
