Marketing manager to brand manager
A marketing manager already meets 39% of what the brand manager role asks for. The move turns on 19 required skills not yet in the profile.
68.4/ 100
1 How much of what a brand manager is expected to do is already part of a marketing manager’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the brand manager role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A brand manager role treats 12 of its required skills as things a marketing manager already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- apply social media marketing
- apply strategic thinking
- carry out sales analysis
- channel marketing
- create annual marketing budget
- implement marketing strategies
What stands in the way is 19 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.
Table 2 · What you already bring
Of the 17 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A brand manager role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a marketing manager background worth leading with.
- already held organise participation in local or international events management skills
- already held services marketing business, administration and law
- already held channel marketing business, administration and law
- already held conduct search engine optimisation working with computers
- already held create annual marketing budget management skills
- already held plan marketing campaigns management skills
All 17 carried skills, including the 12 the brand manager role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 26 missing skills fall into 5 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.
- still to learn carry out naming strategies required
- still to learn create brand guidelines required
- still to learn design brand's online communication plan required
- still to learn coordinate advertising campaigns required
- still to learn define brand identity required
- still to learn identify new business opportunities required
- still to learn lead the brand strategic planning process required
- still to learn manage brand assets required
- still to learn select optimal distribution channel required
- still to learn stimulate creativity in the team required
- optional, not held carry out event management optional
- still to learn set brand positioning required
- still to learn execute marketing plan required
- still to learn perform customers’ needs analysis required
- optional, not held build rapport with people from different cultural backgrounds optional
- optional, not held plan new packaging designs optional
- still to learn perform brand analysis required
- still to learn comprehend financial business terminology required
- still to learn maintain financial records required
- optional, not held price product optional
- optional, not held seek innovation in current practices optional
- still to learn company policies required
- still to learn consumer goods industry required
- optional, not held employment law optional
- optional, not held international business optional
- still to learn have computer literacy required
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a brand manager role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 carry out naming strategies practise this
- 02 create brand guidelines practise this
- 03 design brand's online communication plan practise this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 17 skills that carry over
- already held apply social media marketing skill
- already held apply strategic thinking skill
- already held carry out sales analysis skill
- already held channel marketing knowledge
- already held create annual marketing budget skill
- already held implement marketing strategies skill
- already held implement sales strategies skill
- already held manage staff skill
- already held organise participation in local or international events skill
- already held perform market research skill
- already held plan marketing campaigns skill
- already held sales strategies knowledge
- already held conduct search engine optimisation skill
- already held maintain relationship with suppliers skill
- already held manage budgets skill
- already held perform multiple tasks at the same time skill
- already held services marketing knowledge
7 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held build rapport with people from different cultural backgrounds optional
- optional, not held price product optional
- optional, not held carry out event management optional
- optional, not held employment law optional
- optional, not held international business optional
- optional, not held plan new packaging designs optional
- optional, not held seek innovation in current practices optional
92 held skills the brand manager role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role align efforts towards business development skill
- not needed by the target role analyse business plans skill
- not needed by the target role analyse consumer buying trends skill
- not needed by the target role analyse customer service surveys skill
- not needed by the target role analyse data about clients skill
- not needed by the target role analyse external factors of companies skill
- not needed by the target role analyse internal factors of companies skill
- not needed by the target role analyse work-related written reports skill
- not needed by the target role approve advertising campaign skill
- not needed by the target role assist in developing marketing campaigns skill
- not needed by the target role brand marketing techniques knowledge
- not needed by the target role business intelligence knowledge
- not needed by the target role collaborate in the development of marketing strategies skill
- not needed by the target role communicate with customers skill
- not needed by the target role communication principles knowledge
- not needed by the target role conduct mobile marketing skill
- not needed by the target role conduct online competitive analysis skill
- not needed by the target role content development processes knowledge
- not needed by the target role content marketing strategy knowledge
- not needed by the target role contract law knowledge
- not needed by the target role coordinate events skill
- not needed by the target role coordinate marketing plan actions skill
- not needed by the target role corporate social responsibility knowledge
- not needed by the target role cost management knowledge
- not needed by the target role create media plan skill
- not needed by the target role customer insight knowledge
- not needed by the target role customer segmentation knowledge
- not needed by the target role define measurable marketing objectives skill
- not needed by the target role develop business plans skill
- not needed by the target role develop online community plan skill
- not needed by the target role e-commerce systems knowledge
- not needed by the target role ensure client orientation skill
- not needed by the target role ensure cross-department cooperation skill
- not needed by the target role estimate profitability skill
- not needed by the target role evaluate advertising campaign skill
- not needed by the target role evaluate marketing content skill
- not needed by the target role forecast sales over periods of time skill
- not needed by the target role identify market niches skill
- not needed by the target role identify potential markets for companies skill
- not needed by the target role impart business plans to collaborators skill
52 further entries not listed here
4 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice
Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.
- still to learn company policies required
- still to learn consumer goods industry required
- optional, not held employment law optional
- optional, not held international business optional
Other moves recorded from marketing manager
- sales manager 80% covered · moderate
- chief marketing officer 76% covered · moderate
- category manager 76% covered · moderate
- online community manager 65% covered · moderate
- marketing consultant 62% covered · moderate
- digital marketing manager 51% covered · substantial
- search engine optimisation expert 49% covered · moderate
- business developer 48% covered · moderate
Common questions about this move
Can a marketing manager become a brand manager?
Yes, and it is a substantial move. A marketing manager already covers 39% of what a brand manager is expected to do: 17 skills carry over, 12 of which the brand manager role treats as required.
What skills does a marketing manager need to become a brand manager?
19 required skills are missing, plus 7 optional ones. They fall into 5 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by management skills. The single most important is carry out naming strategies.
How hard is the move from marketing manager to brand manager?
Its learning distance is 68.4 out of 100, which is the substantial band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.
How this record was compiled
Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.