Good Marketer vs. Bad Marketer: Top 5 Differentiators

Finding a highly talented marketer nowadays is difficult, especially in SaaS: the functional definition has evolved substantially and each company has a different wishlist of skills. That being said, there are core characteristics that differentiate a good marketer from a bad one:

1. Good Marketer leads others. Bad Marketer takes orders.

Good Marketer knows ICP, TAM, product-market fit and the structural way to acquire new customers. She anticipates how to wow prospects and close deals. She creates kick-ass sales collaterals for prospects and partners. With all the planning and assets, she leads the Sales team members and helps them win deals faster. In addition, she knows market dynamics, trends and the competitive ecosystem, so she asks the Product team to build specific features before others bring them up.

Bad Marketer fills his day creating decks or other assets arising from urgent prospect needs. Frantic emails and Slack messages dictate his schedule. Because he acts on pressing orders and spends most of his productive time on email replies, he barely finishes his tasks at hand or makes a dent in his to-do list. Burning out is just a matter of time.

2. Good Marketer cares about company bottom-line results. Bad Marketer cares about short term wins.

This is one of the stark differences between good and bad marketers. While Good Marketer strives to grow the company by improving pipeline generation and customer acquisition, Bad Marketer focuses on low hanging fruit, i.e., social media, creating swag or employee communication.

I’ll never forget what my first-ever Silicon Valley CEO, John Chambers, told in one of Cisco’s all-hands meeting: “I don’t confuse hard work with results.” He means that you might be working for long hours and spinning your wheels, but if these hours don’t create value for your company, you’re useless.

This comparison can probably be best applied to marketers, as I have yet to meet any Marketing Manager who does not say, “I’m busy!” However, there’s a reason Marketing people got fired much faster compared to engineers or sales reps. Not everything the marketer works on directly impacts the bottom line.

Bad Marketer might be spending his entire day designing the font of the newsletter or temperature limits of the tumbler he’s giving away. Good Marketer focusing on the right work does not have time to spend on such menial tasks as she knows she needs to create more MQLs/MQAs to hit quarterly revenue targets.

3. During conflicts, Good Marketer favors The Company. Always. Bad Marketer thinks about his own priorities.

There will always be conflicts among departments and within departments. Bad Marketer thinks about his advancement and his own career goals above everything else. Good Marketer knows to sacrifice her own progress to yield for her company. Here’s the priority during a conflict, according to a Good Marketer:

1. The Company- In any challenge or dispute, always favor the option that has the highest gain for the company, even it’s not the best option for the Marketing Dept or yourself
2. The Department- If the alternatives are indifferent to the company’s best interest, then you should select the alternative that favors the department’s gain over yours
3. Individual- In any challenge, you deprioritize your individual advancement to favor larger groups. You know if the company and department grow, you’ll eventually benefit

Bad Marketer prioritizes these three steps, almost always, in reverse order.

4. Good Marketer measures everything. Bad Marketer counts on the inner voice.

The field of Marketing is quickly evolving with newer technologies, changing consumer habits, and updated consumer privacy rules. Yesterday’s rules don’t apply. For any campaign, Good Marketer knows to test the field before launching anything new. The purely data-driven decision is second nature for her.

Bad Marketer, on the other hand, barely conducts any A/B tests and trusts his gut because it worked for him in the past, or the alternative looks fine. That’s unfortunate unless he is a visionary, i.e., Henry Ford or Steve Jobs.

5. Good Marketer plans for long periods. Bad Marketer’s schedule changes hourly.

One of the critical traits of a successful Marketing Manager is to plan her weeks and quarters, including reserving a cushion for urgent needs. Good Marketer is self-disciplined and shares her priorities and plans in advance. She knows exactly what she will be working on for the next 3 days and 30 days. She also knows it’s ok to postpone and delay tasks to favor other critical tasks.

Bad Marketer, due to lack of planning and prioritization skills, struggles to deliver essential tasks and campaigns.

How do your Marketing team members stack up? Let me know. If you’re looking to hire a new marketing employee, check out five types of Marketing candidates you will meet in interviews.