All marketing has the single purpose of helping companies and individuals address and manage change. Companies plan their marketing strategies but, unfortunately, many individuals have no plan at all. Yet nothing is more important than a plan for managing the inevitable changes that life brings.
A Personal Marketing Plan is vital if we are to harness and manage change. There are many textbooks that teach the fundamentals of marketing: how to market goods and services and develop an effective marketing plan for a business organisation. Many of the tools and techniques presented in standard texts have proven to increase business profits, efficiency and effectiveness. These principles can be adapted to market the most important product in your life: You. They are equally effective for an individual embarking on a career or a person in mid-life dealing with any inevitable job change.
In a complex world of changing technology, uncertain economic conditions, increasing competition and information overload, change is constant. Employees no longer have the luxury of counting on the “golden handshake” after a lifetime of dedication to one company. Today, the average worker can expect to change careers at least three times. Most will work for more than six companies throughout their career.
The most important investment you can make is in yourself. Think of yourself as a business. To achieve career success, you must market yourself by offering your unique selling proposition and competitive advantage to the right target employer. This must be at the right income or price, with the right blend of tools to promote your individual skills, education, and experience.