This article was recently updated for 2022.

What is a marketing consultant?
What does a marketing consultant do?
How to become a marketing consultant
Skills needed to be a marketing consultant
Salary of a marketing consultant in SA

Looking for answers surrounding the idea of being a marketing consultant? What exactly does a marketing consultant do? How do you become one? How much do they earn? Let’s delve into everything you need to know about being a marketing consultant in South Africa, and how you can start the journey to become one.

What is a marketing consultant?

A marketing consultant is someone who works with businesses as an external marketing advisor. A marketing consultant would identify the specific business’s customer needs and plan out marketing strategies across multiple channels. You can be a marketing consultant for a company, or you could be a self-employed consultant. Either way, the main idea around a marketing consultant is to analyse the business’s marketing performance, understand where the gaps or opportunities are, and make sure you deliver it to consumers with their needs in mind, whilst increasing the return on investment for the business at hand.

The role of a Marketing Consultant is to study a company profile to get an understanding of what marketing needs they have and what opportunities they can leverage. The research will need to be done to understand the industry as well as identify trends and opportunities, while detailed proposals and marketing plans will need to be compiled. The client will need direction and advice when it comes to branding, communication and other marketing issues. You would also need to report on the success of campaigns and analyse all of the results to ensure that the marketing plan is always running as efficiently and effectively as possible.

There is no complete guide on how to be anything in the workforce, and the journey to becoming a marketing consultant may vary from person to person. However, for many, this is how they began their careers in marketing consultancy.

Every career is dependant on a certain set of skills. In this section, we’ll be taking a look through some of the key skills needed to become a successful marketing consultant.

Every career is dependant on a certain set of skills. In this section, we’ll be taking a look through some of the key skills needed to become a successful marketing consultant.

Get off to the right start in your Marketing Consultant career by taking the Fundamentals of Marketing Management Course through iQ Academy. This course will provide an understanding of the key terms, concepts, principles, rules and theories in marketing management as well as teach the ethics and values within the industry.