Key Responsibilities and Required Skills for Marketing Account Executive
💰 $65,000 - $120,000+ OTE
🎯 Role Definition
The Marketing Account Executive is the engine of business growth and the primary advocate for our clients. This role serves as the crucial bridge between prospective and existing clients and our internal marketing strategy and delivery teams. You are a strategic partner, responsible for understanding client needs, architecting marketing solutions that drive tangible results, and managing the entire sales and relationship lifecycle. Success in this position is defined by your ability to build a robust sales pipeline, close new business, and cultivate long-term partnerships that lead to client retention and expansion. This isn't just a sales job; it's about being a trusted advisor who connects client challenges with our creative and strategic solutions.
📈 Career Progression
Typical Career Path
Entry Point From:
- Sales Development Representative (SDR) / Business Development Representative (BDR)
- Marketing Coordinator or Specialist
- Junior Account Manager or Account Coordinator
Advancement To:
- Senior Account Executive or Strategic Account Executive
- Sales Manager or Director of Sales
- Account Director or VP of Client Services
Lateral Moves:
- Business Development Manager
- Client Success Director
- Marketing Strategist
Core Responsibilities
Primary Functions
- Proactively identify, prospect, and cultivate new business opportunities within assigned territories or verticals using a multi-channel approach, including targeted outreach, social selling, and industry networking.
- Manage the full sales cycle from initial contact and qualification to proposal, negotiation, and closing the deal, ensuring a smooth and professional client experience.
- Conduct in-depth discovery calls and needs-analysis sessions to uncover client pain points, business objectives, and key performance indicators (KPIs).
- Serve as the primary point of contact and strategic advisor for a dedicated portfolio of clients, fostering deep, long-term relationships built on trust and a thorough understanding of their business.
- Develop and deliver compelling, high-impact sales presentations and product demonstrations that are tailored to the specific needs and goals of each prospect.
- Craft customized, strategic proposals and statements of work (SOWs) that clearly articulate the value proposition, scope, deliverables, and pricing of our marketing solutions.
- Consistently meet and exceed quarterly and annual sales targets and revenue goals through disciplined pipeline management and forecasting.
- Collaborate with marketing strategists, creative teams, and project managers to design integrated marketing campaigns that align with client objectives and budgets.
- Maintain a deep understanding of the competitive landscape and industry trends to effectively position our services and overcome objections.
- Negotiate contract terms, pricing, and service level agreements with clients to ensure mutually beneficial partnerships.
- Build and nurture a strong professional network to generate referrals and identify new avenues for business development.
- Drive account growth by identifying upsell and cross-sell opportunities within the existing client base, presenting new ideas and solutions to expand the partnership.
- Act as the voice of the customer internally, providing valuable feedback to product, marketing, and service teams to inform strategy and new offerings.
- Lead strategic account planning sessions to develop and execute on long-term growth strategies for key clients.
- Meticulously track all sales activities, communications, and pipeline progression in the company's CRM system (e.g., Salesforce, HubSpot).
Secondary Functions
- Collaborate with the marketing team to provide input on lead-generation campaigns and contribute to the development of sales collateral and case studies.
- Participate in industry events, trade shows, and webinars to represent the company, generate leads, and stay current on market developments.
- Provide accurate and timely sales forecasts to leadership to inform business planning and resource allocation.
- Assist in the onboarding of new clients, ensuring a seamless handover to the account management or client success team for campaign execution.
- Mentor junior sales or business development representatives, sharing best practices for prospecting and qualification.
- Contribute to the ongoing refinement of the sales process and playbook by sharing insights and successful strategies with the wider team.
Required Skills & Competencies
Hard Skills (Technical)
- CRM Software Proficiency: Deep, hands-on experience with CRMs like Salesforce, HubSpot, or similar platforms for pipeline management and reporting.
- Sales Pipeline Management: Proven ability to build, manage, and forecast a sales pipeline from lead to close.
- Proposal & Presentation Development: Expertise in creating and delivering persuasive, well-designed proposals and presentations using tools like PowerPoint, Google Slides, and Canva.
- Digital Marketing Acumen: Strong foundational knowledge of digital marketing channels, including SEO, SEM, content marketing, social media, and email marketing.
- Contract Negotiation: Skill in negotiating pricing, terms, and legal agreements with procurement and executive-level stakeholders.
- Lead Generation Tools: Familiarity with sales intelligence and prospecting tools such as LinkedIn Sales Navigator, ZoomInfo, or Apollo.io.
Soft Skills
- Consultative Selling: The ability to act as a trusted advisor, listening to client needs and prescribing solutions rather than just pushing products.
- Relationship Building: An innate talent for establishing rapport, trust, and long-term connections with clients and internal team members.
- Persuasive Communication: Exceptional verbal and written communication skills, with the ability to articulate complex ideas clearly and compellingly.
- Resilience & Tenacity: The drive to persevere through rejection, overcome obstacles, and maintain a positive, goal-oriented mindset.
- Strategic Thinking: The capacity to see the bigger picture, understand a client's business model, and align marketing strategies to their long-term goals.
- Active Listening: The critical skill of fully concentrating on what is being said, understanding the core message, and asking insightful follow-up questions.
- Time Management & Organization: Excellent organizational skills to effectively manage multiple clients, prospects, and priorities simultaneously.
- Business Acumen: A solid understanding of general business principles, market dynamics, and how companies generate revenue.
Education & Experience
Educational Background
Minimum Education:
A Bachelor's Degree or equivalent practical experience. We value a proven track record of success as much as a formal degree.
Preferred Education:
A Bachelor's or Master's Degree in a relevant field.
Relevant Fields of Study:
- Marketing
- Business Administration
- Communications
- Sales
Experience Requirements
Typical Experience Range:
3-7 years of experience in a sales, business development, or account management role, preferably within a marketing agency, SaaS company, or B2B professional services environment.
Preferred:
Demonstrated and verifiable history of consistently meeting or exceeding sales quotas. Experience selling complex, solution-based services rather than transactional products is highly desirable. Candidates who have successfully managed six-figure deals and built a book of business from the ground up will be given strong consideration.