Running head: REFLECTIVE JOURNAL 1

Reflective Journal

Name

Institutional Affiliation
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Section 1

Personal Values

This section discusses my personal and industrial values as well as how they are linked to

my marketing industry. Personal values are those principles that are important and meaningful to

a person (Lee & Kawachi, 2019). I would say that my biggest personal value is integrity. From

an early age, my family raised me to be a person of integrity and be honest in all my activities. I

have outstanding moral values, which makes me fit to lead. I behave and think congruently in my

personal beliefs and values. I always do the right thing regardless of the hardships and costs

involved.

Apart from integrity, I have another personal value of kindness. On account of my

parents, I was raised in peace, love, and harmony. In any case, as I grew older, I learnt that the

world can be harsh and cruel. An incredible number of circumstances and various mistakes have

shown me that it is important to be caring to others and help them when they need it. I believe

that through behaving like this, it will be possible to make our general public somewhat more

secure, and quite possibly the next generations will live a better life. The third value that is

significant for me is honesty. I realize that occasionally it is extremely hard, to be completely

honest. I understand how crucial it is to do everything genuinely. I cannot state that I generally

state the truth, but I generally investigate the circumstance and tell the facts when they are

conceivable and essential.

Industry Values

In particular, industry values will be regarded as those values of the marketing industry.

This is because I will be working as a marketing agent in a marketing agency. The values of my

preferred industry of marketing include trust, honesty, integrity, innovation, and sustainability.
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These are core values or behaviours that must be reflected in the marketing industry (Lee &

Kawachi, 2019). When doing marketing, all actions must be taken with honesty, trust, and

integrity. Innovation is crucial because organisations are expected to come up with creative ideas

of marketing to gain a competitive edge over their competitors. Sustainability is also an essential

industry value to marketing. Also known as green marketing, sustainability in marketing

involves investing in the social and environmental setting associated with a business. It helps to

build relationships with customers and informing them that they are as essential to an

organisation as the future generations.

Linking Personal and Industry Values

There is a clear link between my values with the values of the marketing industry. I want

to be a marketing agent for a marketing agency. I like everything about marketing. I think it is all

about building a market for an organisation through creative ideas and my values will highly

integrate with those of the industry. For example, my value of integrity can link to the same

industry value where all my actions must depict great integrity (Lee & Kawachi, 2019). My

kindness can also be related to the industry value of sustainability, which will allow me to care

for customers by designing marketing strategies that do not destroy their environment.

Section 2

This section is about self-awareness where I will identify my strengths and weaknesses.

One of my biggest strengths is being a reliable individual. In other words, my greatest strength is

probably reliability. Part of being reliable is always being there when needed (Niblick, 2019). I

have a complete on-time record at my workplace and have had it for the last four years.

However, it is more than just that as I also possess excellent leadership and interpersonal skills as

well as the ability to inspire the creative team to give their best. Part of being reliable as a person
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has made me a better leader. For instance, I was once selected to serve as the chairman of our

student union at Shanghai University. During my time, I was able to organize several large-scale

award ceremony and party planning programs. People know that they can trust me to deliver

positive results. I was assigned different event projects because the student body believed in me

to deliver on time.

Also, my other strength and is concerned with the vast awareness of current trends in

marketing and advertising (Niblick, 2019). I possess knowledge in the field of marketing

including key concepts and processes involved. I also have great skills in managing people,

projects and resources. I think one of my best strengths of communication is that I can interact

with pretty much anybody. I appreciate talking to people. With communication, my strength

would be that I can listen to others and also respond. I like having discussions with individuals of

various societies since it allows me to become familiar with their way of life. This is important in

my industry as a marketing agent, which takes communication seriously.

I also have a few personal weaknesses, for example, I cannot work in teams. Sometimes I

have a temper, which is more irritable, the way things may cause discomfort teammates and

ignore their feeling. Likewise, I have weaknesses with non-verbal communication. The

shortcoming is that occasionally my body language will provide a different response in

comparison to what I would have spoken. While utilizing non-verbal communication as a point

of contact, I will call attention to or consent to something from simply listening to the theme

being talked about (Niblick, 2019). My non-verbal communication must not present an

unexpected message than what is planned. With non-verbal communication, I attempt to give

more eye contact so that there is no misconception of the message expected. I find nodding one’s

head to be crucial in non-verbal communication because a gesture can mean a lot. In my

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interaction abilities, I have discovered that I feature these qualities. To address my areas of

weakness, I have taken up training communication skills to equip myself with better

communication skills. I also ask my colleagues to tell me about my flaws to correct them

appropriately.

Section 3

Presentations

I attained the employability skill of presentations that will be crucial in my career as a

marketing agent in the marketing industry. Typically, in marketing, the skill of presentation can

be used as a tool to make presentations to marketing teams and executives. The presentation can

offer several aspects to marketing agencies depending on the consumer and actual needs

(Croxton, 2019). It provides sales and marketing teams within larger corporations to collaborate

ideas in regards to the consistency of their brand message. I acquired the skill of presentation by

using various presentation software such as Microsoft PowerPoint. In particular, I used

PowerPoint during our class discussions and group assignments to explain critical points to the

class. I utilised this skill during academic studies and group work. I learn that I can use

PowerPoint to present a marketing concept using visual aid to other stakeholders in the

marketing field. The skill can be improved through integrating updated software as well as

exploring the custom designs to make the presentation more eye-catching.

With this presentation skills, I was able to learn that sales and marketing teams can use

them to design better-looking presentations. I can now use custom designs to impress clients

through unique actions of de-templatizing and customizing presentations. Besides, I also gained

a presentation skill of integrating logos, data, statistics, pictures, client quotes, figures, as well as

general text into PowerPoint presentations (Croxton, 2019). In that sense, I also noticed that as
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marketing professionals, we are tasked with designing presentations that are unique to us and do

not look like those of others. For that reason, I was introduced to the concept of the slide library,

which can be used by other personnel within an organisation. The slide library provides a certain

level of productivity and efficiency that can be important to marketing teams in organisations

that must have a sharing capability. During my internship, I was able to use these visual aids to

make presentations in my organisation.

Commercial Awareness

The concept of commercial awareness focuses on comprehending the operation of

industries and businesses. In the selected industry of marketing, various trends are currently

dominant. For instance, according to Dave (2020), the current marketing trends are dominated by

an increased focus on the experience of the customer, effective measuring of analytics, video

content, internet, chatbots, as well as right-time marketing. Currently, the most common trends in

marketing entail the investment in inbound marketing as well as utilising customers as

marketeers or promoters. Inbound marketing has taken over the centre of effective marketing

tactics by requiring organisations to ensure product quality and create valuable content tailored

towards the target audience and consumer personas along with their needs. Furthermore, the idea

of turning customers into marketers has been promoted by the flywheel that puts customers at the

centre replacing the funnel, which views customers as an afterthought. Previously, under the

marketing funnel, customers were seen as an afterthought because businesses viewed them as

obsolete after paying for a product. However, the flywheel has changed the narrative where it

places the consumer at the centre. It agrees that because marketing through word of mouth is the

most effective strategy, it would be best to serve the consumer and equip them to become

advocates and promoters of that brand.

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Content marketing is also taking a toll on marketing as more businesses start to embrace

the internet. Organisations are starting to publish blogs, investing in human resources such as

writers to generate for them unique content and also pay for content-related advertisements.

Businesses must care about content creation because about 47% of customers read 3 to 5 pieces

of content relating to a given product before engaging a sales representative (Dave, 2020).

Organisations looking to market their products are becoming sensitive to the cultural factors

operating in their target markets like religion, family, and social dynamics. I can further my

commercial awareness in marketing through getting work experience, reading the news, and

joining marketing clubs or associations.

Working with Others (Group/Teamwork)

I have been able to develop my ability to work in teams by joining various teams to learn

how they work. For instance, at university, I have been able to work on group projects in class. I

have also joined the university sports team and drama productions. To widen my teamwork

skills, I also participated in the campus-wide charity event and also encouraged some of my

friends to join. As a result, I was able to learn how teams operate especially the idea of

appreciating leadership and contributing like everyone else involved. In particular, during our

group projects, I was able to contribute through brainstorming about the topics to discuss and

carrying out individual research and discussing it with my group members (Burgess, 2017). I

learnt that every member in a team must contribute their role to achieve a common goal and this

was realised when our combined efforts allowed us to get good grades on most of the group

assignments in class.

During the group projects, I was able to contribute effectively through listening to others

considering their ideas on board. For example, we conducted a group assignment in which we
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were required to select a company and suggest suitable marketing strategies in an Asian country.

I contributed through brainstorming and coming to a mutual agreement with my fellow group

members. I motivated my counterparts by boosting my confidence and contributing ideas to the

project. I also played an active part in establishing positive energy and atmosphere throughout

the project. I took responsibility for the team by handling my assigned tasks for the sake of the

successful completion of the project. Burgess (2017) argued that taking responsibility for each

members’ task is crucial in teamwork. I was able to provide direction to my fellow group

members by offering extra support to those who needed it and also take instruction well from the

leaders of the teams.

Effective Communication

According to Prachi (2018), effective communication focuses on the exchange of

messages to achieve the purpose of the information in the best way possible. During my time in

university, I have been exposed to the course unit of communication skills and understood the

importance of communication in the marketing industry. I understand that the central role of

marketing professionals is to communicate with customers. The skills of writing, listening,

speaking, and observing can be demonstrated through holding consultative meetings to come up

with the right message to the right people to make them act or think in a certain way. As

evidence, these communication skills were demonstrated during group projects and class

presentations where we listened and discussed among one another to reach a common goal. I was

able to listen to my colleagues and express my ideas clearly in line with the themes.

During my internship program, I acquired the skill of writing compelling copies win

which I was responsible for writing advert copies, press releases, newsletters, sales collateral,

and blogs. I gained specific knowledge where I used creative words to write persuasive ads that
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were meant to compel the customers to buy more of the organisation’s products. I also

demonstrated the skill of public speaking because marketing professionals are crucial in dictating

public relations in business. In my internship experience, my organisation’s marketing

department had to deal with speeches at conferences and the press. While public speaking is not

something I enjoy, I have been able to improve my skill through training and it is becoming

easier. I also attained the employability skill of non-verbal communication as marketers must

work on their body language when speaking to an audience (Travis, 2020). I also demonstrated

visual communication skills through the presentation, for example, brand ID and imagery to

convey messages.

Professional Networks

A professional network as defined by McKay (2019) refers to a group of individuals who

have associated with each other for career and professional-related reasons. Individuals, who are

called contacts or connections, can share information such as job leads. They may likewise help

each other tackle business-related issues, recommend merchants and providers, and offer data

regarding potential employers, workers, and customers. I am part of the Australian Marketing

Institute, which connects all marketers in the country and has been promoting the profession of

marketing since 1933 (McKay, 2019). In particular, I have been able to create networks and also

connect with professional marketeers in various ways. For instance, I have been able to use

online networks such as LinkedIn where I meet various professional marketeers connected

through the Australian Marketing Institute page. The body also organizes yearly events,

presentations, and student competitions that have helped me to meet professional marketeers and

advance my career. Through this professional network, I have been able to get some job leads in

the marketing industry that will hopefully help me in advancing my career. I also met fellow
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marketeers who gave me advice regarding my projects. In particular, one of the members in the

network who has conducted similar projects offered me an advice concerning my work projects.

Section 4

Career Planning

This section discusses the link between my values, skills as well as how they relate to my

future career. Career planning refers to the process in which a professional is allowed to

concentrate on where they want to be in their professional career (Garcia, 2016). After

graduation, I would like to work as a professional marketing agent in a marketing agency, for

example, OMD Melbourne, Alchemy One and Maker Street. To be specific, I want to be a

marketing consultant, who typically implies an external advisor that works with corporations to

create and execute a marketing strategy. From my prospective employers, I expect to work

closely with them as clients but not under them. It will require teamwork and partnership to

develop brand awareness (Lake, 2019).

Where am I now

I have received a few achievements so far in academics and extracurricular as a

marketing student. Concerning my marketing profession, on behalf of my team, I participated in

the competition of national college students’ advertising art festival and was honoured to win the

award of excellence. In terms of academics, I hold a bachelors degree in business with an

emphasis on marketing. Currently, I am undertaking a master’s degree in business administration

(MBA) with a focus on marketing.

Where do I want to be?

In the two years after my graduation, I hope I can study in a fortune 500 company. Then I

will go back to my hometown to find a job related to marketing (specifically a marketing

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consultant). I hope I can become an expert in this field in five years, and the salary can satisfy

my desires and life. By 2025, I want to have gained relevant experience, skills, and quantifiable

attainments in the field of marketing to build my portfolio. By that time, I want to also have

achieved an MBA with an emphasis on marketing. I also want to get certification from the

professional marketing body to widen my opportunities as a marketing consultant.

How do I get there?

Organisations that have to market their conventional goods tend to retain marketing

consultants for their distinct professionalism in the field of promotion (Thomas, 2018). As a

marketing consultant, I will have to use my experience to offer knowledge, tools, contacts,

creativity, and skills that may not be present in a business. However, to get there, I will have to

take some important steps in my career path. First, I will obtain a bachelor’s degree and an MBA

in marketing and business, which will avail me with information regarding branding, marketing,

and advertising. The problem is that some marketing courses may not be available at the chosen

university. Secondly, I will partake in student associations for marketing and business majors to

allow me to get connections for a job after graduation. I will create a portfolio, apply for entry-

level jobs in marketing and build my profession gradually. Hopefully, in the future, I will

become a freelance marketing consultant and ultimately launch a private marketing agency.
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References

Burgess, C. (2017). 6 actionable tips for helping your marketing team work better together.

Retrieved from https://www.toprankblog.com/2017/07/marketing-team-work-together/

Croxton, J. (2019). What is presentation software - The true tasks for business. Custom Show.

Retrieved from https://www.customshow.com/what-is-presentation-software-business/

Dave, N. (2020). 42 digital marketing trends you can't ignore in 2020. Single Grain. Retrieved

from https://www.singlegrain.com/digital-marketing/digital-marketing-trends-2020/

Garcia, E. V. (2016). Strategic planning: A tool for personal and career growth. Heart Asia, 8(1),

36-39. doi:10.1136/heartasia-2015-010684

Lake, L. (2019). Marketing Consultant Role and Responsibilities. The Balance Careers.

Retrieved from https://www.thebalancesmb.com/what-is-a-marketing-consultant-2295290

Lee, M., & Kawachi, I. (2019). The keys to happiness: Associations between personal values

regarding core life domains and happiness in South Korea. PLOS ONE, 14(1), e0209821.

doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0209821
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McKay, D. R. (2019). How to Build and Maintain a Professional Network. The Balance Careers.

Retrieved from https://www.thebalancecareers.com/building-growing-and-maintaining-a-

professional-network-525834

Niblick, J. (2019). Consultant Strengths vs. Weaknesses. The Balance Careers.

Retrieved from https://www.thebalancesmb.com/consultant-strengths-vs-consultant-weaknesses-

845767

Prachi, M. (2020). Effective communication. The Investors Book. Retrieved from

https://theinvestorsbook.com/effective-communication.html

Thomas, B. (2018). Behind the job title: What it takes to be a marketing consultant. The

Guardian. Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/careers/careers-blog/marketing-

consultant

Travis, E. (2020). Effective communication skills used in public relations & marketing.

Retrieved from https://smallbusiness.chron.com/effective-communication-skills-used-public-

relations-marketing-14256.html
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