Darian Kovacs is principal at Jelly Marketing, a Digital Marketing and PR firm. Here are his thoughts on digital marketing:

1. What do you consider essential skills for a marketing team these days?

   Marketers need to be able to listen. Often marketers are full of such great ideas that they don't actually listen to the client. Most of our clients know and care about their business a great deal and thus have lots of great strategies about what they want.
   Second to that, marketers need to be discerning; formulas can only take a marketer so far. There comes a point when the personality of the client, their industry and their specific needs necessitate a higher level of complexity and customization. Marketers have expertise but they also need to be able to go with the flow.

2. What do you feel are the most underrated skills in a marketing team these days?

   Marketers are multi-taskers. They're managing staff and contractors, they're dealing with dozens of clients (at least our firm is!), they're staying up-to-date on current trends and technologies and all the while providing a very skilled and detail-oriented service. No easy task!

3. How did you get the background and skills necessary?

   When it comes to digital marketing, there are no institutions that can actually teach you comprehensively what you need to know. That's why most of us at Jelly Marketing bring experience from fields other than Marketing proper. We've all got backgrounds in, well, people! We like to think we do "people" well. As for skills, we're constantly sharpening those with professional development and (the best skill development) monthly reporting to our clients. It keeps us on the ball as we mandate internal reports to stay professional, see how we're doing, and do it better.

4. What advice would you give to young people who want to become a digital marketer some day?

   Start. Do something. It's great to see an applicant who has tried, is trying, wants to keep trying. There's no "I've arrived" moment in digital marketing due to the fast-paced, ever-changing environment. If you've got skills, improve them. If you've got connections, strengthen them. And be confident and creative in your application process. You'll stand out!

5. What are two or three digital marketing trends that impact your role as a manager, and why?

   There's a trend in the digital marketing world toward online advertising and we're seeing a lot of clients "get it". They understand how effective it is and they love being able to track their results. It's very exciting for them to get our monthly updates and watch their progress. This is especially true of our clients who watch their ROI closely.
   
   Also, due to Canada's new anti-spam legislation, our emails have become a topic of interest among our clients. We've consulted many of them and provided the necessary means for them to stay above board. 

6. What excites you the most about your industry?

   It's hard not be excited by our reports. They're motivating, inspiring and challenging. Both our clients and our staff love to see what our efforts yield every month. And reporting is healthy, especially in an industry where there's a lot of mistrust. In fact we're currently working on an initiative to change that industry perception for good. Stay tuned!

    

   

   Darian is principal of the award-winning Digital Marketing and PR firm known as Jelly. If you didn't already know, Darian brings unparalleled charisma and excitement to the brands that he popularizes (is yours one of them?). Known for off-the-wall ideas and fantastic stories, Darian's energy keeps the Jelly bus rolling down fun and fabulous roads.