What does a trade marketing manager do?
A trade marketing manager is a marketing professional who is responsible for local brand development and selling to companies who can then distribute the products to customers. Trade marketing managers should develop and implement marketing strategies such as product launches and loyalty programs to increase the product's success rate and brand perception. They are required to act as the key liaison between product development and buyers as well as maintain customer relationships for future purchases. Trade marketing managers must also assist wholesalers, retailers, or distributors with their marketing strategy.
Trade marketing manager responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real trade marketing manager resumes:
- Manage post promotion analysis process to review trade promotions and make recommendations for improving ROI and effectiveness of future promotions.
- Provide national, regional and local trade marketing/brand support for a global wine company with a leading portfolio of iconic wines.
- Customize ad campaigns, innovate new POS material resulting in increase product awareness.
- Execute comprehensive review of all marketing activation programs to evaluate ROI and develop new ways to optimize programs for future execution.
- Segment customers by strategic importance to align resources, service level, and POS opportunities resulting in improve efficiency and productivity.
- Project oversight include qualitative and quantitative data collection that ultimately substantiate the value of the new foaming platform against customer KPIs.
- Create, launch, and currently run a successful Facebook community.
- Conduct business reviews, in-depth market analysis of IRI data including promotional activity, penetration/trends.
Trade marketing manager skills and personality traits
We calculated that 9% of Trade Marketing Managers are proficient in ROI, POS, and Brand Marketing. They’re also known for soft skills such as Analytical skills, Communication skills, and Creativity.
We break down the percentage of Trade Marketing Managers that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- ROI, 9%
Executed comprehensive review of all marketing activation programs to evaluate ROI and developed new ways to optimize programs for future execution.
- POS, 8%
Segmented customers by strategic importance to align resources, service level, and POS opportunities resulting in improved efficiency and productivity.
- Brand Marketing, 7%
Presented Reebok brand marketing plans by category to National Account Senior Management on quarterly basis to create sell in excitement.
- Wine, 5%
Worked with team to create the largest Italian wine trade show in US.
- Logistics, 5%
Maintained full responsibility for trading specialty commodities and ingredients and logistics; domestic and international.
- Digital Marketing, 4%
Design and implement annual Digital marketing plan.
Common skills that a trade marketing manager uses to do their job include "roi," "pos," and "brand marketing." You can find details on the most important trade marketing manager responsibilities below.
Analytical skills. One of the key soft skills for a trade marketing manager to have is analytical skills. You can see how this relates to what trade marketing managers do because "advertising, promotions, and marketing managers must be able to analyze industry trends to determine the most promising strategies for their organization." Additionally, a trade marketing manager resume shows how trade marketing managers use analytical skills: "performed competitive research, analysis and benchmarking to better shape product line. "
Communication skills. Many trade marketing manager duties rely on communication skills. "managers must be able to communicate effectively with a broad-based team made up of other managers or staff members during the advertising, promotions, and marketing process," so a trade marketing manager will need this skill often in their role. This resume example is just one of many ways trade marketing manager responsibilities rely on communication skills: "transformed product lines, revitalized stagnant category, built unique communications campaigns, recruited leading partners and reduced inventory cycles. "
Creativity. Another skill that relates to the job responsibilities of trade marketing managers is creativity. This skill is critical to many everyday trade marketing manager duties, as "advertising, promotions, and marketing managers must be able to generate new and imaginative ideas." This example from a resume shows how this skill is used: "managed the inventory for the trade shows. "
Organizational skills. For certain trade marketing manager responsibilities to be completed, the job requires competence in "organizational skills." The day-to-day duties of a trade marketing manager rely on this skill, as "advertising, promotions, and marketing managers must manage their time and budget efficiently while directing and motivating staff members." For example, this snippet was taken directly from a resume about how this skill applies to what trade marketing managers do: "designed and implemented a new organizational structure to support the effort with human resources focused on btl efforts. "
The three companies that hire the most trade marketing managers are:
Choose from 10+ customizable trade marketing manager resume templates
Build a professional trade marketing manager resume in minutes. Our AI resume writing assistant will guide you through every step of the process, and you can choose from 10+ resume templates to create your trade marketing manager resume.
Compare different trade marketing managers
Trade marketing manager vs. Associate brand manager
Associate brand managers are responsible for developing and maintaining a company's product or brand. They help the brand manager in all brand-related activities. They typically perform various tasks, which include developing marketing plans and strategies, getting involved in the development of marketing ad campaigns, and creating and maintaining a positive brand image. Additionally, associate brand managers may assist in defining product pricing and packaging and monitor both media and competitive activities. They are also expected to design ad campaigns and report the results of these campaigns to the brand manager.
There are some key differences in the responsibilities of each position. For example, trade marketing manager responsibilities require skills like "logistics," "trade strategies," "kpi," and "distributors." Meanwhile a typical associate brand manager has skills in areas such as "customer service," "sales floor," "loyalty programs," and "minimizes risk." This difference in skills reveals the differences in what each career does.
Associate brand managers earn the highest salaries when working in the manufacturing industry, with an average yearly salary of $91,777. On the other hand, trade marketing managers are paid more in the manufacturing industry with an average salary of $109,465.The education levels that associate brand managers earn slightly differ from trade marketing managers. In particular, associate brand managers are 4.8% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than a trade marketing manager. Additionally, they're 0.5% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Trade marketing manager vs. Manager, field marketing
A field marketing manager oversees a company's field marketing operations, aiming to improve brand awareness and reach sales goals. Their responsibilities primarily revolve around devising marketing strategies, participating in organizing campaigns and trade shows, setting objectives for the team, and monitoring the progress of marketing programs, ensuring they are functioning effectively and efficiently. There are also instances when the manager must address issues and concerns, performing corrective measures when necessary. Furthermore, as a manager, it is essential to lead and encourage the team to reach company goals while implementing the company's policies and regulations.
Each career also uses different skills, according to real trade marketing manager resumes. While trade marketing manager responsibilities can utilize skills like "wine," "logistics," "nielsen," and "trade strategies," managers, field marketing use skills like "integrated marketing," "project management," "salesforce," and "marketing campaigns."
Managers, field marketing may earn a lower salary than trade marketing managers, but managers, field marketing earn the most pay in the technology industry with an average salary of $100,565. On the other hand, trade marketing managers receive higher pay in the manufacturing industry, where they earn an average salary of $109,465.Average education levels between the two professions vary. Managers, field marketing tend to reach lower levels of education than trade marketing managers. In fact, they're 7.6% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.5% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Trade marketing manager vs. Senior manager of marketing
A senior manager of marketing is responsible for monitoring the organization's marketing staff, reviewing and approving marketing campaigns, and identifying strategies to improve services that would generate more revenues and increase its profitability. The senior manager of marketing evaluates the current market trends to meet consumers' demands and organizes techniques to sell products and services to the target audience. They lead the development of promotional offers and brand awareness, interpret sales data, and monitor the marketing processes' progress.
The required skills of the two careers differ considerably. For example, trade marketing managers are more likely to have skills like "wine," "logistics," "nielsen," and "trade strategies." But a senior manager of marketing is more likely to have skills like "marketing campaigns," "integrated marketing," "project management," and "sr."
Senior managers of marketing earn the highest salary when working in the technology industry, where they receive an average salary of $126,981. Comparatively, trade marketing managers have the highest earning potential in the manufacturing industry, with an average salary of $109,465.Most senior managers of marketing achieve a similar degree level compared to trade marketing managers. For example, they're 2.1% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.1% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Trade marketing manager vs. Marketing lead
A marketing lead is an individual who is responsible for overseeing a team of marketing specialists to help a company achieve its marketing goals. Marketing leads are required to create and manage marketing plans so that they can deliver marketing campaigns on time and escalate issues that may prevent prompt delivery. They can incorporate a mix of different strategies in campaigns such as digital publishing, templates, and training. Marketing leads must work closely with account managers and sales engineers so that they can empower them to effectively position the company's products differently from their competitors.
Types of trade marketing manager
Updated January 8, 2025
