What made you decide to choose demand generation over sales?

I actually started my career in sales and transitioned over to marketing and demand generation. What made me decide to make the switch? Personally, it felt like a better fit for me. I’m more on the analytical and creative side than sales afforded me. However, sales did give me a unique perspective and foundation to build my career. I truly see the value in partnering with sales as a member of the marketing department. I can understand and empathize with different perspectives.

I recommend thinking through where you feel your personality and skill set is a better fit. There are of course pros and cons to both career paths. Personally, I align more with the various directions a demand generation career can take you compared to sales. If I fast forward to today, one of the valuable partnerships I have in my role is with sales. They can give you direct feedback from customers and prospects and that type of knowledge is gold.

My first job out of college was an account executive role selling advertisement to SMB. Ultimately I leaned towards marketing because I liked that 1) it was an at scale play. Instead of 1:1 conversations, you're engaging your market in a broader motion. 2) I liked the creativity and psychology behind marketing. To be successful at creating demand, you have to truly understand your audience, their pain points and motivators to create campaigns that will compel them to want to learn more about your product/company.