Hey in-house marketers, I’ve got something to tell you.

Lean closer.

Lean even closer.

The marketing unicorn does not exist.

It took me a few weeks of being unemployed, applying to hundreds of jobs online and incessantly updating my resume to reach the realization that most startups and small businesses want marketing unicorns. Then I looked back at my own work experience and noticed that I too was a part of the problem. I’ll tell you why.

It could explain why I have felt overwhelmed, undervalued, and emotionally spent through most of my in-house marketing roles. I was the problem by not knowing what I wanted and running to work at companies with poorly defined growth goals.

Most in-house marketing job descriptions read simply like this:

• Must have bachelors degree
• Develop and implement marketing strategies and plans to meet company objectives
• Conduct market research to identify trends and opportunities for growth
• Analyze and report on the effectiveness of marketing campaigns
• Creating and managing marketing budgets
• Stay up-to-date with industry trends and best practices

Then you start the role and you realize you’re now managing social media accounts, creating and scheduling email campaigns, writing copy for browser or app notifications, handling PR and influencers, be an expert at SEO, designing and editing ads (for multiple platforms, at that!), and manage those ads at optimal performance across all paid channels — with a marketing budget that gets slashed every week. On top of all that, the more responsibilities you get tagged on, the more you start seeing uneven performance across campaigns and channels. You’re sitting on your weekly one-on-one’s presenting lackluster results. Then your mental health shatters because everything is collapsing and you start believing that you’re just a terrible marketer, they made a mistake hiring you and you now have to fix it before they fire you.

Yep, that was a huge run-on sentence written on purpose because this is how your mind starts spiraling. I would work full 8-hour days, pick up my baby from daycare, and make quick dinners, only to get back on my laptop and start working again. My life had become consumed with the unattainable goal of trying to fix and optimize, fix and optimize, fix and optimize.

I’ve been on the job search on and off for the last three years — constantly finding myself in cycles of near-exhaustion and unreachable goals. It wasn’t until the most recent job search that I laid my boundaries. I would no longer allow anyone to run me into the ground, especially as a mom to a young child and at the expense of my mental health. I needed to get serious with myself and get smart about identifying red flags from the jump. I needed to stop being willing to walk into the mythical-level expectations small businesses and startups put their one marketing person into: unicorn

I was inspired to write this post based on a TikTok that landed on my FYP last week. I resonated with it but I was shocked to see the comments. So many other marketing professionals have also been through this. I instantly felt less alone. I wasn’t the only one.

@b2bjade

I’ve cracked it – this is why b2b marketers are having such a hard time in corporate where they are trying to run marketing activities, create marketing plans and strategies but are also expected to be proficient in all specialist marketing areas too. #b2bmarketing #b2bmarketingtips #marketingcareer #marketingmanager #b2bmarketer #b2bmarketingadvice #marketingtips #marketingstrategy #brandstrategy #marketingproblems #marketinglife

♬ original sound – B2BJade – Marketing Coach

This particular TikTok is directed at B2B marketers, but as a former in-house B2C marketer I couldn’t agree more. There is so much that goes into marketing; all elements of a marketing strategy are very important and each part relies on another part to fully work. This is how even businesses with robust marketing teams can still miss the mark entirely. But ask yourself, if one person is the entire marketing team, how can companies expect optimal campaign results from a person stretched so thin?

In today’s job market, employers seek multi-faceted employees in every role, not just in marketing. And when you’re sitting in a marketing interview, you can’t help but tout how much of a ‘t-shaped’ marketer you are. Well, you’ve sealed your fate because once you’re hired you will be expected to wear multiple hats. In essence, you inadvertently did it to yourself.

This is why this is a two-way problem. You’ll only know how to stop contributing to your career burnout by getting incredibly clear about what your marketing specialty is and setting stark boundaries with your future employer. Lines need to be drawn, especially when you’re in an organization that does not understand the purpose of marketing.

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I almost made this mistake a few weeks ago. I had several job offers to choose from (which is a blessing in this economy!!!) and I was drawn to the in-house job offer with a life-changing salary. However, I turned it down because money was no longer first place in my new criteria:

1. Define your marketing specialty. Everyone loves saying they’re a t-shaped marketer to impress hiring managers during interviews but you later open up yourself to generalized roles where you’re doing work that does not inspire you. Whether you’re an email specialist, sms specialist, retention lead, paid media expert, influencer marketer, etc, you must choose one, or two max. You’ll avoid your role spilling to different areas because your job description has defined roles.
2. The only way you should except generalized roles in an in-house marketing team with two or fewer people is if they pay you at the highest end of the market rate and your title includes Director.
3. Spot the red flags in your interview. In small companies and startups, your interviewer must be able to answer key questions about their projected growth, their current strategy, and their 6 to 12-month company goals. If they can’t answer this in clear, concise terms, or have no idea, you should pass.
4. Ask current employees how their time at the company has been. How do they feel about their team? What’s the office culture like? Is leadership receptive or dismissive of new ideas? Knowing these things arms you with good information from which to make the best decision for your career and mental health.
5. All companies hit rough patches so it’s often fiscally responsible to decrease budgets to lower expenses. However, your employers must be aware of the hit performance will take when the budget is decreased. After all, ad spend directly impacts reach and efficiency. This should be regarded as common sense but reminders are necessary so they don’t mistake the lack of performance on you and your skills.

Save yourself, and your mental health from the ever-elusive “marketing unicorn”. No single marketing professional can truly handle all aspects of a company’s marketing strategy and excel at them all. That’s why companies should have the burden of developing their overall strategy or identifying what aspects of their marketing strategy they need to prioritize first. This expectation is unrealistic and leads to burnout and poor results. Refine your focus to your specialty and set clear boundaries with your employer. The better you get at identifying red flags during job interviews, the better your work (and mental health) will be.

Be mindful of your limits and set realistic expectations with your employer or team to avoid burnout and achieve better results as an in-house marketer.