Palak Marwah

Hi Ananya, generally most companies have 2 to 3 rounds. One of them is the technical round in which core marketing knowledge and logic is tested. In that you need to prepare as per the course. In HR round you would be asked about your profile. Hence you need to prepare all aspects of your profile. Eg you play Badminton, so you might be asked some very basics about it. Companies are looking for basic structured thinking and logic more than theoretical concepts. For example how aware are you about thinks around you. For example are you aware that HUL has moved Dove into Baby care etc.

04:28 PM

Palak Marwah

I cannot really say about that because I do not read papers daily but I am aware of things around me through media like Inshorts or pop-up news on my laptop and also through my friends. We keep talking about something noteworthy that happened. Hence you just need to decide what works best for you but you are expected to be aware about the things around you. Like I gave the example of how you are expected to know that Dove move into Baby Care or you need to know that Pantaloons is under Aditya Birla Group etc. One thing which I turned into a habit is that every time I ate something or bought something I would turn the pack around and check the brand and parent company. Even if no one asks you directly you can use great examples and perform better.

04:32 PM

Palak Marwah

I cannot definitely claim the work experience impact on shortlists but I have seen my classmate with 7 years of work ex being the first choice of P&G Sales in summer internship at IIMB. I feel it is really about the fit. Marketing and FMCG companies want people who are open to learn and experiment, think out of the box and do not have a pre set way of thinking. This is easier to find in freshers because freshers dont have pre conceived notions which come with work ex. Hence if you are a good FIT, work ex is secondary. All the best! :)

04:34 PM

Palak Marwah

As per my reply to Abhinav, Marketing is really about open mindedness of a candidate, out of the box thinking and creativity. I really believe marketing is about simplifying things for the consumer and hence if you are able to break things down for a consumer and attract him on basis of his need, then you would be a sought after candidate for companies. Please ensure you showcase that you are capable of understanding all the types of needs of any consumer. Refer to the video on types of needs in the course - stated, unstated, secret etc. All the best! :)

04:37 PM

Palak Marwah

You can focus on companies which come for General Management roles and then request to be staffed on marketing projects. Some companies are Aditya Birla Group, TAS, Mahindra, RPG Group, AB In Bev etc

04:38 PM

Palak Marwah

Focus on incidences where you led a team and showed creativity. For example in my college there was no symposium to show internship work so I mentioned on my CV how I created an Annual Symposium with a team of 14 people to give a platform to present their internship work and get opportunities for publishing their research work. This is an example of how you can IDENTIFY the needs around you and FULFIL them. Hence you should create your own story to prove your creativity. Works like - Spearheaded, co-founded, ideated, generated are some power words to use. Certain words dont get shortlists but your story and creativity does! All the best! :)

04:41 PM

Palak Marwah

Hi Rishika, I suggest take internship projects with good companies or institutes. For example I had a distance internship with IIM A in Marketing. Send an email to all professors in such institutes and request for internships. Also you can do some good online courses on EdX or Coursera. Projects and courses really make your CV stand out. Also, try applying to international or national level youth conferences around you. All the best! :)

04:45 PM

Palak Marwah

Tell the professor a little brief about your profile and interests, talk about their research interests - you can find this on their profile page of their college. then express interest to work under them. Distance internship means when you can not work at their location you coordinate on phone calls or email and work under a professor for 2 or more months .

04:50 PM

Palak Marwah

Definitely yes. They prove that you can work in a team and solve practical real time cases. That is a very good question. Please try and participate in as many case competitions by various companies as possible. Also try to participate in fests of major Tier 1 colleges and ensure you have a strong marketing CV. Also try and do a project under a Marketing prof in your college to get a strong foothold. All the best! :)

04:52 PM

Palak Marwah

Ensure that your CV shows that you have gotten good results in whatever you have done - results at job, internships or even sports. Consulting is about being a generalist hence diversity on resume is important. If you know the profile - marketing or strategy - relevant projects also are helpful to give a boost to the CV. All the best! :)

04:53 PM

Palak Marwah

You should refer to the work that they are doing. For example the professor I wrote to was working on marketing strategies so I just mentioned that his work seems interesting to me, and I sent my 1 page resume. As I was a National Level badminton player that time, he suggested that we work on Marketing strategies of sports leagues in India as this was in 2013-14 when IPL, IBL and Hockey India League were becoming popular. Generally profs have a better idea on what can be a feasible project but you are also open to suggest the topics you want to work on or you can request to edit a little, the topic that he suggests :)

05:08 PM

Palak Marwah

You are welcome :)

05:13 PM

Palak Marwah

Hi Sohini, as mentioned above, try getting an academic internship as distance project in top colleges in India. You can also try and work for tier 2,3 companies for summer internship in marketing. You can also do online courses for the same. You can refer to messages above on how to apply for distance internships :)

05:27 PM