Sales and Marketing is one of the oldest and most well-known professions in the corporate world. Roles in these functions are also very popular amongst MBA students (especially freshers) during campus placements as well. So as a more senior level Sales or Marketing professional with an MBA degree under their belt, what kind of salary can you expect to draw? What are the entry level Sales and Marketing roles at top Consumer Goods companies, and how much do these roles pay?
To find out, we dove deep into the salary data provided on various portals like Glassdoor and PayScale. Given that the field of Sales and especially Marketing is very fast and comprises many roles at different levels of seniority, we've taken into account three of the most common roles that MBA graduates can find themselves in within 5 years of graduating and beginning their Sales and Marketing careers. These roles are that of an Area Sales Manager, Brand Manager, and Marketing Manager.
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So how much do top Sales and Marketing roles like that of an Area Sales Manager, Brand Manager, or Marketing Manager pay on average? How much do those in the 90th percentile pay bracket earn as an average base salary in these roles? The table below captures data obtained from PayScale.
As you can see, you can earn up to ₹20 lakhs just as a base salary in a Brand Manager or Marketing Manager role to feature at the 90th percentile of earners in these roles. Of course, depending on your organization and experience, you can draw an even bigger paycheck as has been shown in the following tables.
The table above provides a reasonable explanation why so many MBA graduates wish to enter Sales & Marketing roles. The highest salary offered is close to ₹30.00 lakhs, offered by India's most desirable Consumer Goods company - Unilever. As an MBA graduate from a top-ranked business schools, should you join any of these 7 highly sought-after industry giants as a Sales & Marketing management trainee, you can expect to earn an annual base income of ₹ 19 lakhs to ₹27 lakhs. Unilever, RB and P&G emerge as the top paymasters for Sales & Marketing roles in the Consumer Goods industry.
Once they've completed their management training program, the ASM position is one of the most common entry level positions for MBA graduates at top Consumer Goods companies. Usually, unless you have work experience in the field in the past, an Indian MBA graduate from a top b-schools is unlikely to directly end up in a Marketing role at industry giants of the FMCG/FMCD industry. A stint as an ASM is usually a stepping store to higher level Marketing functions such as Brand Management.
The table above shows that Area Sales Managers working across top companies across various industries can earn an annual base salary of over ₹25 lakhs on average, with this figure being paid by Unilever. The highest average base salaries (based on data available) are offered by Unilever, RB and Godrej Consumer Products based on a fairly decent number of reported wages.
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Amongst the plethora of roles in the world of Sales & Marketing, the role of a Brand Manager is one of the more well known. The table above shows the salaries that are offered by top companies (for which data was available) for the 'Brand Manager' role. Unilever, Asian Paints and ITC Limited - some of the most revered Consumer Goods companies of India, are also amongst the best paymasters for the 'Brand Manager' role, offering average base salaries upward of ₹30 lakhs a year!
The position of a Marketing Manager is usually not an entry level role for MBA graduates, and is a more mid-level executive position and is usually attained after a tenure as an Assistant Marketing Manager. The table above shows the salaries that are offered by top companies (for which data was available) for the 'Marketing Manager' role. Please note that these figures may be significantly higher for similar roles at other companies and should not be compared with figures in previous tables.