Sample SOP – Marketing

First Draft

As an aspiring entrepreneur in this industry, I began my practical business experience through an internship at Manak Jewellers Pvt Ltd. This manufacturing company manufactures Cubic Zirconia (CZ) jewelry in India. Here, as an Assistant Manager, I oversaw improving the operational efficiency and productivity of the company while ensuring that the products were tracked as per delivery schedules. Also, I interacted with clients to understand their experience with the product, service, and design needs and preferences. This valuable experience has impelled me to further my formal erudition.

My successful internship at Manak Jewellers helped me get employment at Raj Jewellers, a jewelry manufacturing company that designs, develops, and manufactures CZ jewelry in India. My responsibilities here centered on creating a different style of jewelry that no one in India had ever done in CZ jewelry before. Creation of designs, developing the CAD and CAM with the Master of It, working with an expert whether the designs selected are feasible or not. I led a team of 5 people for this whole project. Quality check of the product at every stage. I had to maintain an account of all the gold loss and issue receipts. After making a decent number of designs in every category, I focused on this product’s market. I also decided on the marketing strategies, price strategies, and promotion. I came up with an idea to give a certificate of authenticity with each product to make the brand known in the market. This all helped me market the product easily as I knew and was there at each process step. I got the best Employee award for three months.

I’m keener than ever to pursue a master’s in _______________________________. After graduation, I wish to start my own Streetwear fashion brand. This not only includes clothing but jewelry also. I’ve always been fascinated by the designs of some of the biggest streetwear brands. The level of determination and hard work I put towards a set goal and the knowledge that I’ll be picking up from the course will help me a lot towards this vision. This can be an addition to the family business that I already have back home.

During my undergrad education I explored topics like Marketing strategies and Management, Principal of management, Human Resource Management, Business Communications, and Business research methods gave me a deep insight into the models and strategies of Marketing. Due to my interest in management, I took up courses like Social Media Marketing by Ogilvy on 42courses and Instagram, Facebook, and Snapchat marketing by Digital Marketing Institute on Coursera, these courses broadened my knowledge on key marketing concepts. I even took part in a marketing event called Synchrony in Singapore, where we had to present a start-up idea and describe how we would be marketing it. Additionally, I also attended a seminar by TiE Masterclass on digital marketing, which gave me insights on Consumer marketing & driving engagement, Personalized marketing, and creating memorable content. There was also a seminar on Marketing by Debbie Stanford, CEO of NOVO cinemas based in Dubai.

My undergrad project was ‘Stranger sports’ that was the one in Singapore during my BBA. The objective of this project was to bring strangers out of their house who had to cancel their plans of playing because of not having enough players or a friend to play with. My key responsibilities were Marketing and Finance, like the total cost of the project, finding sponsors, using the money and giving weightage to the spending, how and where to market the app, and what’s the target audience. I didn’t know anything about making an app, so this was a very difficult process that we had to go through. We were way behind schedule; there was a lack of guidelines and accountability. We started working on the solutions to our problems by making weekly goals and making a clear path for the whole team. Updates were taken every day. All responsibilities and communications were made effective by discussing any problems or unclear objectives or goals.

I worked on ‘Gender Diversity and its Impact on the Growth of Organizations’ that aimed to identify how gender diversity can improve organizational effectiveness. To recognize the aspects that hinder women’s advancement to top-level management. We used different data analysis methods for testing our research, out of which was Spearman Correlation. This analysis was difficult for us as it was our first time using it, and due to the content and data we had, it was difficult to get proper results from this method. Being in Dubai, it’s a very sensitive topic to talk about, so we could not get enough interviews of women who were willing to talk about it. Somehow, we managed to get an interview with the CEO of Novo Cinemas. We presented our project well in front of our professors; among our group, we had great communication skills; being the leader of this project, I was able to keep everything in order.

I’ve represented my university in a couple of inter-university tournaments. I have organized many Intra college tournaments for various sports as the Sports Head and Football captain for the university SP Jain School of Global Management in 2019-2020 and 2020-2021. I was also a part of the organizing committee for the Techstars Start-up event in Dubai; my responsibilities were to find sponsors and participants. Participated in ‘Synchrony’ Singapore, a marketing event wherein I pitched a start-up idea and how to market it and was a member of the Model UN team in Singapore for 2018. Volunteered at Saraswati Laxmichandji Trust to construct a school building for underprivileged kids; my key responsibilities here were to be updated on the work being done and oversee the development and execution of project deliverables.

I believe it is the right time for me to pursue my graduate studies in MS ____Management_________ from _PACE_________ university. The courses, including ___________, __________ and ___________ will help prepare me for a career ahead. Prof. ___________’s research in ___________ has impressed me deeply, and I seek an opportunity to contribute to it, as it aligns with my long-term career objectives. Being part of _________ and ________ committees, and participating in diverse extracurricular activities, will allow me to develop a full personality.

Final Draft

De Beers’ enchanting tagline ‘A diamond is forever’ always struck a chord with me. For an aspiring marketer and entrepreneur De Beers satiates two of my deep-seated interests: jewellery and marketing. I am fascinated by its creative and elegant product line along with the befitting annual promotions. My journey as an entrepreneur in the industry began through an internship at Manak Jewellers Pvt Ltd- manufacturers of Cubic Zirconia (CZ) jewellery in India. Here, as an Assistant Manager, I contributed towards improving the operational efficiency and productivity of the company while ensuring that the products were procured, tracked and delivered as per order requisition and delivery schedule. Also, I proactively interacted with clients to get a first-hand understanding of their experience with the product, service, and design needs and preferences. The valuable exposure helped me in understanding product line and consumer behaviour and the associated managerial activities in running a business. In order to develop the managerial expertise and marketing acumen for the entrepreneurial journey that lies ahead, I seek to pursue MS in ___________________.

My successful internship at Manak Jewellers helped me gain employment at Raj Jewellers, a jewellery manufacturing company that designs, develops, and manufactures CZ jewelery in India. My responsibilities here included working on bespoke jewellery design unique to the existing product line at CZ jewelry. Creating design using CAD and CAM, interacting with experts on design selection and feasibility and conducting quality checks are some of the crucial activities that I managed with suitable assistance from a five member team. Most importantly I learned about inventory reconciliation, product placement and pricing, marketing strategies and promotion. I also pioneered the concept of issuing a certificate of purity to customers highlighting product quality, which helped in building trust and goodwill among customers and enhanced brand awareness. My efforts in building consumer trust and propagating the product line earned me the Best Employee Award for three months.

Buoyed by these enriching engagements I am inspired to pursue a master’s in _______________________________. After graduation, I wish to set up a Streetwear fashion brand, including clothing and jewellery. I have always been fascinated by the designs of some of the leading streetwear brands. I am hopeful that my determination and hard work coupled with the knowledge gained from the program will help me in fructifying my vision. I would also like to expand my family business of ____ by adding new products and identifying new markets. After gaining considerable industry experience, I hope to contribute to the ‘Make in India’ campaign by expanding my family business and exporting jewellery to different parts of the world. I also wish to start a venture capital fund with like-minded individuals to facilitate the funding of promising start-ups in India, who have a vision to contribute towards the growth and progress of the society.

My undergrad education strongly fuelled my career interest, as I developed deeper insights into management and marketing through topics like Marketing strategies and Management, Principal of management, Human Resource Management and Business Communications. To broaden my understanding of management, I signed up for courses like Social Media Marketing by Ogilvy on 42courses and Instagram, Facebook, and Snapchat marketing by Digital Marketing Institute on Coursera. These courses helped me understand the nuances of traditional and digital marketing. I even participated in a marketing event called Synchrony in Singapore, where we had to present a start-up idea and describe our marketing pitch, strategies and approaches to________. Additionally, I also attended a seminar by TiE Masterclass on digital marketing, which gave me insights on Consumer marketing and driving engagement, Personalized marketing, and creating engaging content. I also attended a seminar on Marketing by Debbie Stanford, CEO of NOVO cinemas based in Dubai.

Working on projects helped me gain a practical perspective of key marketing concepts. One of the team projects that I worked on involved developing an app : ‘Stranger sports.’ The objective here was to encourage people to play a sport of their choice in event of a lack of partners by helping them in finding suitable partners. As the concept was quite novel and my understanding of app development was limited, I leveraged my understanding of qualitative and quantitative marketing and conducted consumer research to promote the application. My efforts in brand promotion and positioning, and astute research skills helped in conveying the right message to the target audience. Given the lack of dedicated resources, I handled various aspects of brand promotion from budgeting the project cost, finding sponsors, planning expenses to conceptualizing and executing marketing strategies. As we were behind schedule in delivering the project, I conducted frequent brainstorming sessions and motivational talks that pepped up the team to work as a cohesive unit towards a common goal. Finally, through our concerted efforts and my innate ability to promote the concept in the most impactful way, we were able to execute a successful marketing campaign for this sports app. As a result our app received an overwhelming response in form of numerous enquiries from prospective customers thereby earning us the appreciation from the app company.

Subsequently, I worked on a project on ‘Gender Diversity and its Impact on the Growth of Organizations’ with the objective is to identify how gender diversity can improve organizational effectiveness. The project was quite challenging considering the norms that had to be followed while interviewing a woman in the Gulf region. Finally, with my persuasive skills and ability to connect with people I managed to interview a cross section of well placed women to gain their perspective on gender parity. Working in a _________ member team, we used different data analysis methods to drive our research. Finally using Spearman Correlation we were able to highlight factors that hindered women taking on leadership and managerial roles . The project when presented to our seniors and professors was well acclaimed. Working on this project made me realize the importance of establishing people connect and effective communication while marketing.

As a sports enthusiast, I believe that physical development is equally important in attaining intellectual growth and broader outlook towards life. As an astute team player I have represented my university in many Intra college tournaments for various sports as the Sports Head and Football captain for the university SP Jain School of Global Management in 2019-2020 and 2020-2021. I was also a part of the organizing committee for the Techstars Start-up event in Dubai, wherein I solicited sponsors and participants. I also participated in ‘Synchrony’ Singapore, a marketing event wherein I pitched a start-up idea. Apart from being a member of the Model UN team in Singapore for 2018, I have also volunteered for Saraswati Laxmichandji Trust. I assisted the administration in maintaining a log of the daily activities being carried out in constructing a school building for underprivileged kids. My key responsibilities involved reporting on the progress of work done, managing the project deliverables and maintaining the records of the overall construction activities. Given my affable nature, competitive spirit and friendly disposition, I am hopeful of making significant contributions during my time at the university.

As an aspiring management professional, I believe that integrating managerial strategies with business needs and evolving consumer sentiment is the ideal way to further business interests and entrepreneurship. Therefore, I am desirous of pursuing an MS _in management from PACE University, as the program duly aligns with my career aspirations. I look forward to studying subjects such as ____.____ and ____ to gain required entrepreneurial skills, and deeper understanding of the psychological, economic, and social aspects that influence business decisions at the strategic level. I am eager to work under the tutelage of Dr ______, whose research endeavours in the field of ________ have been truly inspirational.

I am confident that my determination, undergraduate experience, and analytical aptitude will help me live up to the rigors of graduate school. I hope the admissions committee will favourably consider my application and grant me a place in the Class of fall 2022.

For more information related to SOP drafting and other queries related to Master’s applications abroad, connect 1-1 with our expert counsellors today!