Beginning With Marketing Principles
The first module in the MCM apprenticeship, Marketing Principles, gave Sam exactly the foundation he needed. During the unit, he explored the fundamentals of marketing strategy, including the marketing mix, customer lifecycles, and the importance of audience profiling.
This wasn’t just theory, in his first one-to-one session with Natalie, they explored how these ideas played out in Sam’s real-world work.
“Sam came in with a basic understanding of some key theories, but what stood out was how quickly he began connecting them to the day-to-day activity in the business,” Natalie said. “We had a great first session where we looked at the customer journey and started identifying opportunities to align sales and marketing more effectively.”
Sam described the session as a useful opportunity to ground the learning in context.
“We had an hour together to talk through the concepts, and it helped clarify how these ideas actually apply. I came away thinking more strategically about how we communicate with different audiences.”
Applying What He's Learned
Sam was able to bring his learning into real life projects from the start; using audience profiling to help refine a current campaign promoting a webinar, helping the team target the right people more precisely.
He also found that his understanding of the customer lifecycle, something he already knew about from sales, took on a new dimension.
"Now I can see the marketing role in that lifecycle too - how we can keep customers engaged and what follow-up steps are needed to support retention."
Natalie noticed the shift straight away. “Sam began identifying where things could be improved especially around how sales and marketing interact along the customer journey. It’s exactly what we hope to see at this stage.”
The First Task
Each module ends with a task, and for Module One that meant submitting a set of audience profiles based on real customers. It’s a practical activity that helps apprentices translate theory into something they can use immediately.
"That task made it click," Sam said. "It wasn’t just about learning ideas, I had to apply them to our own audience and think about how we reach them. Writing it all down showed where our marketing could be sharper."
Natalie explained what made Sam’s submission stand out.
“He identified key audience groups with different demographics and motivations and thought about how the messaging and channels should shift for each. That’s the kind of strategic thinking we want learners to develop from the start.”
Fitting Learning into a Busy Week
Despite a demanding role, Sam says the programme is designed to work alongside a busy schedule. "I block out time in my diary each week and take notes as I go. The learning platform tracks my progress and Natalie’s support has been brilliant. It fits in perfectly."
Looking Ahead to Module Two
Module One has laid a strong foundation for the rest of the apprenticeship. Sam is already thinking differently about marketing and spotting ways to improve how the business engages with both learners and employers.
"It’s helped me understand who we’re talking to and how to talk to them. I’m looking forward to building on that over the next modules."
Sam is now moving into Module Two, where things start to get more strategic. This next stage of the apprenticeship focuses on building a full SOSTAC® marketing plan, a framework that helps businesses create structured, data-driven marketing strategies that actually get results.
“Audience profiles are just the beginning,” says Natalie. “We’re now building those into a complete plan, deciding what the business wants to achieve, who to target, how to reach them, and what to measure.”
Following the Journey
We’ll be checking in again with Sam and Natalie as Module Two unfolds, looking at how his marketing plan takes shape and what impact it’s already having on his business.
