Sometimes marketers get a bad rap. We’re often seen as a necessary evil within a corporation, and mistrusted among consumers. With both audiences, we are often dismissed, disregarded and disrespected.

In reality, marketers are simply misunderstood. Ours is a job that most people think anyone could do if they put their mind to it. I venture to guess there isn’t a consumer out there who hasn’t believed they could produce a better Super Bowl commercial or who hasn’t insisted that marketing doesn’t sway their purchase decisions.

It can be a lonely job, that of a marketer.

I used to run the marketing department within a large corporation. Each morning, the CEO would stop by my office and rhetorically ask:

“How much money did you make for me today?… None? That’s what I thought… And, how much money did you cost me today?… A lot? Yep. I was afraid of that.”

He was joking, of course… kind of.

In his mind, marketers were simply a necessary evil within an organization – a group that could be easily marginalized. But, of course, I beg to differ.

Marketing is the group within a company who speaks for the consumer, who builds and protects the brand reputation, and who must be unique and creative everyday. Our efforts increase market share, mind share, and ultimately are the deciding factor in the success of each product.

For all of the bad press around being a marketer, what’s most frustrating to me is the general lack of understanding of the sophisticated science and the professional expertise required to be successful. Our ability to quietly, and deftly present organizations, which might otherwise be overlooked, to the American public is unparalleled.

I can’t say there aren’t a few bad eggs out there. But by-in-large, professional marketers are one part business strategist, one part sociologist, and one part client service executive. Our intuition, attention to detail and big-picture creative viewpoint sits skyscrapers above the general population.

I’m proud to call myself a professional marketer.

It’s time that each of us take a few steps toward improving our collective reputation. Every marketer should:

1. Be the “anti-hype guy”: Everyday, remember to showcase your integrity and truthfulness in business, and show them how “honest” advertising is always the best policy. Always write ad copy using a pure, conversational, plain-English tone. Say no to lingo.

2. Show off your professionalism: The best revenge to the lack of understanding about marketing is to increase marketing efficacy, and to build a strong, irreplaceable brand. When it is time to report on the results of a marketing campaign, give a rational, fact-driven marketing presentation with tangible results (whether they be an increase in market share, mind share or sales).

3. Stand with pride: If you respect your chosen profession, others will respect you. Be patient with others who might not understand the intricacies of what a marketers does, and humbly take the time to explain to others how marketing is an honorable, strategy-driven, intellectual and academic pursuit that can deliver real-world results.

It is time for a Marketer’s Pride Parade. No need to cordon off streets, paint banners and build floats. Just remember, everyday, to be honest, professional and march proudly into that next executive meeting, holding a business card that says “Marketing.”