Your marketing skills are vital to the lifeline of your firm. Every day you further your company’s growth by identifying new project opportunities, developing business relationships, and getting your company’s name in front of prospective clients. That’s your job as a professional services marketer. Now the Society for Marketing Professional Services (SMPS), the recognized leader in education and information for marketing professional services, offers a credential that recognizes your achieved marketing expertise, the Certified Professional Services Marketer (CPSM).
The CPSM credential is a voluntary certification designed to elevate the professional standards in marketing and influence the future of this vital field. Furthermore, the CPSM designation serves as a mark of distinction for professional services marketers and business developers, raising their standing with their employers, peers, and the public.
A CPSM is recognized as an individual who has met a rigorous standard of experience and expertise in marketing professional services and has demonstrated their knowledge of the practice and related disciplines through a thorough examination of marketing competency. This individual further adheres to the ethics and responsibilities of the profession as outlined in the CPSM Code of Ethics.
When you apply for the CPSM examination, you are taking your first step toward joining a distinguished group of professionals who have made a commitment to professional excellence, career advancement, and an ongoing pursuit of knowledge.
The 150-question, multiple-choice certification exam is offered in two formats, a traditional paper exam or an online exam. The exam is based on a practice analysis commissioned by SMPS. Candidates will be tested on their skills and knowledge of the following six domains of practice: marketing research, marketing plan, client and business development, SOQs/proposals, promotional activity, and information, resource, and organizational management.
Click here to download an interview with Peter Kiente, FSMPS, CPSM, Chief Marketing Officer of McKim & Creed, P.A., and 2006-07 SMPS National President
Whether you are a marketer, business developer, or the employer of one, this certification will help you take your organization to the next level.
"When I decided to take the CPSM exam, I was doing it for the personal satisfaction of knowing that I have achieved the highest level of certification the industry has to offer. That’s the overachiever in me. Then something very odd began to happen. People in my firm began to take me more seriously with the initials following my name. No one knew what it meant, but they were not afraid to ask and I would answer, it means I’m really good at what I do. Before long they started believing it. Notice my title below. I’m told the CPSM designation had something to do with that."
-Scott Milder, CPSM, Vice President, Communications, SHW Group Architects, Dallas, TX, 2003 SMPS National Chapter President of the Year
"When clients ask me to assist them in finding a marketing coordinator to add to their team, I know that a certified marketing professional has the qualities necessary to perform the duties of the position."-
-Karleen Belmont, FSMPS, KB Consultants
"Since marketing/business development is both an art and a science, certification will add to the credibility of those who practice it."
-Philip Bannan, CPSM, Gillan & Hartman, Inc.