Conducting is a marketing job.
There is of course the actual marketing. We are marketing our performances, marketing membership in our ensembles, marketing our value to the community or to the educational institution (or both!). We are marketing with run-out concerts, social media blitzes, concert posters, online video presence, and much more.
There is also indirect marketing. We’re marketing by creating a rehearsal environment people want to be part of. By creating performances that convince more people to participate. By choosing tours and other experiences that draw people in. By presenting repertoire so that our ensembles members are excited by it. By programming in a way that tells a compelling story. By making programs that reinforce the concert experience.
Doing the job well is important – your domain knowledge is essential. But understanding the ways in which your job is a marketing job, and learning to do that well, too, is equally crucial.