Download Careers in Advertising The American Association of Advertising

Careers in Advertising
The American Association of Advertising Agencies publishes a brochure
entitled “Go For It: A Guide to Careers in Advertising,” which
provides detailed job descriptions and advice for pursuing a career in
advertising. The material found in this appendix provides a more indepth look at agency positions, their requirements and career
opportunities, as well as helpful information on preparing a résumé
and for a job interview.
JOBS IN AN ADVERTISING AGENCY
As you have seen in these chapters, agencies handle a broad range of
tasks requiring people with experience and ability in overall
management as well as specialized fields. In a small agency, one
person may wear several hats, such as media planner and buyer, whereas
at a large agency some people will tend to specialize, such as a
network television buyer. In all agencies, however, the jobs usually
fall into five categories:





Account management
Creative
Media
Market research
Support services and administration
ACCOUNT MANAGEMENT
At an agency, the client and its business are usually called “the
account.” One advertiser may offer many products or services and ask
separate agencies to handle each one. Another may use a single agency
to handle several products or services. No matter what the particular
situation, the account management department is where the resources of
the agency and the needs of the client connect.
The account manager oversees the advertising business that has been
assigned to the agency and is ultimately responsible for the quality
of service the client receives. The account manager serves as the
client’s representative at the agency and the agency’s representative
at the client’s organization. It is his or her job to get the client
its money’s worth—to get the best possible work from the agency for
the client—but at a profitable return for the agency. This means
knowing how to handle people at the agency so that they give the
client their best effort without spending more time than the income
from the client’s business justifies.
The effective account manager develops a thorough knowledge of the
client’s business, the consumer, the marketplace, and all aspects of
advertising, including creative, media, research, and commercial
production. As team leader and strategist, the account person must
communicate the client’s needs clearly to the agency team, plan
effectively to maximize staff time and energy, and present the
agency’s recommendations candidly to the client. He or she must also
know all about the agency: who are the most qualified people in each
department and how to get their attention when it is needed.
The account manager must also know all about the client,
enthusiastically learning every aspect of the client’s business —
ideally, from product development through the entire marketing
operation—well enough to command the client’s respect when presenting
the agency’s recommendations. In the final analysis, the account
person must be able to foster productive communication between client
and agency staffs, identify common goals, and make sure that the final
product is profitable and effective for the client and the agency.
ENTRY-LEVEL POSITIONS
ASSISTANT ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE (MANAGER)
The typical assistant account executive reports directly to an account
executive and has a wide range of responsibilities. Some common duties
include reporting client billing and forecasting agency income,
analyzing competitive activity and consumer trends, writing conference
reports from meetings, and coordinating creative, media, research, and
production projects.
Successful candidates have strong general business skills: the ability
to write and spell effectively, demonstrated leadership experience, a
capability for statistical analysis, and developed organizational
skills. In addition, it is important to be able to work well under
pressure, handle a variety of tasks simultaneously, and coordinate the
work and energy of diverse types of people, as well as to have
creative sensibility and an intense interest in advertising and
marketing.
Candidates for this position should have a bachelor’s degree and, in
some cases, a master of business administration. A degree in
advertising or marketing is not a prerequisite. Within the agency
business, agency account management and media departments hire the
greatest number of entry-level candidates. Some of the large agencies
offer entry-level training programs in account management.
CAREER OPPORTUNITIES
An entry-level position in account management usually leads to account
executive and then to more senior positions, with responsibility for
more than one account and for the work of several account executives.
Ultimately, account management can assume broader office and corporate
positions. Currently the largest percentage of top agency management
positions are filled from the ranks of the account management
department.
CREATIVE
The creative department of an advertising agency is responsible for
developing the ideas, images, and words that make up commercials and
ads. Although many people contribute to the process, the invention and
production of advertising is mainly the responsibility of copywriters
and art directors.
When a copywriter and art director are assigned to an account, they
must learn about the product or service to be advertised, marketing
strategy, consumer or potential consumer, media to be used,
advertising by competitors, production budget, and the client
personnel (such as brand managers) with whom the agency deals. The
research, account management, and media departments provide basic
information on all these topics. However, the creative people will
most likely want to gain first-hand experience with the client’s
product.
After the creative people assimilate as much information as possible,
they agree on a general direction. The art director and copywriter
work as a team trying out ideas first on each other, on the creative
director, and on the other agency groups working on the account. These
executions are reviewed by senior members of the agency (including
legal counsel), sometimes called the review board, to evaluate whether
they match the goals of the marketing and advertising strategy.
The reviewed creative executions are presented to the client for
approval. Once the client approves, the art director and copywriter
work with print and broadcast production people to produce the final
version of the advertisement. Magazines and newspapers require cameraready copy. To prepare such print advertisements, agencies rely on
outside services, from photographers to typesetters. Agency
specialists in print production oversee this contracted work.
Television stations require videotape; radio stations must have audio
tape. Broadcast commercials often involve a large cast of outside
specialists. Agency producers oversee the completion of television and
radio commercials. They hire directors, production studios with film
crews, and actors. In addition, producers administer the budget, work
with composers and musicians, and participate in the review and
editing of the rough film or videotape into the final version.
ENTRY-LEVEL POSITIONS
JUNIOR COPYWRITER
A junior copywriter assists one or more copywriters in editing and
proofreading ad copy, writing body copy for established print
campaigns, and developing merchandising and sales promotion materials.
With proven ability and experience, assignments might include
generating ideas for product or company names and writing dialog for
television commercials and scripts for radio ads.
A successful candidate not only has outstanding skills in writing but
has a “love affair” with words and symbols and their use in
communication. Interest in a wide range of subjects and an insatiable
sense of curiosity are assets. Candidates should have some knowledge
of marketing and how words and visuals have been used in advertising.
Agencies expect job candidates to demonstrate their talent by showing
portfolios of previous creative work, seminal ideas, and “rough”
designs of potential campaigns, even if they were done in the
classroom or on your own. Although a bachelor’s degree is not
required, most agencies look for candidates with proven intellectual
ability and emotional maturity. Degrees in English, journalism, or
advertising and marketing can be helpful. Opportunities for candidates
who have no writing experience are limited. Some of the largest
agencies offer entry-level training programs in copywriting.
JUNIOR OR ASSISTANT ART DIRECTOR
The junior art director assists one or more art directors in preparing
paste-ups, rough lettering, and layouts for print ads and television
storyboards, developing visual concepts and designs, and overseeing
photo sessions and the filming of television commercials.
A successful candidate will have strong visual concept skills and good
basic drawing and design ability. Although an assistant art director
must be capable of handling day-to-day lettering and matting tasks,
agencies are also interested in identifying candidates with visual
imagination and an interest in applying that ability to marketing and
advertising problems.
Agencies expect candidates to show portfolios displaying their basic
drawing skills and roughs of ideas for potential advertising
campaigns. Although a bachelor’s degree is not required, most agencies
look for candidates with at least a two-year degree from an art or
design school. Entry-level opportunities are very limited for
candidates with only some related business experience, such as in a
retail advertising department.
CAREER OPPORTUNITIES
An entry-level position as junior copywriter leads to copywriter. An
entry-level position as a junior art director leads to art director.
In these more senior positions, each is given more responsibility and
freedom in developing the visual and copy ideas for campaigns and may
work on more than one account or on accounts that make special
demands.
The position of art director or copywriter can lead to creative
supervisor, the professional responsible for the work of a group of
copywriters or art directors. More senior positions usually include
creative group head, responsible for supervising teams of art
directors and copywriters as well as production functions; creative
director, responsible for all creative work produced by the agency for
either all clients or a group of clients; and chief or executive
creative director, responsible for overall creative work in a
division, region, or company-wide. Senior creative people are
important to the overall management of an agency. Many of them reach
top agency management positions.
MEDIA
Even the most innovative and highly creative advertising in the world
can fail if it is presented to the wrong audience or if it is
presented at the wrong time or in the wrong place. The media
department of an advertising agency is responsible for placing
advertising where it will reach the right people in the right place
and do so in a cost-effective way.
To bring advertising messages to the public, agencies must use a
carrier, called a medium of communication or simply a medium. The four
most commonly used media are television, radio, magazines, and
newspapers. Some other media include billboards, posters, printed
bulletins, and even skywriting.
Planning and buying media at an advertising agency is exciting and
challenging because ways of communicating are constantly changing and
becoming more complex. Such technological advances as cable television
or videotext make an impact on what media are available for
advertising and how viewership is calculated. A recent increase in the
number of specialty publications enables more precise targeting of
consumers. Today, more than ever, agencies and clients are recognizing
the importance of creative and innovative media planning and buying.
When working on a particular advertising campaign, the media planners
discuss, with the client and other agency people, the goals of the
marketing strategy as well as a description of the potential consumer.
As planners, they think about the kinds of media the target group
might read, listen to, or watch. They compare the content, image, and
format of each medium with the nature of the product or service, its
image, and the goals of the advertising campaign. In discussions with
the creative department and account team, planners suggest which media
can be used most effectively to reach the target audience.
The media department is responsible for developing a plan that answers
the question: How can the greatest number of people in the target
group be reached often enough to have the advertising message seen and
remembered —and at the lowest possible cost? Once the media plan has
been developed, presented to the client, and approved, the
department’s media buyers start negotiating for space and time. Buyers
purchase space in which to display their messages in print media. They
buy time in the broadcast media.
Buyers must not only find and reserve available space and time, but
also negotiate the best price. Will a station offer a lower price if
more time slots are bought? Will prime time be discounted if the buyer
is willing to purchase, in addition, some less desirable time in the
morning or late at night? Buyers who have outstanding negotiating
skills are valuable assets to any agency’s media department.
After the space and time have been purchased, the department must
monitor the media to make sure that the advertising actually appeared,
in the proper form and at the proper time as it was ordered. If a
discrepancy occurs, the department negotiates an adjustment to the
billing or accepts a credit for additional time or space.
ENTRY-LEVEL POSITIONS
ASSISTANT MEDIA PLANNER
The typical assistant media planner reports to a media planner and
gathers and studies information about people’s viewing and reading
habits, evaluates editorial content and programming of various media
vehicles, calculates reach and frequency for specific target groups
and campaigns, learns all there is to know about the media in general
(magazines, newspapers, radio, television) and about media vehicles in
particular (Time, The Wall Street Journal), and becomes thoroughly
familiar with media data banks and information sources.
Accomplishing these tasks requires the ability to find and analyze
data, apply computer skills, ask innovative questions, and interpret
or explain findings with attention to quantitative and qualitative
considerations. In short, a planner must gain knowledge of what
information is important and where to find it. By assisting in
gathering statistics to support a variety of plans, he or she
eventually becomes familiar with broader characteristics and trends in
all media.
ASSISTANT MEDIA BUYER
The typical assistant media buyer reports directly to a media buyer
and knows when and where space and time are available for purchase,
reconciles agency media orders with what actually appears, calculates
rates, usage, and budget, learns buying terminology and operating
procedures, develops skills in negotiation and communication with
media sales representatives, and becomes familiar with the media
market. Accomplishing these tasks requires ease at working with
numbers and budgets, outstanding communication skills, and the ability
to work under pressure. Skills in negotiation and sales are especially
advantageous.
Successful candidates have strong general business skills: the ability
to write and speak effectively, developed organizational skills,
aptitude for working with numbers and statistics, and basic computer
skills. in addition, other important attributes are working well under
pressure, maintaining priorities while handling a variety of tasks
simultaneously, the ability and desire to interact with a wide range
of personalities at the agency, the client, and within the media
industry, an intense curiosity and interest in all types of media and
their role in the marketing process, and understanding of sales and
negotiation concepts (leverage, timing, and positioning), and a
winning personal attitude.
Candidates should have a bachelor’s degree. A degree in advertising or
marketing is not a prerequisite. In most agencies, the media
department, along with account management, hires the greatest number
of entry-level candidates. Most larger agencies offer entry-level
training programs in media.
The organization of a media department varies with the size of the
agency. In large agencies, a person may specialize by medium, whereas
in small and medium-sized agencies each person may handle all media.
The media function is headed by a media director who usually reports
to the highest level of management.
CAREER OPPORTUNITIES
An entry-level position as an assistant media planner usually leads to
media planner, the person responsible for developing a media plan. An
entry-level position as an assistant media buyer usually leads to
media buyer, responsible for negotiating time and space. It is common
for the planner and buyer to develop expertise in specific media
categories, such as magazine or network or spot television. In a small
agency, the two jobs may be combined.
The next step is supervisory. The media planning supervisor
coordinates the work of planners and presents recommendations to the
account group and client. The broadcast buying supervisor oversees
buying operations.
With greater knowledge and experience, media people advance to any of
several positions —associate media director, manager of media
research, network supervisor, director of spot broadcast, group media
director, director of programming and negotiations, and media
director. Many agencies have top media people represented in senior
management and as members of their boards of directors.
MARKET RESEARCH
The basic role of the market research department in an advertising
agency is to understand the wants, desires, thoughts, concerns,
motivating forces, and ideas of the consumer. By researching secondary
information, conducting focus groups or one-on-one interviews, testing
people’s reactions to new advertising copy, tracking sales volume, or
studying buying trends, the advertising agency researcher becomes an
expert on consumer behavior.
Most researchers are assigned to specific accounts and work as
advisors to the account, creative, and media people. They help
develop, refine, and evaluate potential strategies and are called on
to react to possible creative approaches based on their understanding
of the consumer. This might be done with the creative team during the
process or with account managers as evaluators of creative
alternatives.
Some agencies also employ researchers who specialize in specific areas
of quantitative or qualitative research. Consumer trends and lifestyle
research are two areas in which most large agencies maintain
continuing studies. Findings from these specialized studies tend to
have an impact on all agency clients as well as on the process of
creating advertising. In addition, the research department oversees
projects that are subcontracted to “out-of-house” research firms. A
typical example is surveys of shoppers at malls. The agency
researchers design the questionnaire and interpret results, but a
private firm conducts the interviews and summarizes the data so the
researcher can write a report on the survey.
ENTRY-LEVEL POSITIONS
ASSISTANT RESEARCH EXECUTIVE
The typical assistant reports directly to a research executive. Duties
usually include compiling data from secondary resources, following the
progress of research projects, assisting in the development of primary
research tools, and learning to analyze facts and numbers,
interpreting and explaining what these really mean.
Successful candidates have strong quantitative skills and the aptitude
for analyzing and interpreting qualitative as well as quantitative
data. Computer literacy is also advantageous. In addition, candidates
should be able to write and speak effectively, work well under
pressure, and organize work priorities. They should have an interest
in forecasting trends and patterns and a fascination with human
behavior and motivation.
A bachelor’s degree is the minimum requirement, but it is not unusual
to find people who have master’s or doctorate degrees employed in
agency research departments. Although a specific major is not a
prerequisite, many employers are attracted to candidates whose
coursework is related to research. Some academic disciplines fitting
this category are sociology, psychology, marketing, marketing
research, economics, journalism, quantitative methods, anthropology,
and mass communications.
Entry-level positions in agency research departments are relatively
rare, especially in medium- and small-sized agencies. Candidates who
have only bachelor’s or master’s degrees and no experience might find
some opportunities at the largest agencies or at research firms.
CAREER OPPORTUNITIES
An entry-level position as an assistant research executive usually
leads to a supervisory position with responsibility for managing
research on individual accounts or brands overseeing the work of
assistant research executives. During this stage a person might
identify a personal interest in a specific research area and seek to
specialize. The next step is management of a specialized research
function or responsibility for all research on more than one account.
Ultimately, a research person may have the opportunity to move into
more general corporate management or marketing functions.
SUPPORT SERVICES
Like any well-run business, the advertising agency must maintain a
full complement of people who handle accounting, personnel, clerical,
and office services. In addition, agency traffic managers make sure
that, once started, an ad or commercial moves smoothly through the
agency, additions and corrections are obtained, and the whole job
arrives at the publication or the broadcast station on time.
Cost controllers monitor agency costs, making sure that work stays
within budget or that everyone is aware of, and approves, any needed
changes in the budget. Other agency employees may include lawyers,
librarians, and certain specialists. For example, agencies with big
food or packaged-goods accounts sometimes keep nutritionists and home
economists on staff. Those with health products or medical accounts
may employ physicians. Such diversity is one more aspect that makes
agency work such a fascinating and rewarding career choice.
PREPARING FOR A CAREER IN ADVERTISING
Breaking into advertising is not easy. Most jobs require a college
degree. Internships and related work experience can be helpful. Retail
selling experience is also excellent preparation. In addition to all
this, however, getting a job in an advertising agency requires
determination for two reasons. First, there are few job openings, and
second, a lot of other bright people, like yourself, want those jobs,
too. This year alone many agencies will receive thousands of inquiries
for entry-level opportunities. Of this number, a very large agency
might hire only 30. In short, there are many more people interested in
working at agencies than there are openings. Nothing guarantees a job
with an agency, but there are seven basic steps you should consider.
1. Educate Yourself About the Business
Find out as much as possible about the advertising business, what
an agency does, and the career area or department in which you
would like to work. Read every bit of relevant material you can
find —articles, books, and such trade journals as Advertising
Age, Mediaweek, and Adweek.
Talk to people. Track down any contacts or friends you have in
the business. Sit down with your college instructors and career
counselors. Make inquiries at such professional organizations as
the American Association of Advertising Agencies, Advertising
Women of New York, the American Advertising Foundations, or your
local advertising club. Find out about seminars and attend them.
One source of information can lead you to ten others. The more
you know about your chosen area, the better you can present
yourself as a first-rate candidate.
2. Target Your Prospects
Decide what factors are important to you about a company and
evaluate prospective employers on that basis. Make use of the
Standard Directory of Advertising Agencies, popularly known as the “Agency
Red Book.” It is available at most libraries and lists all the
agencies worldwide. It gives names and titles of key people, size
of the agency (in dollar billings, number of offices, and total
personnel), the agency’s accounts, and a breakdown of the media
in which the agency invests its client’ money.
Read the trade press to learn more about specific agencies you
want to target. For example, Advertising Age prints a special
issue each year that provides profiles of individual agency
business activity during the previous 12 months. It also selects
an “agency of the year” and publishes an in-depth description.
3. Develop a Strategy
With all the competition for jobs in advertising, you must
develop your own “unique selling proposition” to communicate your
own unique qualities. It is not enough that you are interested in
advertising, or that you made dean’s list eight times, or that
you wrote for the school newspaper. So did most of your
competition. You have to connect what you have done in the past,
in a unique way, to what you will do for the agency in the
future. Developing a strategy gets your commitment, imagination,
and analytical thinking out in the limelight. It is the key to
making you stand out from other candidates.
4. Create a Good Résumé
The primary purpose a résumé is to get you an interview. Used
correctly, it can open doors. Used incorrectly, it slams them
shut. A good résumé connects your experience to your job goal.
Support your candidacy by highlighting relevant skills, such as
writing, speaking, managing, and so on. Include any activities,
jobs, or internships directly related to advertising. Did you
sell space for the school’s newspapers? Were you yearbook editor?
Or stage manager for the college theater group? Add less related
activities only if they are outstanding. Be selective. Your
résumé is a selling tool, not a life history. Keep it neat,
clear, precise, and all on one page. Try to make it unique and
interesting but not gimmicky.
5. Take Pains with Each Cover Letter
A cover letter works hand in hand with your résumé. Together they
create a first impression of you. Your cover letter should work
as a connecting tool between you and the agency you are writing
to. Don’t let it read like a form letter. Instead, include real
knowledge of the agency, its clients, its work, and its position
in the industry. Tell the agency why you are interested in it and
why you think you’d be right for it. Then make sure that you are
prepared to discuss in your interview whatever you say in the
cover letter. Remember, you are being judged on communicative
skill. Watch spelling, grammar, and typing. Most importantly, be
clear, crisp, and brief.
6. Assemble a Portfolio
To help you get a job in an agency creative department, you must
prepare a portfolio that shows your thinking and imagination. If
you are an aspiring art director, this clearly has to include
ample demonstration of your design ability and graphic sense. If
you want to be a copywriter, visuals are less critical than is
demonstration of your writing ability and marketing sense. Even
account managers can show ads they have worked on in order to
explain the strategy behind them.
In any case, show your very best work. If you have not had any
experience, pick some currently running campaigns, determine
their objectives, and interpret them in your own way. It doesn’t
matter if your “ads” are not professional. Your prospective
employer wants to see fresh concepts and new ideas that prove you
have potential. Then keep making changes to improve your
portfolio. For more specific suggestions, see Maxine Paetro’s
book on building portfolios, entitled How to Put Your Book
Together and Get a Job in Advertising.
7. Prepare for Your Interview
At most agencies, an invitation to be interviewed reflects more
than casual interest in a candidate. If you have made it this
far, you’re at least in the quarterfinals. And if you’ve done
your homework, you should have nothing to worry about.
Before the interview, organize your thinking. Review your résumé
and the cover letter you sent the agency. Decide what key selling
points you should communicate about yourself. Think how you can
best do this. Review the information you have about the agency.
Be aware of its current campaigns and any fast-breaking
developments. Commenting on these can help you make an immediate
connection with the interviewer.
Be ready to discuss your point of view on advertising in general
and your area of interest in particular. Be articulate. Be selfconfident and enthusiastic, but relax and do it naturally. Don’t
try to recite everything you know. Selectivity shows you are
thinking.
Remember, someone is interested enough in your background to
invest 30 minutes or more in you. That person wants you to
succeed.
Source: Courtesy of The American Association of Advertising Agencies.