Anyone work in Advertising?
Discussion
Hi all,
I'm currently in Year 2 of my degree (BSc Geography, doing it because I enjoy it rather than because it will take me places), and need to start thinking about pretty seriously about where I'm going to forge a career. I'm potentially going to undertake a Year in Industry after this year (nothing degree-related, not something I'd ideally want to stay in long-term but its a salary for a year which should pay off my student debts and be good for the CV), but I think where I really want to end up is Advertising.
My dad was doing pretty well for himself in the digital marketing world and as a kid I was always keen to learn from him, but he died a couple of years ago so I'm somewhat stuck for contacts that I might have otherwise had within that industry. And I think that ideally, advertising is where I'd rather be heading.
I realise that it's a somewhat difficult industry to get into, but I was wondering if anyone had any helpful advice, or perhaps (cheeky request...!) the possibility of work experience or something, to both gain a better understanding and to possibly get my foot in the door so to speak!
Thanks in advance,
Ben
I'm currently in Year 2 of my degree (BSc Geography, doing it because I enjoy it rather than because it will take me places), and need to start thinking about pretty seriously about where I'm going to forge a career. I'm potentially going to undertake a Year in Industry after this year (nothing degree-related, not something I'd ideally want to stay in long-term but its a salary for a year which should pay off my student debts and be good for the CV), but I think where I really want to end up is Advertising.
My dad was doing pretty well for himself in the digital marketing world and as a kid I was always keen to learn from him, but he died a couple of years ago so I'm somewhat stuck for contacts that I might have otherwise had within that industry. And I think that ideally, advertising is where I'd rather be heading.
I realise that it's a somewhat difficult industry to get into, but I was wondering if anyone had any helpful advice, or perhaps (cheeky request...!) the possibility of work experience or something, to both gain a better understanding and to possibly get my foot in the door so to speak!
Thanks in advance,
Ben
Advice i give to graduates and interns
-Email every single company for internships- big and small companies. Worse they can do is say "No, we're not taking interns"
-Look at different fields (TV production/ direct marketing/digital) and try to get a feel of what you want to specialize in. Then there are different departments in that as well; client services, new business, creative etc.
- And there's many arms to advertising, so just try and absorb any and all info. And your life will be filled with acronyms- B2B, ATL, CRM, and so on.
- Don't lie. If you don't know how to do something, ask. People will more often be happy to help, but pissed if you lie and balls it up.
- And it's a surprisingly small world. Don't bad mouth anyone as 9/10 times it gets back to them.
-Email every single company for internships- big and small companies. Worse they can do is say "No, we're not taking interns"
-Look at different fields (TV production/ direct marketing/digital) and try to get a feel of what you want to specialize in. Then there are different departments in that as well; client services, new business, creative etc.
- And there's many arms to advertising, so just try and absorb any and all info. And your life will be filled with acronyms- B2B, ATL, CRM, and so on.
- Don't lie. If you don't know how to do something, ask. People will more often be happy to help, but pissed if you lie and balls it up.
- And it's a surprisingly small world. Don't bad mouth anyone as 9/10 times it gets back to them.
Edited by rj1986 on Wednesday 16th January 11:18
It depends which part of advertising? I know you said your Dad was successful in the Digital Marketing side so am I right in thinking you would err toward that? There's a lot of different jobs within that one industry though, generally it's split into these:
Media buying/selling
Creative - ideas
Creative - production
Marketing/strategy
Account management & new business (in effect, glorified sales)
It's likely that a lot of jobs in the industry will transcend a couple of these at the same time but they all are quite far apart in terms of skill sets.
So what would you be interested in OP?
Media buying/selling
Creative - ideas
Creative - production
Marketing/strategy
Account management & new business (in effect, glorified sales)
It's likely that a lot of jobs in the industry will transcend a couple of these at the same time but they all are quite far apart in terms of skill sets.
So what would you be interested in OP?
Unless you have the drive and house to run your own business, advertising is a very fickle industry. I have been in it for over twenty years. From Head of Client services for a £40M billing Manchester agency to Marketing Director / New Product Development for a manufacturing Co.
Digital is certainly the growing area and should be a good part of your knowledge base.
However, I wish I had got a degree and gone into a "professional" industry like engineering. Oil and gas would be brilliant, especially with all the opportunities for working abroad. Anyone can work advertising.
Digital is certainly the growing area and should be a good part of your knowledge base.
However, I wish I had got a degree and gone into a "professional" industry like engineering. Oil and gas would be brilliant, especially with all the opportunities for working abroad. Anyone can work advertising.
I suppose an important thing to start thinking about is whether you want to work client side or agency side. Having done both, I can tell you that they are very different and most people will only suit one of them.
In an agency the upside is that you will usually learn a lot quicker and get a much wider variety of work, but will only have x hours a month to work on projects, versus them being a full-time job.
Client side is far more involved, from planning to doing and reporting and improving, so you control much more of a project, though if it fails it will be your head on the block. You will likely earn more as an in-house marketing/advertising manager as brands can afford to pay more than most agencies.
In an agency the upside is that you will usually learn a lot quicker and get a much wider variety of work, but will only have x hours a month to work on projects, versus them being a full-time job.
Client side is far more involved, from planning to doing and reporting and improving, so you control much more of a project, though if it fails it will be your head on the block. You will likely earn more as an in-house marketing/advertising manager as brands can afford to pay more than most agencies.
Dick Dastardly said:
I suppose an important thing to start thinking about is whether you want to work client side or agency side. Having done both, I can tell you that they are very different and most people will only suit one of them.
Agreed, but i found agency much more fun.I went Client to agency- dont think i could go back. Especially now i know the mark up on some things
Big News said:
but I think where I really want to end up is Advertising.
Are you sure about that?Clasping your shiny new degree, you might be taken on as an Account Executive on the princely sum of £14k (in London), while you'll be working 24/7 for it.
However it's unlikely that you'll get a job unless Daddie owns the Agency (or one of his mates does).
If you're serious, be prepared for stiff competition, plus a succession of unpaid internships, before the sniff of a paid job.
In the upper echelons the rewards are there, but for most, salaries have tanked. In 1995, an Account Manager in a top London Agency earned £30k. Fast forward almost 20 years, and they still do.
Edited by Mobile Chicane on Saturday 19th January 01:56
Thanks for all your help guys, plenty to think about. I'm sure I shall be back here at some point in the future!
Mobile Chicane said:
However it's unlikely that you'll get a job unless Daddie owns the Agency (or one of his mates does).
Trust me, he doesn't...!:Big News said:
My dad was doing pretty well for himself in the digital marketing world and as a kid I was always keen to learn from him, but he died a couple of years ago so I'm somewhat stuck for contacts that I might have otherwise had within that industry.
Big News said:
Thanks for all your help guys, plenty to think about. I'm sure I shall be back here at some point in the future!
Well that's you fMobile Chicane said:
However it's unlikely that you'll get a job unless Daddie owns the Agency (or one of his mates does).
Trust me, he doesn't...!: 
ked then.In all honesty I'd choose something else to do.
Agencies are laying off staff left right and centre. Graduate recruitment is at a standstill.
If advertising were difficult enough to get into in the boom years, it's ten thousand times harder in the bust ones.
Big News said:
(BSc Geography, doing it because I enjoy it rather than because it will take me places), and need to start thinking about pretty seriously about where I'm going to forge a career.
Assuming that as a 2nd year student you're about 20 then I have to ask why on earth you're looking to 'forge a career'?You may have a reasonable answer to that question, your dream may be to be married with kids by the time you're 25, you may go to sleep at night dreaming of creating the advert which sold a million volvos. Without knowing you I can't say what your dream is but I do know this, you have already given yourself the best career advice you'll ever get and it's quoted in bold at the top of this post.
_________________
Be careful of verbs -> I 'should' get a job, I 'must' earn my way in the world. Verbs can easily ruin your life because they are a tool for turning your fear of the unknown in to a sh!t career you weren't ready for. If you 'must' do something then it is an obligation, something forced on you from outside and if you submit to it then you've already lost the game of life. Verbs are dangerous.
The alternative to verbs is not easy to explain. Look in the most varied places for the craziest jobs you can find, read new scientist magazine, search for jobs in Mongolia, stand in the supermarket and work out how many people have been involved in each product on each shelf. Take the standard notion of a job search and break every boundary you can because no matter how hard you look you will only see a fraction of the crazy weird things you can end up doing for a living.
You'll know when you get there because it will be the subject you think about as you go to sleep, the thing which creates obsession in your life.
(Apologies if that's not the advice you were looking for. I started a civil engineering degree because it's what my dad did and I'm good at maths. I now typeset books and do cover design among other media related stuff but when I was 20 would never have considered that such a job existed. I've done a lot of sh!t jobs to get to one I like, hence the advice above.)
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