Getting into a career in advertising isn’t easy. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, over 250,000 people work in the advertising industry. In Advertising you will work with all aspects of marketing from strategy to concept to the execution of the strategy. You will find that most jobs on the business side of advertising include Account Management, Account Planners, and Media Buyers.

Account managers act as the liaison between the agency’s various departments and the client. Their job is to manage the execution of ads by making sure that they are created within the allocated schedule and budget. Account Planners focus more on the consumer. Their job is to conduct research on demographics of the targeted consumers. They use that research to get to know what motivates their behavior in the marketplace.

The job of the Media Buyer is to find media to place ads in. They use the demographic study that is done by the Account Planner to decide the best possible place to purchase ad space. Getting into a career in advertising requires a college degree. Internships and related work experience can be helpful.

Retail selling experience is also excellent preparation.  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 (see On-Campus for suggestions), and industry trade press such as Advertising Age, 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. Check professional organizations like the American Association of Advertising Agencies, Advertising Women of New York, the American Advertising Federation, or your local advertising club.  Remember, one source of information can lead to ten others. The more you know about your chosen area, the better you can present yourself as a first-rate candidate.

Advertising professionals find jobs in advertising agencies, in-house advertising agencies or departments of large companies, or with mass media as advertising sales representatives. Normally advertising agencies are divided into four departments: account services, media, research, and creative.

Careers in advertising involve variety, compensation based on performance, creativity, travel, satisfaction from seeing ones’ personal accomplishments, and contact with others. Advertising jobs are found in advertising agencies, media organizations, advertising departments in business firms, non profit organizations, and marketing research firms. The four major career paths in advertising are account management, creative, media and research which are all wonderful positions to enjoy a career in advertising.

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