A day in the life of an Advertising agent!
Advertising firms have both creative teams and account management teams. Advertising campaigns help companies get their brand recognized and increase sales. Digital, print, radio, TV and outdoor are a few different channels where consumers see campaigns. Here are some of the skills required in the advertising business:
- Empathy and people skills: Advertising is about understanding, interacting with and influencing people. Listening skills and communication skills are important. You will be required to work with various brands and clients. You will also need to understand your consumers inside out to effectively reach them. Campaigns have tight timelines which often makes it a high-stress job, so being pleasant with your team and clients when under pressure is critical.
- Critical thinking and managerial skills: You will be required to coordinate with different stakeholders such as content writers, video and graphic designers, and the media to launch a campaign. You might have a restricted budget to work with. It is important to manage all moving parts to run the campaign effectively within the set costs. You’re going to have to make judgment calls during campaigns so being able to effectively read and leverage data will be helpful. Analyzing and segmenting data to identify the brand ethos and target consumer will help you launch effective campaigns.
- Creativity: Advertising requires creativity, both in digital and offline campaigns. You will need to be part of the creative process from the content generation, to designing the product and then placing it out in the market for the customers. Out of the box thinking and lateral thinking is exceptionally crucial to the job. Selling a product is only possible when ads stand out in the market and attract the target audience! Being able to come up with a big idea that resonates with consumers will create lasting impact.
During the commencement of the campaign an advertiser decides when and where to place advertisements, and consequently work with media buyers to sketch out the costing options. Throughout the entire project the advertiser checks that the schedule and budgets are in consistence with the planners, researchers and creatives. It is the responsibility of the advertiser to decide if new market research is needed, or if a new strategy should be adopted. Advertisers also look at the campaign insights and sales figures to measure the success of their campaigns and report findings to the clients.
