Text 15 Careers in Advertising

Careers in advertising may involve working for advertisers, media, advertising agencies, or suppliers and special services. In the opinion of an American specialist, at most, only 35 colleges and universities in the USA have effective programs of advertising education. Fewer than ten offer any truly significant amount of graduate work in advertising. However advertising draws people from a variety of educational backgrounds.

Advertisers. Most companies that advertise extensively have advertising managers, or brand managers. Because these people help to coordinate the company’s advertising program with its sales program and with the company’s advertising agency, they must have aptitudes for both advertising and management.

Media. All media use salesmen to sell advertising space or broadcasting time. Media salesman must be knowledgeable about business and skilled in salesmanship.

I have never worked in the media department of an agency, but observation of those who have been successful in this field leads me to think that they need an analytical mind, the ability to communicate numerical data in non-numerical formats, stability under pressure and a taste for negotiations with the owners of the media.

Advertising agencies. A variety of specialists is required in an advertising agency because it develops advertising programs, prepares advertisements, and places them in media. Those interested in advertising research and fact gathering should know both statistics and consumer psychology. Competence in media planning and evaluation is essential for a career in media. The media buyer must identify and determine the most effective media in which to expose the advertising messages, and purchase space or time in these media.

Copywriting requires creative skills and ability to visualize ideas. The copywriter is a developer of advertising ideas and messages.

Layout, typography and visualization are essential for those in art, both for print advertising and for television commercials. Print-production specialists must know printing, photoengraving and typography.

Experience in “show business”, dramatics, photography, music, playwriting and allied fields are excellent backgrounds for the television producer.

Besides, every agency needs the account executive to be a mediator between an advertiser and an agency who should have accountant background and managerial skills.

Special services such as marketing research organizations, television and radio producers, film producers, art studios, photographers, producers of display materials, typographers, photoengravers and product and package designers support advertising.

Chief Executive Officer. The most difficult job in an agency is Chief Executive Officer. He (or she) must be a good leader of frightened people. He must have financial acumen, administrative skill, thrust, and the courage to fire non-performers. He must be a good salesman because he is responsible for bringing in new clients. He must be resilient in adversity. Above all, he must have the physical stamina to work 12 hours a day, dine out several times a week, and spend half his time in airplanes.

A recent study reveals that the death rate from stress-related causes is 14 per cent higher among senior advertising executives than their counterparts in other white-collar occupations.

Creative Director. As a Creative Director myself, I dare to list the attributes needed for this back-breaking job. You must be:

1. A good psychologist.

2. Willing and able to set high standards.

3. An efficient administrator.

4. Capable of strategic thinking – “positioning” and all that.

5. Research-minded.

6. Equally good at television and print.

7. Equally good at package goods and other kinds of accounts.

8. Well versed in graphics and typography.

9. A hard worker – and fast.

10. Slow to quarrel.

11. Prepared to share credit for good work, and accept blame for bad work.

Notice that I put “good psychologist” at the top of the list.

Albert Lasker, who made the largest fortune in the history of the advertising business, once told a group of copywriters, “You think managing copywriters is a snap¹? You have taken some hairs out of me. I had a breakdown that kept me five and one-half months. I couldn’t talk for five minutes without starting to weep.

Job prospects. More than 0.1 % of the U. S. population work in advertising, but their number is expected to grow rapidly. Opportunity for rapid advancement is generally greater in advertising than in most other industries. How rapidly a person moves up in responsibilities and pay is based largely on his own efforts, more than on age or length of employment. For women, opportunities in advertising – at least in advertising agencies and in relating – tend to be greater than in most other business enterprises.

In general the rate of pay is comparable to that of business executives and professional men, such as physicians and lawyers in the same community.

From “Ogilvy on Advertising”

Preparing the Text

A. Studying the language

1. Give the Russian equivalents for the following words and word combinations:

an advertiser, a supplier, advertising education, significant amount of graduate work in advertising, a variety of educational backgrounds, to advertise extensively, advertising managers, brand managers, to coordinate the company’s advertising program with its sales program, to have aptitudes for both advertising and management, to sell advertising space or broadcasting time, media salesman, to be knowledgeable about business, to be skilled in salesmanship, to develop advertising programs, to prepare advertisements, to place advertisements in media, to be interested in advertising research and fact gathering, consumer psychology, competence in media planning and evaluation, a media buyer, to identify and determine the most effective media, to expose advertising messages, to purchase space or time in the media, copywriting, a copywriter, creative writing skills, ability to visualize ideas, to develop advertising ideas and messages, layout, typography, visualization, print advertising, television commercials, print-production specialists, photoengraving, an accountant executive, to be a mediator between an advertiser and an agency, to have accountant background and managerial skills, marketing research, television and radio producers, film producers, producers of display materials, product and package designers, to be successful in the field, analytical mind , ability to communicate numerical date in non-numerical formats, stability under pressure, a taste for negotiation, Chief Executive Officer, to be a good leader, to have financial acumen, administrative skill, thrust, the courage to fire non-performers, to be a good salesman, to be responsible for bringing up new clients,, to be resilient in adversity, to have the physical stamina to work 12 hours a day, senior advertising executives, counterparts, white-collar occupations, Creative Director, to set high standards, a backbreaking job, to be capable of strategic thinking, to be research-minded, to be good at, to share credit for good work, to accept blame for bad work, to move up in responsibilities and pay, opportunities for rapid advancement, length of employment, business enterprises, the rate of pay, business executives.

B. Points for comments and discussion

1. Make a list of the jobs in the field of advertising. What do all these people do? What personal qualities and qualification should they possess?

2. Prepare a talk about different jobs in advertising. What job appeals to you? Why?