So you wanna be in advertising?

As Madonna so wittily pointed out: 'we are living in a material world’, and advertising exists solely to persuade us that we need to buy things, even if we don’t know why. So, if you think you could sell sand to the arabs, or reindeers to Santa, you should consider joining the wonderful world of advertising.

If it moves, plug it!
Advertising should fill one of three roles for the advertiser: persuade; inform; sell. It’s not only commercial concerns trying to sell you the latest product, who depend on advertising. It’s just as important to government departments, charities, political parties, trade unions and others who wish to inform or persuade the public.

Where do adverts appear?
Everywhere: TV, cinema, and radio; poster campaigns: newspapers and magazines; classified ads: direct mail; buses, taxis, lorries, cars; and, increasingly, internet banners and spamming.

Who’s responsible for producing adverts? Generally, adverts are worked up between the advertiser (the client), and an independent specialist – usually an advertising agency. Between them, they will work up a campaign that will be approved by the client, and then created by the advertising agency. In many instances, it will be a multi-media campaign, including tv, radio, and printed advertising.

Who’s making a living out of advertising?
There are lots of different fields of expertise in advertising: writers, visualisers, artists, graphic designers, photographers, designers, musicians, TV directors and crews, to name but a few.

So how do I become one of the above?

• If you want to get in on the TV or music side of things, go to the It’s a Wrap! website for more specific details.
• If you want to work creatively within an advertising agency, you must decide whether you want to be a copywriter, visualiser, artist or graphic designer.

What’s the difference?

• The copywriter writes the pithy phrases and slogans.
• The visualiser creates a ‘look’ for an ad campaign.
• The artists and graphic designers realise the "look" through drawings, paintings, computer-generated art, or photography.(See Links).

What kind of qualifications am I going to need?
The industry is highly competitive, with the really top jobs at an absolute premium. Although it is possible to work your way up from the bottom in this industry, in order to give yourself a better chance, you’ve got to seriously consider a degree in advertising or a related subject. For full details of degrees in advertising in the UK see Links.

• Visualisers - you need to be very artistic, and to be able to use CaD/CaM computer packages.
• Artists/graphic designers - need to be trained to a similar standard in their own chosen field.
• Copywriters - need a creative, flexible mind with a flair for words. (These days, many also have a degree in advertising or English).

Prospects
A fast-growing industry with opportunities for high earnings, and job satisfaction. But be prepared for very long hours, and lots of stress. It is a cut-throat industry, in which you really are ‘only as good as your last campaign.’