All In A Day’s Work: Part III Things to Think About

Every now and then Pitch Pantha, whose special powers are attuned to 'hunting' and rescuing brands which need saving from poor comms strategies, and I get together to enjoy a racy conversation over brunch or coffee, but more recently to think of new ways to inspire and cultivate rising talent. Yesterday we sat down to develop a student pack to offer insight into advertising as an industry, compile some of Fallon’s best work over the years which illustrates it’s diverse creative portfolio, and to fundamentally offer some advice.

Aside from doing everything in my power to beat that Catch-22 and get some initial work experience, there are some skills every future Ad Lander should practice daily. It doesn’t involve practicing climbing up walls from a back alleyway or jumping from rooftop to rooftop as my photographer mate Peter Parker did when he started out. Instead it is allowing yourself to always ask yourself the following questions when looking at an advert:

• Do I like this ad?
• Does it engage & empower me?
• What is the strategy?
• How would I change it?
• Who is it trying to talk to?
• Is it telling a story?
• Who made it?
• How was it made?
• How has it changed from its last ad?

These questions are ESSENTIAL when you’re preparing to fill out graduate or work placement applications and more importantly when you get to that first interview.

When you answer these questions make sure you’re speaking from what you believe and then try and back it up with trends and strategies that have worked in the past and be a trendspotter and adapt your version of the ad to any of the shifting themes in popular culture and society.

Here are some tips from Pitch Pathna:

Pitch Pantha’s believes Size Matters! Ask yourself the following...

• What is the size of the brand?
• What is the size of the market?
• What is the size of the problem?
• What is the size of the (creative) opportunity?
• If the size of the opportunity is great, what is the size of the budget?

Once you agree to work on a project, get to know the client, know what keeps them awake at night, for the bigger and better the relationship, the bigger and better the rewards!

All In A Day's Work: Part II Networking

As promised I am going to keep an ongoing themed post dedicated to sharing what has worked for me in terms of getting noticed in this industry.

In any business, keeping a contact list of anyone & everyone you meet is vital! You never know when you might need to shoot them a quick note, for yourself, or as a means to help a mate or two out. With Email, Twitter, Lifestream, blogging and texting etc., keeping connected is getting easier by the second!

My father was awesome at keeping in touch with people. Not to get morbid but at his wake, there was an hour queue in the rain, just to say goodbye.

In November I met key people across various disciplines; Advertising, PR, & Marketing. One of the most effusive people I met was a planner for Saatchi & Saatchi. He was SO passionate about his career and life, I just had to meet him. This is where being your natural self pays off!

After he finished speaking, many of the young undergraduates raced up to him, resumes in hand and armed with many many questions. The one at the top of their list was, 'Can u hire me?!'

Take note: DON'T EVER EVER ASK THIS!

In creative industries, talent and your personality is what will get you hired! Simple.

I am not tooting my own horn, because of course I would have loved a job too, but I focused on why I enjoyed listening to him and why I would like to one day work for his company. I simply said hello and asked if I might buy him a glass of wine one day so I can gain some insight into the industry and his role within Saatchis. I went home and sent him the following email, no CV attached.

Dear XXXXX,

I so enjoyed your stories about Saatchi & Saatchi's creative approach to business problems with human feelings at its core. I understand that your time is highly sought after however, I would love the opportunity to hear more stories and have a chance to introduce myself properly over a glass of wine, later this week perhaps.

He emailed me 4 weeks later inviting me to coffee. I like to think that in my case, amidst a gaggle of yuppies, my personality made an impression both in person and later in email. I've had the opportunity to work alongside him many times, and it's fantastic! Through him I met even more amazingly talented people!

When you are networking to the movers and shakers, keep in mind they are really busy and might not have a chance to reply right away (even though your secretly hoping they will). It is OK to send quick follow ups when you feel it's appropriate and keep them updated on your activity, but do so with caution! The minute you seem annoying and desperate, the chances of getting your foot in the door diminishes by 90%!

Through my power of networking I have met dozens of the key players from Account Managers who can out wit a fox, a creative who loves Jack on the rocks and Bruce (let's be honest, who doesn't love that duo), to sharp shooting and insightful CEOs and really personable managing partners!

The most important thing is to keep an ongoing dialogue and create a relationship which suits you and your contact. This is because, the day you get hired (and you will) is the day these contacts become your peers and your new circle, for when you want to make a move to further your career on your own or with another agency.

I hope this helped and I would love some feedback. Treat these posts and an open Q&A and I will do my best to shed even more light on how to properly network yourself.

All In A Day’s Work: Part I

Do you ever walk out the door and forget your wallet, only you’re a good mile away from the front door before you realize it? I am guilty of this all the time, but in my case, I tend to leave my goggles behind. You might be wondering what I’m going on about. Well when I’m flying high above ADLand, my eyes become a net, catching every creepy crawly with wings…Yuk!

Keeping your vision clear is your only means to getting hired! This is also vital for anyone who is considering applying for work experience or anyone who is already on a placement in a creative agency. The first thing to understand is that in most cases graduate schemes vary greatly from work experience! I learned that at JWT.

There is an infamous catch-22 within most creative industries for all those who are starting out. While you need to show academic performance such as a degree or more, you also need to have relevant work experience however, you need work experience, to get work experience.

If you just got a head ache, don’t worry. I am going to devote a few posts going forward, for some tips on how to make this catch-22 work in your favour.

**Please take note, I am only sharing what has worked for me, and hopefully you can get a sense of just who AD Lad is from prior posts.**

What worked for me might not exactly work for you. This is because every person is different and that is what agencies are looking for! However, if you can gain some insight as to what your particular angle will be when keeping in touch with industry leaders, picking a mentor, filling out those applications and how to approach your first day on a placement, you will already be well on your way to getting noticed!