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An open dialogue on the challenge of hunting internships in advertising

Dear Industry,
Dear Helen,

I always knew a career in advertising was going to be tough. Whether due to its Darwinian competitiveness or tendency to only hire those who know a friend in the industry, it’s fair to say that getting my foot in what seems is the narrowest of doors is proving impossible. This blog illustrates my experience of hunting for internships so far and highlights the frustrations and pressures I believe many students face, particularly on my course, in pursuit of the elusive agency placement.

Knock, knock… Knock, knock…

The saying “no news is good news” is a questionable one. After contacting what must be at least 50 advertising agencies across the UK, I have had replies from approximately 10. Not offers, replies. With every website stating sentiments such as “We’d love to chat”, “Pop in and see us” or the cliché “Our door is always open”, the reality of it all is entirely different. Despite many emails students send simply enquiring whether that agency does offer placements, the lack of replies is astounding. Yes, everyone in advertising is rushing between client demands and last-minute strategy swapping, but if aspiring new talent cannot get past the first hurdle, how are we meant to be part of the race at all?

“My old man’s a dustman”. “Mine’s a Chief Strategy Officer”

One thing that is hard for many students is the apparent sense of nepotism within advertising (albeit maybe just at entry level). Countless times have I seen students spout the “Well, my mum knows this guy…” line, with this often ending with “so yeah he made a few calls and I start next week!” I realise this is probably the same with every industry (heck, it is in politics), but seeing endless years of hard work come to nothing just because you don’t have the ‘connections’ others do is gut-wrenchingly disheartening. This probably comes across as a bad case of ‘sour grapes’ (and yes, you’re right for thinking that), however this is something I have not only experienced myself, but also seen first-hand in the frustrations of others at my university.

“Seeing endless years of hard work come to nothing just because you don’t have the ‘connections’ others do is gut-wrenchingly disheartening”

The hidden gems

Before you think this blog is purely negative, it isn’t. My hunt for internships so far, paid or unpaid, hasn’t been completely fruitless. Every now and then, after calling an agency, I get the chance to speak with someone who has ‘been in my shoes’, knows how it feels and understands my frustrations. Whenever this occurs, I find myself giddy with excitement at the prospect of this agency being ‘The One’ and the fact I haven’t just been re-directed to another seemingly false email address. These rare occurrences have seen me speak to some of the kindest people I have met in advertising, with many being of highly important roles within the biggest agencies. To these wonderful humans, I cannot express how grateful I am for your time, attention and empathy.

Advertising and proud

If you could design a graduate for an advertising job, what would they be like? Creative? A crafter of killer strategies? A good knowledge of the communications industry? If you answered yes to any of those, it’s likely you’re the minority. Time and time again we’re told that the ideal graduate for advertising would’ve studied Maths, History or The History of Maths; not advertising itself. As a student of Bournemouth University’s BA Advertising programme, I strongly rebuke this view. My course thus far has given me an incredible amount of theoretical and practical knowledge on advertising, marketing and society itself. Project after project, my work partner and I find ourselves thinking more strategically than ever before. Whether this is during the mining of deeply-rooted insights or creation of juicy copy, we are now seeing ourselves become more and more like the advertisers we see during our agency visits.

The door is closing…

Someone recently described the advertising industry as “on lockdown for new employees” to me a few days ago. Before this, a lecturer reminded us that there are 800 applicants for every 1 job in advertising. This left many of my class with jaws agape and optimism shredded. And so it should. This is a terrifying statistic to someone who has spent the last three years doing everything to give himself an edge and, whilst it may not be that way in 5 or 10 years, it certainly makes entering the industry right now a vertical climb. So many students I know are doing all they can to climb what is the slipperiest of advertising ladders: volunteering at events, paying expenses for unpaid work experience, spending countless Sundays in the library. Whatever it is, there’s no doubt that this generation is incredibly hungry to make something of themselves, no matter how tough it may be.

This is my experience on the hunt for internships and I hope to end it soon.

Best,

Jack


The voice of the industry: what should you do?

By Helen Brown, Global Chief HR & Talent Officer at MediaCom

Dear Jack,

First of all, having been there myself, I understand the frustration of not receiving answers to your request for an internship and I hope this is the exception not the rule. I also appreciate that you may be aware of the pressures the people you contact are under, in many cases they are working very long hours, constantly accessible via their mobile and quite often this doesn’t stop just because it’s late in the evening or the weekend. Then your email arrives out of the blue. They don’t know you, they don’t know anyone who knows you but like me, they remember how hard it was to start out, so in their heart they want to help and in their head they make a mental note to contact you. And a week later you’re still on their ‘To Do’ list. And then a month later another stack of urgent client, team, legal, financial, structural, developmental requests have hit their desk and suddenly their best intentions to reach out to you have been swallowed up because they have a full-on highly pressurised job, and I’m sorry to say; that job doesn’t always include responding to internship requests from students as yet unknown to them. And then of course you have to contend with the fact their family and friends may also be asking them to help find jobs for their kids because they are in a position to do so and whilst nepotism isn’t to be applauded, I don’t know many parents who wouldn’t help their own child to get their first job.

So how do you ‘get in’?

Let’s not forget you are entering the communications industry where building a connected and broad personal network will be invaluable to you in your career, so while time spent in the library is useful if you need to study, I suggest you start to find out who amongst your relatives and friends might just know someone, who knows someone at agency X. And if they don’t, then build your own relationships. If the account director I referred to above doesn’t know you the first time you emailed, what about the 2nd, 10th, 50th? What about sending articles to a contact in an agency that they might be interested in or tweeting congratulations on their recent pitch win – it’s easy enough to find this information in industry publications. Did you continue to contact them at all, or did you just label them as just another agency person who never responds?

Jack, thanks to your blog for Inspire! by EACA and for your shout out to the industry, you now know someone to talk to, so do some research, see if you like the idea of media (not advertising, we tend to hire more neuroscientists) and email me to arrange a conversation that might open a previously closed door.

I hope to hear from you,

Helen

The role of brands in the post-truth era

Over the last months, the seeds of a new kind of communication have spread throughout new media, especially on Facebook. So-called fake-news, „alternative facts”, or distorted realities have unraveled a unique influencing trend which can either become a problem or an opportunity for advertisers. I believe that both represent equally a challenge and a new kind of advertising paradigm, more digitally-led, and highly responsible.

Each aspect of a fabricated story that gets out there and becomes viral is deeply rooted in what specialists call implicit bias. False news stories favoring POTUS Donald Trump have been shared nearly 4 times more than those favoring Hillary Clinton during the Presidential campaign, according to Stanford University in its Social Media and Fake News in the 2016 Election study. Such statistics only strengthen this idea.

As a Romanian copywriter, over the last 2 months I have witnessed and been an active part of what others might call the awakening of a sleeping giant. Under the #resist hashtag, Romanians rose and united to protect their democracy. Bucharest has seen the largest protests since the 1989 Revolution – a strong reaction to a controversial government decree.

Against all odds, the Government’s decision to do this was the cause of something truly wonderful. For the first time in almost 30 years, people came together and joined forces, put their minds and skills together to create a resistance wave with unimaginable force. An unexpected battlefield turned out to be advertising, as tens of thousands of people joined a public appeal to companies to withdraw their advertising contracts or stop promoting themselves on politically biased televisions.

This led to a historical first in Romania: it made companies reconsider the way their values are being reflected in their media strategy. As a result, more than half of the contracted brands have withdrawn their advertising from TV stations accused of manipulating their audience with fake news and propaganda, while trying to paint a false picture about the tens of thousands of people in the streets and the real reason for them being there.

And the country listened. In fact, the whole world listened.

Now it’s our turn, the creative people.

My strong belief is that advertising not only exists for profit-making, but also for bettering the world. As an advertiser, my ultimate purpose is to create and portray ideas that resonate with people, following their rhythm, their lifestyle, their secrets, and even their fears.

Taking the European Advertising Certificate in 2016 made me dive into the fascinating land of Behaviour Economics and Consumer Choice Architecture, while beginning to mull over the power of emotions and how they relate to consumer decision making. This approach led me towards new understandings on how communities react when their status quo is threatened, and brought to light their intriguing manner on embracing new perceptions about a person, a situation or a brand, in a very short time.

Maybe I was just another scatterbrain copywriter trying to reinterpret a digital-shaped reality with the means of intuition and experiences met in the past. I enabled my own framework for compassion, trying out empathy building exercises within any creative brief or clients’ need. In the context of rapidly growing technologies, I also started to wonder how can brands truly get involved in people’s lives and still be relevant in the post-truth era. And of course, as Simon Sinek said, why should brands have a say in this new paradigm.

We are facing a new leap in advertising.

A very emotional one.

Aside from social media companies’ impressive endeavors on making a statement and adding value to their products, we must admit that the world of communications has reached a turning point, with deep implications and realities that are changing in leaps. We are witnessing a great need for pure, untangled information. A global hunger for honesty and humanity.

Studies have shown that emotions can influence whether people will believe in fake news or not, hence the contemporary times that lead us to either adhere to a filtered truth or a more nuanced reality. A Foucaultian perspective on this discussion brings out the sharing mechanism as a social exchange of information. Should we use the power of voice, ideas, ideals sharing, we ask ourselves: to whom do we address this message, this campaign? Why is this relevant? And how is this contributing to making a better world?

Some brands have already chosen their battles – in all, people have become evangelists of truth. Their voices are now heard more than ever and prove that communities have greater power. Our audiences can now shape how, what and when to receive their customized content.

In other words, communities can stand tall and on their own whenever they feel wronged at any level.

This global behavior is tightly connected to how brands should respond and build their business model. Due to these fundamental changes, brands pay more attention to how people perceive the truth and handle new or sophisticated technologies. New standards and high expectations are being set for Millennials.

In the post-truth era, brands’ positioning is no longer as important as are the values they share and forward to the world. Therefore, while living in a space with endless problems, brands have to join the game of values and ethical principles, a game called brand activism. Some players have already had their share: Nike on equality; Airbnb on diversity and belonging; and Dove on truth-larking. And these are just a few top of mind examples to be acknowledged.

Other kinds of persuasions are already facing belittlement in the minds and hearts of people. A more narrow approach could split sales efforts in half: creativity against efficiency; yet I think there are ways to reach in-between business goals, while surviving the trials of the new world.

In this respect, I truly believe that we, as advertisers, need to turn back to the lobster metaphor when dealing with stress. To look within and tackle around innovation and technology, while always aiming for a higher purpose: the greater good of the people. To wrap our minds around how to make our content, our messages, our brands’ values more visible, more relevant, useful and community-driven.

An open attitude towards values and purpose is now the norm. We have the moral responsibility to ask ourselves how to reach the next level, what our purpose is and how to make the best of it. Curiosity, mindfulness and technology can and will lead us to unite nations and build bridges over walls dividing cultures.

3 reasons why you (yes, you) should attend a summer school in 2017

It’s February: it’s cold, it’s grey and it’s exam season – three reasons why you are probably already looking ahead to that wonderful long summer break. So why not put some of that wishful thinking to good use and start thinking about your options for 2017 summer schools?

Not yet convinced a summer school is right for you?

Well, don’t close this browser just yet. Sit back, get a cup of tea, and take a read of our top 3 reasons for why you should hit that “enrol” button.

1. Give a boost to your CV

Let’s start with the boring bit.

As any HR recruiter will tell you,  attending a summer school can be seen by employers as a big gold star on your resumé.

This is because participating in a school shows employers that you are a proactive individual – someone who is not afraid to go the extra mile to learn more about a subject they are passionate about. Whatsmore, summer schools also provide the perfect opportunity to spend a few intensive days or weeks building key skills that are valued by employers.

As a summer school participant, you will find yourself in a completely new environment, grouped together with people you have probably never met before and asked to complete a series of group challenges. This experience is a sure-fire way to put your skills in communication, teamwork, and problem–solving to the test.

According to Forbes, these represent some of the top skills that employers value in their staff, so definitely worth investing in!

2. Gain valuable and practical insight into the subject

Summer schools gain their credibility by being hosted by people who have expert knowledge about a particular subject.

If it is an academic summer camp that you are after, this usually includes renowned professors from prestigious institutions, many of whom have written books on the subject. If you are more tempted by a professional summer camp, there are sure to be some of the best and brightest who have already worked in the industry you are interested in.

The opportunity to be taught by such experts thereby provides you with the unique opportunity to ask specific questions and receive personalised advice. This could be related to a specific aspect of the subject that interests you, about the path those professionals took to make it to the top, or for tips on how you can make the right first steps on your own career ladder. By attending a summer school, you will therefore often gain more valuable and practical knowledge about your interests during one week than you would from a year of your heads stuck in the books.

3. Grow your international network

After all, summer schools are most definitely not all work and no play! Spending a week (or longer) working and socialising with like-minded people is a sure way to spark some meaningful connections and friendships.

Whatsmore, summer schools are international by their very nature. Taking place in major cities, attracting young people from all over the world, you are sure to be surrounded by interesting people from a whole specturm of backgrounds and cultures.

This experience will not only help you learn a lot and broaden your horizons, but such connections are also bound to come in handy in the future. Whether this be professionally (you never know who may have a contact at that international company that has always interested you…) Or socially – who doesn’t want the excuse to visit that friend you made from the South of France?

Moreover, if English is not your first language, mixing with an international crowd is also a great and fun way of developing your competency in the language– something that will always come in useful to you in the future!

So now we have you all fired up and motivated, why not check out the details of our very own 2017 EACA International Advertising Summer School?

Pride aside, the EACA International Advertising Summer School is definitely the perfect fit for any student with an interest in commercial communications – regardless of whether this is directly linked to your studies. With a full programme of lectures and workshops delivered by leading industry professionals such as Steve Henry (the youngest person to be included in Campaign magazine’s Hall of Fame), and Siobhan Stanley (who has extensive experience at Saatchi & Saatchi).

In 2017, students will spend a week in Prague, between the 3-7 July, working in international teams to develop a campaign based on a real brief from the client, McDonalds.

The cost for students from edcom member schools is 325EUR, and from non-member schools, 450EUR. You can find information about the full programme of activities here. To apply, please send us your CV and a short motivation letter to inspire@eaca.eu.