Been There

Title-less

Q: I get a lot of respect as a creative within my agency, but when it comes to meeting with the client team, they treat me like I'm at the bottom of the barrel. For example, I can say the exact same thing word-for-word as my creative directors, but if it's coming out of my mouth instead of theirs the client pays no attention. How long will this go on? Is there any way I can get them to respect my opinions and abilities without some fancy title in front of my name?

Good question. BTW: this situation (real or imagined) reoccurs, no matter the length of either your title or resume. With each new experience, or new client, you have to earn their respect. It’s not a given.
 
So, here are four simple questions to ask yourself. Answer truthfully.
 
1) Are you genuinely interested in your clients business and business goals? Because if you are, you have to communicate this ways other than talking about the latest photographer, typeface or voiceover talent you can’t wait to try on their account. Getting to know their business IS your business.

2) Is the only time you spend with your client in formal presentations with one-way lectures on how great the work is you’re trying to sell them? Make an effort to get to know both the person as well as their business. Clients don’t like to be “sold,” especially if they don’t know you.
 
3) Have you brought them something they’ve not asked for that could be of special interest? Bringing information genuinely related to their business or personal interests such as an article from the industry or information about an experience they might enjoy will go far. Take the time. It’s worth it. And, you’ll learn something new, yourself.
 
4) Do you give your client credit for what he/she brings to the table? Clients know their business. Clients have great ideas. Make certain you give them credit for their contribution to the work you bring them. They do a lot of the tough stuff, let them know you appreciate their insights, ideas and hard work. They’ll go to bat for you.
 
Your client needs to genuinely believe your interaction with them isn’t all about You. Your CD and other senior management spend more time both with the individual clients themselves and with others that work on their business (both internally at your agency, on the supplier-side and on the client-side). Your CD knows stuff that’s not just on the latest assignment brief. Sounds like you’re already in meetings to help sell your work. Great. If you’re not present in other input/information-gathering sessions, or other non-meeting opportunities, those times with the client are valuable to help build both your relationship and your credibility. Those times don’t just happen at lunch. Let your CD know you’re interested in spending more time with your client in order to better serve that client. Your CD will know the best opportunities and if it’s right. They’ll also know if your request is genuine and in the best interest of the agency’s relationship with that client.
 
Clients who respect you and your genuine interest in their success will reoccur in both your personal and professional life. Eventually, if you last in this business, you’ll be asked to give ideas for new client prospects in new business sessions. And, who knows, you may even have your own agency some day. Good clients from the past will help you, whether or not they’re still your client or even with the same company. Trust me on this.

- Nancy Rice

On the Side

Q: The accounts I'm working on just don't seem to be getting the job done in terms of getting great work for my book. What's the best way to go about doing side assignments? In particular, should I talk to my creative director about it or try and do some things with my partner under the radar?

Talking to your CD about side assignments depends on how comfortable you are with having an open dialogue with him or her. Some CDs won’t mind as long as it doesn’t interfere with the work you’re doing for your agency. It’s a good idea to work on these extra projects off hours, even if you’re keeping it on the down low.

Remember to be respectful of the clients your agency has. For example, if your agency has a pickle account, it’s not cool to write ads for another pickle brand and sell that company your idea. I’ve seen it happen. It’s unprofessional and embarrassing for everyone involved and your reputation can be a huge factor with potential employers.

In some cases, a receptive CD may give you some feedback on how to make your side ads better. Who knows, maybe your CD will love the ideas so much he’ll help you produce it through your agency.

You also should ask yourself  if you’ve explored all avenues to do great work where you are. Have you asked your CD if you can work on accounts with more of a creative canvas? Are there any accounts on your agency’s client list where you can carve out an opportunity? If you’ve tried all of this and you still need to do side assignments, you may want to think about moving on. I’ve been in a similar boat, trying to push great creative on my accounts, only to realize it’s been a few years and my book is mediocre. I felt so bummed out I thought I needed a different career. It turns out I just wasn’t at the right place.

If you’re ambitious, and it sounds like you are, I suggest you set goals for yourself and have a five year plan. It sounds cliché, and to be honest, I never did it but kinda wish I did. The industry is so competitive it’s important to do great work within the first 3 years in the business. So if need be, do your side assignments to improve your book, but be careful not to make a career out of it!
 
- Rose Sauquillo
 

Choreographing a Career

Q: While I was in ad school, I was repeatedly assured that I would not spend more than 2 years in my first job. However, I am now in that first job and I love it. I can actually see myself staying here for quite a while. Will spending several years with the same office be dangerous to my career?

There’s a wonderful book I’m sure you’ll want to read. It’s called Choreographing a Career in Advertising.  I have to say, though, that you might have some difficulty in finding it, because nobody’s actually written it.  That’s because no two paths are the same.
 
It’s true you’ll enjoy more success more quickly if you know when to jump agencies and when to stay put.  But that “knowing” changes from person to person, and depends on all kinds of factors, including your level of ambition and your tolerance for pain.
 
It sounds as if you’re having fun. This is great, because fun is absolutely a precondition for making great ads on a regular basis.
 
But different people love their jobs for different reasons.  Do you love your job because you get to work on great briefs?  Is it because your creative director makes you want to dig deeper and do better?  Is it because your book gets a little better every month you’re there?  Is it because you’re hungry to achieve, and this shop makes it possible? If so, you will do very well there, even if you never leave.
 
Sometimes, though, people love their jobs for reasons that are less noble and less compatible with success.  At some agencies, the bar for creative is set pretty low.  Work that is merely solid gets generous praise.  They don’t pressure you to win awards. Nobody has to pull all-nighters.  In fact, nobody ever has to work much later than 5:30 or 6.  And on top of all that, the pay is great!
 
People who stay at such agencies are trading long-term success for short-term pleasure.  In these surroundings, even prodigiously talented people will eventually be seduced into the ways of mediocrity.  A lazy agency is like a crack house, and it is every bit as deadly to an advertising career.
 
The day a creative person gets fired from the Comfort Inn (and, believe me, she will), her book will be so lame and her work ethic so badly corrupted that no decent agency will have her.
 
So, if your reasons for staying are good ones, don’t worry.  Staying at one agency won’t harm your career.  Not unless a sense of well-fed complacency starts showing up in your work.
 
- Suzanne Pope
 

Cry Baby

Q: I'm young and new to the business and have found the creative department to be full of pressure, and passion. When these come to a head, I've seen men react in ridiculous ways. A grown man once wiped everything off his desk with one swoop of his forearm - PowerBook, One Show pencils, pictures of the family, all ended up in a tragic pile against the baseboard. I've seen younger hotheads put their fists through drywall.

My body, however, has a very different reaction to stress, anger, frustration, and passion. When I get angry, I can't stop the hot tears from rolling down my cheeks. Always silently (these aren't uncontrollable, sniffling sobs), but none-the-less tears that are looked upon by my coworkers as weak. I know this is most likely an immature problem, but have you ever faced it? Do you have any tricks for getting over it? Should I just start learning to put my fists through drywall?

Fret not. Having a strong reaction to what’s going on around you is not immature at all (and certainly not more immature than destroying a perfectly good Powerbook). It shows that you care passionately about what you do. If you never got upset, chances are you’re either a robot or someone who doesn’t give a crap about your job -- and it doesn’t sound like you’re either.

Your tears are your body’s physical response to stress. And, as you said yourself, you can’t control them. So we need to look at the things you can control – what made you stressed in the first place, and how you will deal with the tears when they well up again.

Once those hot tears start a-rollin’ (or your voice starts a-crackin’, or your hands start a-shakin’ – we all have our own unique stressin’ style) you need to address them. Pretending that those tears are not there, or trying to hold them in will make it worse. Instead, state the obvious to whoever you are talking to – that yes, you are upset, but it’s because it’s because you care about the work, and you’ll be fine in a minute. Just saying it out loud can actually help release the stress – and make it much easier to compose yourself. Plus, as a bonus, it will stop your co-workers from wondering what the heck is wrong with you (because what their fertile minds imagine is always far more dramatic than the truth).

All that being said, if this is happening to you frequently, you may want to cast a (non teary) eye at your present agency. What is fostering such a tense work environment? Can it be reduced, or is stress part of the furniture where you work? I know a guy who used to go and cry in the toilet just about every day due to an incredibly arrogant, soul-crushing boss -- but he put up with it because he thought that’s the way ALL creative directors were. Is this the case with you? If so, perhaps there’s a new shop in you future, where you can channel all that passion into a more positive place.

- Jane Murray

When to Hold Out

Q: I’ve been interviewing for a junior art director position for a month or two, and recently met with a CD and Global CD at a less creative shop, who I think are very interested in hiring me.  I hesitate to take it.  It would be on a major cosmetics account – and I know it isn’t the most exciting thing in the world, but it seems like it would be a great opportunity for a person at my level to learn the necessities (photo shoots, shooting commercials, etc.). I would be doing a lot of comping and executing for the more senior art directors, so there wouldn’t be much concepting. Is it safe to assume that at any agency I’ll be doing the same thing?  Is passing up this opportunity foolish, or should I hold out for something to pop up after the New Year?

There are a few considerations.
 
Usually, if someone has a very good book I tell them to hold out as long as they can for the good job because it really does matter. However, I understand (and have faced the reality myself) that financially, at some point, you simply need to take a job – any job. You will have to answer for yourself:  1.  Do you have a REALLY good book?  2.  Can you hold out financially for a while until you have exhausted the good places?  And, once you have exhausted them, then yes, perhaps it's time to take a job.
 
I also feel, from reading your question, that you are actually pretty excited and kind of intrigued by this opportunity.  You seem quite optimistic about it - that would also be a reason to take it.  Maybe your gut is telling you what you want.
 
Word of warning:  Just because you are a woman - don't make the mistake of getting pigeonholed on 'female' accounts.  Unless you want to get stuck working on 'girl accounts' for the rest of your career.  The client probably is demanding a woman - we can't help client creative sexism, but don't let your agency foster that.  Demand other genderless or more 'male' accounts as well so you can exercise your creative range.
 
Words of Advice:  David Lubars once told me when I was very new in the business to reassess my career in six month increments.  If you take a job and you are not getting book-worthy work, (work that really can replace your spec) in six months (preferably less) then it is time to look for another job. That remains true for your entire career!  Don't waste time!  Don't let money justify lack of work!  And don't mistake produced work for good work!
 
If you’re producing, but it's crap, then it is not helping your career.
 
Good luck with your decision.
 
- Kara Goodrich

Girlie Ghetto

Q:  How do I avoid being "ghettoized"---so far (in my first job) I work on all products for women. It's not that I mind that but I'm starting to think my CD would never think of me for our beer account or our car account. I asked once and got blown off.

I love that question.  What you're referring to is a sort of "girlie ghetto," and it's a dirty little secret in many agencies.

Odds are, your creative director's reaction isn't in your imagination.  But if it's any consolation, that bias probably isn't anything personal.  It's probably more a function of the agency's needs than your abilities as a creative.

Below you'll find a few thoughts based on my experience as a copywriter and creative director, and conversations with women in creative departments around the country.

PERFUNCTORY CAVEAT: Advertising agencies differ wildly, and there are many exceptions.  The important thing is to find what's right for you.

- Sally Hogshead

Focus

Dear Women of Been There:

I thought I did everything right.  I've worked smart and hard, and proved I have something innovative to give. Now I'm 28 years old, been graduated for a year and half, and my husband / business partner has decided to return to an in-house job, despite our notable success.

I'm not so young and inexperienced in the industry to be "fresh", but I'm not creative director level, either. My portfolio doesn't conform to any one specific area, and it shows concepts and design in various consumer touchpoints. I've worked on brand strategy, which I've recently come to understand creatives don't normally do.

I think I fit somewhere between brand planning and creative, but have been continually told by head hunters that I'm "very talented, but don't fit the mold."  I thought the idea was to be innovative, and to be 'out of the box.'  The conformism is killing me.

Are ad agencies really branching out beyond the typical ad? Do I have need to make more ads (just for ad's sake) to be recognized by the industry?  Which portfolio would an agency be more interested in and why: one for an account planner position or junior art director position?

Sincerely,
An intelligent, creative woman simply lost.

Ad agencies are indeed branching out beyond the typical ad form, as seen in any award show. However, agencies still tend to use traditional staffing structures to deliver the varied product. A solid base of ads in your portfolio is still a key underpinning if you wish to be an art director in an agency.  As far as planning portfolios go, the best account planners are creative. And it's a great attribute to underscore. Just don't muddy the waters by implying that you want to be an art director at the same time.

What may be preventing you from finding a position is the need to brand yourself more clearly. I think you need to apply the same strategic discipline that you would to solving a client's issue to your own issue. It seems that interviewers aren't sure what role you are seeking. You seem to be searching for a hybrid role that doesn't exist, therefore you need to clearly stake your ground. Decide whether you want to be a planner or a designer or an art director and focus your efforts (resumé and/or portfolio) to that end. You need to painfully honest with yourself, in deciding which role is best suited to your talents. If you are unsure and think it would be helpful, have someone who's opinion you deeply respect, offer a candid and objective opinion to help guide your way.

Having said all the above, if you still long to wear many hats, maybe doing your own thing is the most attractive answer for you career-wise.

Best of luck,
Karen Howe

A Brand Called You

Dear Mentors:

I'm a recent graduate and am currently job hunting for a junior art director position at agencies that do work that inspires me.  I was having a job hunting discussion with an employed friend, and he made a remark about how I would probably get hired 'because' I'm a woman and that it's more interesting for the men upstairs to have some females around the male dominated agency.  I thought he was joking at first but he looked so serious and explained that it's just how it works. I guess I'm just hoping to confirm that my role as a female will empower me, but that my ideas, enthusiasm and drive are what will get me the job. Is the industry that shallow and chauvinistic, or can I remain hopeful that there is still integrity and a strong desire to do amazing creative work without allowing gender to interfere with that?

Am I just being naive?

Hoo boy, ye who writes, you open a large, creepy can of worms.

The idea that your presence might be more "interesting" to the gents upstairs is surprising to me, cause that's what traffic and media young-slender-things are for. Generally, what I've heard in my career is--disappointingly--that there is a quota of sorts to fill in the creative department. Creative departments lack women, therefore they want women. It's just the way things are. I have often, in fact, asked myself if my success in this business is based on my brain or, in part, my vagina.

This is not the conversation I hoped to have in public, fyi.

Listen, your role as a woman WILL empower you. You have something the men don't. And quite honestly, what the women don't, either. You have you. You are unique and your own brand, and in your brand lies your ideas, your enthusiasm, your drive and, guess what else: your female instinct. Which, combined, will allow you to interview THEM as much as they're interviewing YOU. All these qualities can be your friend, can help you sniff out the shallow, chauvinistic ones (yes, they do exist) and say "sorry, not interested" and let you pursue the ones that recognize you for the right reasons. Your brains. Your talent. Your capabilities. Your possibilities.

One day you will find an agency who appreciates you for all these things and exploits you just like they do to every man in the house. Amen for that. I think.

- Ellen Steinberg

Offensive Behavior

Q: My creative department is a major boys' club, and always has been. I'm a female junior creative. How do I balance sticking up for what I believe in by calling someone out on public behavior that offends me (and the other handful of women in the department), with the knowledge that doing so will get me labeled as a humorless bitch and may hurt my career?

If you’re cringing at something someone says chances are the other guys in the department are too. I think you need to say something if it’s really bad. People will be relieved that you did. Usually it’s a one bad apple kind of thing. I’ve worked in departments where I was the only female and I always found common ground with my male colleagues. Things like passion for doing great work and the bitterness that comes from not being able to sell it can bond a group beyond gender, age or sexual bias. And besides most assholes are hacks so who cares what they say.

- Lara Palmer

Market Value

Q: How do you broach the topic of finances with a potential employer when you feel you are worth more than their initial offer?

Speak to the person who offered you the job and explain (unemotionally) why you feel that the salary is not appropriate for the skills you bring to the job. If you have any facts gathered from friends or headhunters about salaries for similar positions, use them in the conversation. If your potential employer won't budge, you have two choices.

1.  Decide that what you'll get out of this job is beyond money and take the job. But, keep interviewing.
2.  Go see if you can get another offer.  Then use that as leverage.  For better or worse, in my years in the business I've never asked for a raise without having another job offer on the table. You'd be amazed at how your value goes up overnight. Even when you have a job, you should book several interviews a year. Isn't there a place you'd love to work? Call them and try to get someone there to look at your book. Call again in six months. Interviewing helps you stay on top of your strengths and weaknesses, as well as your market value.

Managing your career money-wise is not easy.  Never move for money alone. You have to love the work you're doing and the people you work with. On the other hand, this is your career. Eventually you'll need to be making enough money to live and save. So, don't be afraid to push. Companies pay as little as they can get away with. My second job was at a small boutique agency in the southwest. I loved the job and the people, but could barely get by on the salary. I found another job for more money and demanded that my current agency match it. My agency agreed to match it, but warned me that it would mean no one else in the company would get a raise that year. I took the raise at my current agency. But, the attempt at manipulating me left a bad taste in my mouth. I found a better job within six months. Don't let companies manipulate you. Manage your own career.

- Joyce King Thomas