Considering a career in account service? Wonder how an Ad Agency works? A brief overview˳
01˳ TYPICAL AGENCY STRUCTURE
02˳ ACCOUNT SERVICE DEPARTMENT
03˳ THE BRIEF
04˳ CONTACT NOTES
05˳ WHAT MAKES A GOOD ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE?
06˳ CAREER PATH
07˳ BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT
01˳ AGENCY STRUCTURE
Typically there are four departments to any ad agency:
1- The Account Service Department
2- The Creative Department
3- The Production Department
4- Administration
02˳ ACCOUNT SERVICE DEPARTMENT
Career path:
Junior Account Executive – Account Executive – Account Manager – Account Director – Group Account Director˳
ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE PRIMARY RESPONSIBILITIES
o Discussing with clients their products, services and advertising requirements;
o Setting up meetings with clients and other agency staff;
o Briefing media, creative and research staff and formulating strategies;
o Acting as liaison between client and studio by maintaining regular contact with both and ensuring that communication flows effectively
o Overseeing the status of the campaign;
o Negotiating with clients and agency staff concerning campaign details;
o Presenting campaign plans to clients for approval or modification
o Meeting deadlines and prioritising tasks;
o Handling budgets and managing campaign costs;
o Writing reports, keeping records and financial details
o Helping to secure new business;
o Providing any administrative support and handling profitability of accounts;
o In some cases managing administration staff;
o Being familiar with the client’s product, business culture andcompetition;
o Co-ordinating the presentation of the agreed final proposal;
o Arranging and chairing meetings and report writing
ACCOUNT DIRECTOR PRIMARY RESPONSIBILITIES
o To manage key client relationships and strategic account direction˳
o Work with client and agency departments to develop effectivestrategy for ATL and BTL activities and campaigns˳
o Direct campaigns through all phases of the creative and proposal process˳
o Maintain productive communication with the client, building strong relationships and partnerships˳
o Able to manage client relationships at a senior level˳
o Able to workwell with creatives to foster and support unique creative concepts˳
o Manage agency account portfolio and account managers˳
o Manage the day-to-day workflow on client projects in conjunctionwith agency teams to ensure consistent adherence to time-lines andproject budgets˳
o Prepare strategic reports and presentations for both agency teamsand clients˳
o Explore and assist in new business opportunities whenever possible˳
03˳ THE BRIEF
BRIEF DEVELOPMENT
1˳ OBJECTIVE* Purpose for producing this piece of communication˳
* What do you realistically want to achieve? (eg a brochure can increase awareness or understanding of a product, but unlikely to increase sales by 200%)
2˳ CAMPAIGN REQUIREMENT* What sort of communication is required, eg press ad, mailer, radio, TV, brochure˳* Where it be seen/sent/shown/heard˳* Timing˳* Approximate budget and specifications eg black & white vs 4 colour, size, length etc˳
3˳ THE PRODUCT/SERVICE* A short description of the product assuming no prior knowledge, and any key marketing issues eg place in the market and competitors, problems, etc˳* Attach all information required for the communication, eg technical information if a technical brochure is required˳ NB If any claims are made, these should be supported by facts˳* If key areas or points are desired to be described/made, these should be clearly stated˳
4˳ TARGET AUDIENCE* Describe who they are: gender, age, education, socio-economic demographics, location˳* Describe their attitudes to and understanding of the product, and any other issues if relevant˳
5˳ SINGLE MINDED MESSAGE* Most important with ads and direct mail, where only a single message is possible˳ Note that it is hard enough to successfully communicate one message through the clutter of messages we live in, more than one usually means that nothing is communicated at all˳* With other communications eg brochures, what single impression do you want the communication to make?* A message like “Our fast service across Australia will cut your costs” is 3 messages: fast, widely available, and reduces costs˳
6˳ SUBSTANTIATION* Facts to support any claims made NB single minded message for ads, or desired key points/areas for brochures etc˳
7˳ MANDATORIES* Include all mandatories eg use of logos, phone numbers, address etc, ACN or ABN numbers, registered office, straplines etc˳* Critical for writers and designers˳* Excellent checklist to avoid later problems with clients if mandatory information is not included˳
8˳ TONE* Should fit in with brand values, and taking account of target audience˳
04˳ CONTACT NOTES
Example:
Subject: Lovo Launch
Meeting at Agency Office 22˳7˳09
For Client: Eric Lovdale
For Agency: Mel Dickinson, Nicole Vlahos, Tony Howe
Agency presented 3 concepts of corporate identity˳ Agency promoted a tagline of ‘Lovo – Take Me There’ to be used across all Lovo brand imagery˳ Agency then presented an outline of a PR campaign to assist the launch˳ Client requested firm costs for the campaign roll out˳ Agency to follow up with quotation along with time lines˳
Lovo – CATALOGUE , Agency then presented three mocked up 8 page concepts for the catalogue˳
1- Sexy, Active Concept
2- Energy Concept
3- Shock Factor Concept
Client received all 3 concepts well, and listed his preference as above˳ Agency outlined that a budget of 60k was required to undertake a photo shoot with models, make up artist, stylist, location, extensive retouching on photography, creative and print production of 320,000 catalogues˳ Client mentioned he would present the creative to his staff next week and would action asap to assist the timeline as catalogues are needed by mid October˳
To Action:
Agency- Finalise Quotes
Client- Present to staff
05˳ What Makes A Good Account Executive?
RESPECT- By always being respectful to your colleagues you may avoid the traditional agency conflicts of ‘Suits’ Vs˳ ‘Creative’˳ A Creative Director will lose respect for account executives who cannot communicate the clients needs in a clear and cohesive manner˳ Understand your clients brands and their target audiences, volunteer to spend a day or two at their office so that you might immerse yourself into their brands and marketing methodologies and at the same time build up a good relationship˳
POLITENESS- Without it, you will not get anywhere except out of your job and back in the employment queue˳ Thank everyone sincerely who helps you˳ Sending email thank yous to clients for their time in meetings will win you brownie points˳
PROFESSIONALISM- Never, ever be late for client meetings, it is inexcusable, leave early and waste10 minutes rather than run the risk of being embarrassed by turning up late˳ Always double check everything you have written before you send it, spelling mistakes are unprofessional, we all make them but spell check will catch them, do not be lazy, use it˳
WARMTH- Greet your clients with a smile, maintain eye contact with them, show that you are interested in what they are saying, be a good listener, focus on what are their needs, never assume that you know better what they want, you may offer alternative suggestions but you always need to ensure that the clients brief is met with at least one of the creative executions your agency submits˳
GROOMING- Clean, neat and tidy, no need to overdress formally these days unless if your client is in the financial services industry, trendy clothes would be to your advantage˳
DIARY- Keep a diary, Microsoft Entourage has a great calendar function which will give you reminders as often as you like˳ Find out your clients birthdays and send them birthday cards, write yourself daily ‘to action’ notes, the bigger the client project the more difficult it is to arrange, it could be your responsibility to co-ordinate the project through all the stages of production˳ Keep on top of it before it gets out of hand˳
EDUCATION- A communications or marketing degree will assist you greatly in dealing with marketing, product and brand managers˳ Look for a course that covers Advertising, Marketing, Communication, Public Relations and Media, consider doing one at night time, it can only assist your career path˳
PROCESSES- A thorough understanding of the creative processes is essential to help you communicate the concept and design development processes to your clients ,it will also help you to appreciate your creative team and the time they need to produce good creative˳ Ask to visit a printing factory and make an effort to find out how things work, when you are asked some production questions by your client it does not sound good to be continuously saying, ” I will check with our production manager and get back to you”˳
CONTACT NOTES- Contact notes can be tedious but they are an absolute necessity, they can assist in many ways including saving your arse if your client suddenly does aback flip˳ Copy all team members directly involved in on them and email to your client giving them an invitation to reply with changes to anything that they are not in agreement with˳
BRIEFS- Be very thorough in your brief writing, sometimes you will have the luxury of professional clients who will supply a comprehensive brief but more often than not you will have to piece them together from an unorganised verbal run down ˳Get your client to sign off , that way they are responsible for any changes˳
HUMOUR- If you are blessed with a quick wit you could be at an advantage in account service as people generally like dealing with suppliers who can make them laugh, this is secondary to professionalism and efficiency however˳ It can be OK to email a joke occasionally if it is a good one but don’t do it too often as it can become annoying˳
TIMELINES- Learn how to create timelines and keep your client informed on the progression of their projects, if there are ever any problems do not wait until the last second to notify your client, your job will be so much easier if you let them know of problems as soon as they happen˳
FIRMNESS- You may at times need to be considerate to your creative colleagues by standing up to the client, try to master the art of acknowledging the clients remarks or requests with respect but letting them know as diplomatically as possible why your agency designed something specifically for a reason, and that you recommend you stick to the agencies proposal on this occasion for whatever reasons˳ You will find that the client will respect you for it not to mention the creative department who will consider you a ‘kindred spirit’ rather than a ‘suit’˳
PROACTIVE- Don’t just sit back and wait for things to happen, be proactive, ask your clients what they have coming up, ask if there is anything you can do to help them out˳ A squeaky gate gets the most oil and has the best chance of career advancement in the advertising industry˳
06˳ CAREER PATH
A career in advertising account service can be very rewarding if you are prepared to be patient , hard working and go the extra mile to improve your education˳ At today’s average industry rates a junior account executive may expect to earn anywhere between $28,000 and $35,000, an account executive around $45,000 whilst a senior account executive may earn between $50,000 to $75,000 ˳If you progress along the ranks to become an account manager you may expect to earn between $75,000 and$100,000 p˳a˳ When you obtain the position of Account Director your salary range would be between $100,000 and $150,000p˳a˳ as well as the possibility of earning OTE commissions˳
07˳ BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT
In the role of account executive or manager you may be called upon to do some business development˳ Good luck as this is one of the most difficult tasks to undertake˳ The most practical and productive direction to start with is to develop new business from within your existing clients˳ Do they have other divisions that are using another agency? Do they have contacts that they could recommend you to? A warm lead is much more productive than a cold one˳ Network wherever possible, sadly it is more and more a case of who you know rather than what you know so every opportunity you get do not be afraid to swap business cards and ask what people do˳ If you have to dedicate time to business development start by writing polite letters of introduction seeking an opportunity to present your agencies credentials˳ Then follow up with monthly calls or emails, adda touch of humour so the prospects do not become annoyed with you˳ In time you will eventually win a few over˳
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