The advertising industry mainly earns its bread and butter from client-generated business. Therefore, advertising agencies aim for a number of key accounts to keep going. In an environment where there is strong competition for projects, prestigious client lists are usually a passport to survival and sustenance. Furthermore, clients usually rate the performance of advertising agencies on the successes of their campaigns.
Many advertising agencies have seen their fortunes rise or dwindle because of the outcome of crucial advertising campaigns. Therefore, there is constant need to meet and deliver in accordance with clients' expectations.
Any busy advertising agency is a creative meeting ground for a variety of advertising professionals. The typical advertising agency consists of ingenious individuals with sharp business acumen, a flair for out-of-the-box thinking, and a creative bent of mind. There is always constant demand for fresh and inventive new ideas within a high-pressure environment. Unconventional working hours are commonplace at most advertising agencies. If you love deadlines, overtime, and creative, out-of-the-ordinary work, then the advertising industry is the right place for you.
Any advertising agency is a flurry of activity right from the start of the business day. One set of professionals brings in the business while another set of professionals use their creative skills to convert clients' requirements into tangible output. Creativity goes hand-in-hand with business in the advertising world. Neither can really function without the other.
Client-servicing forms the bulk of activity on the business side of the advertising agency. Extensive market research is also required for a variety of advertising projects. Further, broad research is also required to determine the appropriate media mix required for each project. Options range from print to radio, television, video, and Internet advertising.
Once the business team fetches a project, the creative team gets to work on it. While the visualisers picture the outline and structure of the advertisement, copy and scriptwriters give form to the advertisement copy. Photographers then give the pictorial touch to the project, and the entire team assembles the various inputs into the final advertising copy. Once the teams finalize the copy, the advertising agency hands it over to the client or the appropriate channel for release.