Account executive
AEs, as they are referred to in the trade, are the agency's sales team. It is their first responsibility to bring new business into the agency. They do this in a number of ways: networking in business and professional organizations; reviewing trade publications in various industries to determine which companies have been sold or merged, which ones are experiencing growth, or which ones are unhappy with their present agencies. Quite often, however, an AE's social contacts can be the most valuable source for new business prospecting.
Once a solid lead for a possible new account has been established, the account executives must find a way to present the agency's capabilities to the prospective company. This can be accomplished with a phone call, an unannounced drop in visit, or through a letter of introduction requesting a meeting with the company's owners or officers to discuss what the agency has to offer. This is referred to as "pitching" an account. If a favorable impression is made, the AE may be asked to come back and make a formal presentation that will explain how the agency would position that company in the marketplace and the strategy they would use to attract business for that company.
When an account executive has succeeded in landing a new account, their second job responsibility is to service that account. An AE is the liaison between the client and the agency people who will work on the account. The AE will meet with the client to determine the needs of the company and then bring that information back to the agency account team. When the second team develops the market strategy and the creative concepts to enact that strategy, the account executive then presents the agency's plans and ideas to the client for approval.
AEs are always in a delicate position trying to maintain an amicable relationship between their clients and the agency's creative team. In spite of the fact that clients are the ones who hire the agency in the first place, clients often fight against what agencies propose to do in an advertising campaign. Unfortunately most clients think they know more about advertising their company than the professionals do. Some do, but most do not. As a result, an account executive must exercise extreme tact in explaining why the client's ideas for an ad campaign may not achieve the company's desired final results which usually are increased sales or profits. When an AE can demonstrate to the client how the agency's concept will favorably effect sales and profits, the client usually gives in. But there are times when clients do not give in. When this happens, AEs must attempt to educate their clients without offending them. This involves a process of gently guiding clients along with the agency's creative concepts and the campaign strategy that will work best for their company's product, service, or image. But if a client ultimately refuses to accept the agency's proposal and instead insists that the agency use the client's ideas, every AE knows that keeping clients happy even at the expense of producing work that is either of lesser quality or off target is the bottom line.
Going along with a difficult client, however, is a double edged sword for the agency. While it may save the agency's relationship with that client, its reputation may suffer when a poorly developed or ill targeted campaign is released. Advertising and business communities are very closely tied, and it does not take long before word gets around about which agencies are producing which campaigns. Being associated with a bad campaign can drive potential clients away.
In spite of the difficult dilemmas an account executive must sometimes face, if you like selling ideas, if you thrive on constant challenges, if you love people even those who do not agree with your point of view you may love being an account executive.
With rare exception, account executives are relationship oriented. Their success as well as the agency's success depends entirely on their ability to pay close attention to their client's needs. They must be able to intuitively sense when a client is unhappy with the agency's work. An AE is, above all, a skilled diplomat who knows how to intervene in a brewing situation before it has a chance to become explosive.
Aside from a natural inclination to enjoy selling just about anything to anybody, account executives can come from a variety of educational backgrounds, talents, and skills. Some are visuals who have worked as graphic designers or art directors. Others are verbals who once worked as copywriters or research specialists. But regardless of an individual's background, the preference for client contact and a knack for relationship building is often the prime motivating force that leads them into the account executive niche.
Account coordinator
Account coordinators are an account executive's right and left hands. Depending on the agency's size, they may work with one or several AEs. They keep files on each of their assigned accounts. These files contain information about the client company and may consist of research and marketing information, clippings of past ads, press releases, extra logo sheets, or just about anything that is relevant to the account.
Maintaining files are only a small part of this job. The creative and production staff lean heavily on the account coordinator for client information when the account executive is unavailable. The account coordinator works with both the production and traffic coordinators to oversee the flow of projects through the agency and to keep them informed when a particular account is about to get active. Account executives depend heavily on an account coordinator to keep track of some of the nagging details in account maintenance that frequently slip by them. For example, they remind AEs when a client is due for a call to discuss an upcoming advertising season, or they keep track of articles about their client's competitor. They may even jog the memory of an absentminded AE when a client's birthday draws near.
If an account coordinator's job sounds interesting to you, you will need good organizational skills for filing and record keeping, along with a pack rat mentality that will impel you to keep files on anything that could someday be important. A nurturing personality is a real plus when it comes to soothing a frazzled account executive who has been worn down by client demands. As with the other coordinator positions, teaching, secretarial, executive assistant, or office management positions are ideal training grounds for an account coordinator.
Account supervisor
If you are interested in account supervision, you will need to put in at least three or four years as an AE. Beyond that, advanced study in management and team building would serve as a good basis for preparation.
Account supervisors must be good at people management skills. They must also have the ability to retain an incredible amount of information about all the accounts their AEs are handling. They must supervise all the ongoing projects, as they are ultimately accountable for the work produced by their account executives. In most agencies, account supervisors give their AEs final approval on each stage of a project before it goes to the client for review. If the AE and the production people miss something important that was to be included in a project, it is the account supervisor's job to spot it before the client does.
