What does an advertising account planner do?

What practical skills are important to possess a position as a strategic planner and account manager at an advertising/digital agency?

• I'm looking for relevant courses to strengthen/increase my skills. Is there any program that would be beneficial to learn... like e.g. photoshop, indesign or something else.

• Answer:

  As an account manager or strategic planner, you won't need to know how to use Photoshop, InDesign and other such programs to do your job. Instead, take courses that give you a broad base of knowledge on both the agency and client sides. Look for classes that involve marketing, communication, consumer behavior, marketing research, advertising, public relations, media buying, management, accounting and public speaking. Take courses that deal with digital marketing disciplines like Internet marketing and social media, but don't feel like you need to learn how to design websites or write code. You should understand the fundamentals and have an appreciation for the tasks involved, as specialists at your agency will do the hands-on work. Concepts such as search engine marketing, search engine optimization, content marketing and email marketing are important. But, again, it's more important for you to understand the basic concepts than the specific methods. Depending on your writing skills, you may also want to take English and business writing classes. Account managers often write marketing plans and proposals, and they communicate with clients frequently. Being able to write effectively is very important.