Is advertising is a good career?

Is a career in advertising/marketing good pay?

• I'm still in my teens, but obviously considering my future. I really like the sound of advertising-its sounds great! What kind of skills are required and what is the pay like? You ...show more

• Answer:

  Like nearly ANY career path, your success and earning potential in advertising or marketing will be predicated on A) The depth of your investment (hard work), B) How well you work with people and are able to motivate them, and C) Your success at dealing with management (office politics!). Both positions require at least enough CREATIVITY to recognize a good product or concept. The marketing or advertising account executive (and these are the positions with good earning potential) will nearly always have support groups (copywriters, designers, etc.) that provide creative output based on POSITIONING INPUT provided by the exec. The primary responsibility of both jobs (like any other business) is to generate $$$. If you enjoy wearing many hats, working with diverse groups of people (eg, creative, finance, legal, production, etc.), can handle details well in addition to being a good strategist (overall directional thinker), and like to multi-task, then these are definitely options to be considered. Note: If you like to be "in charge", go for marketing. After all, the advertising exec gets direction and approval (ceative, budget, etc.) from the marketing one. As to training and prep, you'll have two options: A) An MBA from a business school. This requires investment of time (2 years as a full time student), and can cost a pretty penny. However, it does provide a leg up. B) On the job training fresh out of college. This can take a little longer, but positions for fresh MBAs at TOP firms are still very competitive and require a degree from a good B-school. While an MBA will place you a little higher on the career ladder at time of employment, its greatest asset is in the strategic and business training - as well as self confidence - it provides. Either route is a valid option and can lead to success. Most of your training and value to any firm will come from on the job performance. You'll make your decision based on your own personality, abilities and talents. Whichever path you take, prepare yourself in college (and you WILL need a bachelor's degree) by taking some finance, marketing, etc. courses. Be warned that at entry level (like many other career paths with the exception of doctors, lawyers, etc.), the earnings might not meet expectations. However, the potential is there to go on to truly great things. Although not as glamorous as they are perceived, advertising and marketing executive jobs are usually challenging and hardly ever boring. I would strongly recommend that while an undergraduate, you apply for some summer internship positions with the marketing departments of local firms, and/or with advertising agencies. You'll be able to evaluate which direction best suits you and what skills you need to strengthen. Most important, you'll have solid experience on your resume, decent recommendations (assuming you performed well), and possible job offers upon graduation (assuming you performed very well!) This might seem a lot to digest in one sitting, and is only provided as food for thought based on my own professional experience. The most important thing is to enjoy the rest of your high school years, and your upcoming college experiences. Good luck.