The Best Advice You Will Ever Receive About the Ad Business

This column focuses on people amp160What follows could have been much longer and included reallife examples and will be if I ever bother to work this up into a speechamp160 Be sure to read my first post on what Iamp8217ve learned about agenciesamp160 Let39s continueInterviewingIamp8217ve never been overimpressed by academic qualifications when hiring probably because I never went to university amp160A candidateamp8217s holiday work parttime jobs and work experience and how he or she had prepared for the interview always impressed me at least as much as formal pieces of paperInterviews are stressful amp160Donamp8217t keep the candidate waiting or if you do get a message to them to explain why be courteous and let them know of your decision as quickly as you can amp160Ducking telling an unsuccessful candidate that they havenamp8217t got the job is pathetic amp160Explain why offer helpful constructive advice amp160One day you may need a job from themMy goto interview question was always amp8220Whatamp8217s your favorite ad and whyamp8221 amp160I didnamp8217t care what they chose only that they chose something and argued for it coherently amp160I cared that they cared about the industry they wanted to join amp160I have a nightmare suspicion that todayamp8217s candidates for media agency jobs are instead asked to explain Facebookamp8217s algorithm amp160And we wonder why weamp8217re in this messIn interviewing for any position I would see at least five people who were capable of doing the daytoday job amp160And if I was lucky one that we would all like to spend time with including hour after hour in stressful situations amp160Character and attitude count for a lotManaging PeopleThe best managers show empathy are interested in the work their teams are doing offer help wherever and whenever itamp8217s needed and live by the dictum amp8220Do as you would be done byamp8221The worst managers find a dozen ways a day to illustrate how important they are and live by the dictum amp8220Do as I say not as I doamp8221amp8220Thankingamp8221 people on LinkedIn or Twitter is no substitute for saying thank you to their face or on the phone amp160All youamp8217re doing by thanking someone on social media is appearing distant and impersonal amp160The message these SM notes send is that youamp8217re more interested in your own social media profile than in your staffDoing the JobWe live in a bubble of privilege amp160Few ad campaigns are aimed at us amp160Get out and about with the people your clients want to reach amp160Keep your eyes and ears open listen and watch how people behave amp160Clueamp160 Itamp8217s almost certainly not like you or if it is youamp8217ve wandered into one of your agencyamp8217s meeting rooms by mistakeYou never stop learning amp160Iamp8217ve been around this business 50 years and virtually every day I learn something new amp160Remember that next time you meet someone who claims to know it allThere is absolutely no monopoly on good ideas amp160However big and important you become go out of your way to meet as many people as you can learn to listen a skill far too many of us donamp8217t have and to paraphrase Unilever steal with prideThere are few things as dispiriting as being ignored amp160Having your efforts constructively criticized is okay but just being ignored is souldestroying not to mention just plain rude amp160If someone I mean a real person takes the trouble to write to you then reply even if only to say thanks but no thanksYou get to kiss a lot of frogs in this business amp160But sometimes one will turn into a prince amp160Donamp8217t miss out on the princeClick the social buttons above or below to share this content with your friends and colleaguesThe opinions and points of view expressed in this content are exclusively the views of the author andor subjects and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillagecomMyersBizNet Inc management or associated writers

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The Best Advice You Will Ever Receive About the Ad Business

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Brian Jacobs

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The Best Advice You Will Ever Receive About the Ad Business

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