Case studies: Advertising account planner: Stuart

Stuart graduated from Oxford University in 2009 with a degree in English language and literature. He now works for M&C Saatchi as a junior account planner.

I first became interested in pursuing a career in advertising during my second year at university, after attending a careers presentation at my university by DDB. I was impressed by the variety of the work on offer and excited at the opportunity to work in a creative environment. My initial interest was in account management, which is where most of the graduate training schemes are available. There are few entry roles available straight into account planning. However, I was lucky as after my assessment centre day at M&C Saatchi they offered me the opportunity to become a junior account planner. I’m glad that they did as the role is fantastic, offering me the chance to use my strategic, research and creative skills.

The skills I gained during my degree are directly applicable in the advertising industry. For example, my ability to plough through a lot of information and render it into a usable format, be it for a strategy presentation or a creative brief, was developed at university when structuring my essays and working under pressure in exams. I also developed the ability to think and argue creatively, a skill that I use on a daily basis in my current role.

Although I did not have any prior advertising experience, I had gained other experience which helped my application. I’d done work experience at a law firm and with a painting and decorating contractor - two very different jobs and quite distinct from advertising! However, a lot of advertising is based on an understanding of how people live, work and behave, so experiencing different jobs can be very beneficial. I’d also studied advertising at university as part of my English language paper, which was helpful.

I love the fact that my job changes from day-to-day: at any one time you can work on multiple accounts, marketing very different things, which certainly keeps you on your toes. In the morning you could be evaluating responses from research groups in order to find insights for a new business pitch, whereas in the afternoon you could be discussing long-term campaign development with one of your clients at their offices. It’s great to get stuck into a client’s business and think creatively about how to achieve their business objectives.

I enjoy my role and value the opportunity to learn from the people I work with, as well as attending courses directly relevant to the job. I have taken the Institute of Practitioners in Advertising (IPA) professional development foundation course and attended the Account Planning Group training network. I feel that the sector is truly meritocratic and there is the opportunity to rapidly progress in your career to senior roles, not only in advertising but also in other areas of marketing.

My advice to those wanting to get into advertising is to gain experience, which provides an insight into the sector and an understanding of the different roles that exist. This can be difficult as competition is strong so you need to be persistent. Also, make sure that you have an opinion on whether or not different adverts work and why. But, most importantly, be yourself. It can be a demanding job so you need to be genuinely enthusiastic about working in a creative industry. If you are, then it’s incredibly rewarding work.