As a current IAPI/DIT Postgrad student in the Advertising and Digital Communications course and a new addition to the Irish advertising industry, I thought it would be an excellent opportunity to attend ‘The Big Grill’ and get the chance to ‘grill’ some of Ireland’s top advertising leaders.
The panel consisted of: Steven Anderson (Creative Director at Cawley Nea /TBWA), Michael Clancy (MD of Media Vest), Aoife Moran (Head of Interaction at MEC), Anna Ryan (Brand Planning Director with Huskies) and Eva Nash (Account Director with Boys & Girls).
Here are just some of the things that struck a chord with me on the night and I plan to put into practice at work:
1. If you’re just starting out in the advertising industry, it is important to know that you must earn your voice within the agency- you must be able to prove that their opinions and ideas carry weight.
2. It’s important to know that to get into advertising, you don’t have to come from an advertising background. Advertising agencies welcome the chance of finding people with different perspectives and are more likely to find them from someone that doesn’t have a marketing / advertising background.
3. Getting your foot in the door is the first step into the advertising industry, but most of the time that comes in the form of unpaid internships which can last from just a few weeks to up to a year.
4. In order to be a successful intern, it is crucial to be curious, take the initiative, hard-working, flexible, volunteer for projects, ask questions and be yourself!
5. The advertising industry is constantly changing and no two days are ever the same. This environment isn’t for everyone though, and key traits would be: excellent communication skills, confidence, tenacity, creativity, the ability to work in teams, being well-organised, having the ability to learn from your mistakes and to love what you do!
6. There is constant pressure in an advertising industry. It’s important to learn early on how to prioritise and if you’re stuck, don’t be afraid to ask for help. Relax, we’re not saving lives!
When I started out at my current agency, I shared everything from the event internally to hear everyone’s feedback, which was quite positive.
What I also liked about the panel’s comments is that they’re very applicable to other industries. I wish I would have had the opportunity to attend a grilling like this when I was fresh out of my undergrad! Other industries should follow suit- what a great way to collaborate and be introduced to new talent in their industries.
After the panel discussion there was an amazing opportunity to network and mingle with the top heads of advertising in Ireland. It was creatively executed by using the college traffic light system to divide us up by discipline- media, creative and digital. This was a great way of break the ice and get talking to people. It was a pleasure to hear other perspectives on the advertising industry.
To anyone who is interested in a career in advertising, I would suggest they talk to IAPI about it sooner rather than later.
The next IAPI Future Heads event is going to be epic, which happens to be a BBQ on the 15th of August. Included in this event will be the first ever inter-agency Ping Pong Tournament and on behalf of the 2013 PgDip Class, I’d like to say, ‘you ain’t seen nothing yet!’ to all the ad agencies out there!
Bianca DiPronio is Class Representative of the 2013 IAPI / DIT PgDiP Advertising Course and currently works as an Account Executive at Tribal DDB. She has a BA in Interpersonal / Organisational Communications with Marketing from the University of Central Florida and went on to obtain her MSc in Marketing at the Smurfit Business School. She is originally from Tampa, Florida and has lived in Dublin for the past three years.
