Art Director Discussions
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Might be starting at a small agency as a full time Junior AD soon, fingers crossed. It's my first full time position since WFH began.

Other ADs who have transitioned to WFH, what equipment do I absolutely need in my at home workspace? And how should I bring it up?

Thanks in advance!

I currently have a 2015 MacBook Pro that’s running on fumes. An Wacom Intuos Pro. A mouse. A few external hard drives. And a second screen.

Anyone have a recent Canadian ad salaries survey they can share? Or the APG Canada Salary Survey that still hasn’t been shared publicly yet? Worked to the bone and underpaid, and since no one seems to be hiring planners atm, trying my best to get paid (at least closer to) what I’m worth and any evidence of salary bands per title helps. Thanks

Anyone have a recent ad salaries survey they can share? Or a Planning Salary Survey that still hasn’t been shared publicly yet? Worked to the bone and underpaid ($120k as a strategy director with 10 years exp in Toronto, before a covid pay cut), and since no one seems to be hiring planners atm, trying my best to get paid (at least closer to) what I’m worth and any evidence of salary bands per title helps. Thanks

I have been freelancing for brand via their ad agency. A former colleague, my superior once, has a position at this company. I saw a FT job posting that interested me and reached out to her via LinkedIn and email. She has ignored me thus far. The last time we talked or texted we were upbeat and chatty, I considered her a friend. The first unanswered messages, I chalked up to life/being busy. But after a third, I’m very confused at the cold shoulder. Should I ask her why?

With so much uncertainty in the industry right now would you rather accept a “Contract to Hire” position working in-house for a huge retailer/e-commerce company or a full time position at an ad agency?

Re: my resume: How should I position the freelance that my art director partner and I work on together? The nature of it is a lot more conceptual and more brand building-y than the freelance that I've worked on solo. Should we create a company name to file it under? Or should I put it under my other freelance work?

Not seeing many openings for junior ADs at the moment, which is understandable. So I’ve been wondering if I could potentially pivot to land a different role for the time being.

Some of these roles I’m considering are:
Multimedia Designer
Designer
Video Editor
Photo Editor

Should I be marketing myself as a junior AD with these skills and apply for different roles?
How should I be marketing myself for something like this?
Looking to pick up freelance, side projects, and potentially full time.

Yo! I’m going into my final year in ad school and my dream has always been to live and work in NYC (I’m from northern Europe). Most of the people i talk to recommend staying in Europe where I can have more responsibility early on and spend less time doing boring junior stuff and then leave for a mid role after a few years. Anyone have any thoughts or experiences with this? Should i just jump into it straight away? Thanks!:)

Looking for an art director role in NYC. If anyone knows any agencies hiring - please hit a sista up! Thank you fellow creatives ❤️

Ad agencies hiring in NY?

Ciao!
Duolingo is hiring in NYC! We're looking for a Sr. Art Director and a Sr. Copywriter with experience in developing culture breaking ideas, impeccable detail to craft and passion to develop world class award winning creative. Help us spread the word of the most downloaded education app in the world as we try to make education freely available to everyone. Hit us up on our careers page!

Looking to go onto the Brand side from an ad agency. I’m currently a senior account executive (4.5year exp) hoping to secure a position as associate brand manager. Should I aim higher, and how much salary range should I ask?

Looking to make the jump from agency to brand side at a large holding company. The position is titled designer but my experience is reflective of strong ad/senior ad. Could anyone provide a salary range of what that might look like? Also any advice when negotiating while making that jump? Thanks in advance 🐠

Well, that Sr. AD position for the NYT Cooking sure hasn’t been taken yet.

is the pay jump from jr. to ad or senior that drastic?

Backstory. First generation college student, first in fam to have “an office job with benefits etc and pto.” Recently been seeing a lot of posts about creatives, why certain positions are more likely to get fired etc. what jumped out at me was the $$ people were giving for each position. I assumed jr’s are like 40-50k, ad 50-60k, senior 60-70k. These posts are saying it’s more like 40-50k, 60-70k and 80-90k. Is that real?

In a role where we write reports and deliver against deadlines. Clients often have ad-hoc data requests that take up an afternoon or a day here and there. How would you communicate the need for more flexible deadlines given that so much of our team’s time is used on ad-hoc requests?

Questions you’ve been asked interviewing for AUSA position? If you got the job, how was your pay determined on AD scale in terms of which quarter you fell into? What state are you in?

When is it time to ask about or even start thinking about a promotion?

I have been at my current agency for 15mo and it’s my first real job. Since Covid, I feel like I have a lot more responsibilities and have been doing what I think is AD and even senior AD stuff (especially the last two months since my agency laid off a bunch of people. Our team lost an ACD and AD).

The AD role is open on our team. I’m wondering if I should ask about it or not. What can I do to show them I’m ready?

How does a project manager role in industry look in terms of “prestige”, compared to Big 4 consulting? Applying to MBA programs and wondering what would look better in the eyes of the Ad Comm.

How does a project manager role (in industry) look in the eyes of an MBA Ad Comm?? Is it comparable in “prestige” to something like big 4 consulting? Any thoughts on this would be helpful.

Salary Q: New to Fishbowl + creative/ad agencies and would love any insights from y'all.

I recently got an offer for a producer role that I believe was too low b/c it involves working with devs, dev work myself, and has the combined responsibility of project management and production.

In search, "producer" yields much different results ($$ wise) from "project manager", and from "technical" + "producer/project manager"

Any advice on how I should proceed in navigating negotiations?

Which is better, in-house vs agency?
I came up from the media side and jumped to startups. Never worked in agencies before and a part if me feels like I’m missing out on the experience. On the other hand, recruiters and agency creatives I know advise me not to, and my position is actually a dream job for people being the client and all. Still curious though? What do you like and dislike about working for an ad agency?

Hi, I applied to a Jr AD position at DDB a few weeks ago. It was listed on their site: I cold applied and followed up recruiters. Was this position filled or should I keep following up?

I know these are tuff times, but I wonder if there’s a good consumer-focused / integrated agency hiring senior creatives (ACD/Sr AD). I’ve been looking for new opportunities on LinkedIn, but all I‘be seen is in the healthcare space... I know that is better than being unemployed, but it’s not my cup tea. Any leads?

I’m trying to help a friend find an entry-level role in advertising/marketing/production. He has a degree in media and production and some experience doing content and social for a summer camp.

Looking for help finding a remote opportunity (because of Covid) to get his foot in the door. Anybody looking? Any advice on entry-level positions that aren’t financially prohibitive (requiring ad school or unpaid internships)? Any leads on opportunities?

So it’s been a month since we all started talking about diversity in the ad business more with some focus. Has anyone seen any real progress from their employer? (Policy, pro bono work, programs, hiring etc). Genuinely curious as my agency is treading water.

Creatives, times are tough and jobs are scarce... but DON’T put work in your portfolio you DIDN’T concept, create, execute on.
Going through the “Avail List” site looking for candidates and have seen a few ACD’s claiming work that isn’t theirs or campaigns where they they produced the social platform pieces yet they have the TV spots as work they produced.
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The Ad world is pretty close knit and it’s fairly easy to verify who had a role/part in the work. Honesty goes a long way.

I’ve been thinking of switching from Account to Creative since I started working in Advertising. I truly enjoy my job/agency but I feel that my true passion lies with Art Direction. I’ve worked at 3 big agencies with 4 years experience so I feel like I know what I’m getting myself into and how the role can vary from one agency to the next.
I’m interested to hear if anyone has switched and how you would recommend doing so? I’m looking into Miami Ad School for their 2 year portfolio program.

I’m watching the creativity awards on ad age. I decided to take a shot everytime I see a POC nominated. So its been 35 minutes and I have only seen one. But that wasn’t even the surprising part. When they went to the Inclusion award that’s when I just started laughing at the amount of Karen’s and Micheals in position. Not one person with a shade of color was in the category lol 🤦🏽‍♂️🤦🏽‍♂️

Looking for a contact at DDB! Obviously times are very weird right now, but I’ve been wanting to make a move to Chicago soon-ish or when hiring freezes are over. And would love to try to get in the door there as a mid level - senior AD!

ACD, taking Sr. AD role, coming from out of state. What is the average salary in Austin. I feel like I'm getting screwed over. Its a Tech company. Thanks!

Dear fish my CW are in a little pickle atm and aren't sure what to do.

Here are our options:

a) stay at our network agency and make a big budget ad, or
b) go to an indie for a senior team role

❤️🐟

Just reached mid-level. Seeking AD position in the DMV area. Who’s hiring?

I’m finding that a weird side effect of losing my job in this climate is ad agencies taking advantage of my weakened position. They get in touch, proactively or in response to my reaching out, and they want to hire me as they are in good shape. When I reveal I was laid off, the offer changes to freelance or maybe nothing. My work, awards, the fact that they know me and approached me in the first place should be enough. I don’t want to lie about my situation. Any ideas how to avoid this?

Hiring in Toronto at AD and/or Snr AD level. Role sits in Toronto and reports to NY. Joining growing Canada based team that works from home when not on the road. 2-3 days of travel a week to US (eventually). Digital agency, large network, healthcare, specialist team that operates at a network level across clients. Digital agency experience required, health care / pharma a plus but not needed. Reach out if interested!