I’m currently one of the largest media agencies and we don’t have a comms practice. I’ve applied for connections strategy roles at other agencies but haven’t heard anything back. Looking at my skill set and the job description they seem very aligned. Is it a super competitive field? Where is the most opportunity - creative, media or PR agencies? Is this a dying role and that’s why there aren’t larger teams/available positions?
I have applied and interviewed for several of these roles and to be honest. I don't think a lot of hiring managers know what it takes to be good in comms planning so they look for a 1 to 1 match in experience. If you're not a comms planner now it will be a tough sell simply because of lazy thinking on their end.
Have you actively taken steps to better position your work in their language? Best candidates often come through the team recommendations, so it would be smart to consider informational discussions with peers to gain intel and tee up the conversation differently than you may have first been inclined.
Agencies like candidates with similar agency experience. Network to get your foot in the door and highlight your transferable skills… creative, media and PR are three very separate and distinct roles (which are all likely aggressively hiring if you are in a major market), so if you’re treating them as one, you’re not getting responses because you aren’t positioning yourself correctly for the recruiters and teams.
Apply at creative agencies that have media departments. Possibly even take a media strategy role at the creative agency.
Sometimes creative agencies with media departments use a standard JD for connections planners when they are really looking for a comms planner. My advice is to ask the recruiter to connect you with the hiring manager so they can tell you directly what they’re looking for and the you can align your experience with that.