Advertising account executives, also known as account handlers, act as the link between an advertising agency and the client. They organise the creative and administrative staff to make sure that campaigns are produced on time and on budget.

Their work involves:

• meeting the client to discuss their advertising needs
• working with account planners and media planners to devise a campaign that meets the client's brief and budget
• presenting campaign ideas and costings to clients
• briefing the creative team who will produce the adverts
• negotiating with clients, solving any problems and making sure deadlines are met
• checking and reporting on the campaign’s progress
• keeping in contact with the client at all stages of the campaign
• managing the account’s budget and invoicing the client
• making ‘pitches’ to try to win new business.

Account executives usually handle three to four non-competing accounts at the same time.

Hours and Environment

As an account executive you will usually work office hours Monday to Friday, although you may have to work longer hours to meet deadlines.

You will be office-based but may also travel to meet clients.

Skills and Interests

To be an advertising account executive you should:

• have good spoken and written communication skills
• have strong presentation and negotiation skills
• be confident, persuasive and tactful
• be well-organised
• have good people skills and be able to work well with a range of colleagues and clients
• be able to lead and motivate a team
• be able to work long hours, often under pressure
• be smart and professional
• have good business sense and be able to work to budgets.

Entry

There are no specific entry qualifications, but advertising is a very competitive industry and most people have a degree or higher national diploma (HND).

Your degree or HND can be in any subject, but the following subjects may increase your chances:

• advertising
• marketing
• statistics or operational research
• communication and media studies
• business or management
• psychology.

Contact colleges or universities for advice about entry requirements for degrees and HNDs.

You may have an advantage if you have previous work experience in the media, marketing, communications or sales. Some agencies offer short work experience placements – contact individual agencies directly.

The Institute of Practitioners in Advertising (IPA) website includes a list of member agencies offering work experience, plus the IPA Graduate Recruitment Agency.

For more information on getting into advertising, see the Advertising Association and IPA websites (contact details in the Further Information section).

Training

You will usually start as a junior account executive. You will be trained on the job, possibly through a structured graduate training scheme.

You may also be able to work towards qualifications from the professional associations, such as:

• IPA Foundation Certificate, an online course for junior staff with at least six months’ experience in any area of advertising
• IPA Excellence Diploma, for middle managers with at least three to five years’ experience
• Communication Advertising and Marketing Education Foundation (CAM) Diploma in Marketing Communications – for this you will need a degree or equivalent, or at least two years’ relevant work experience.

The IPA and Account Planning Group also offer a range of short courses for continuing professional development.

Opportunities

Advertising is a very popular career among graduates, and there is a lot of competition for jobs. Most advertising jobs are based in London. Other major centres for advertising are Birmingham, Bristol, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Leeds and Manchester.

Jobs are advertised in the national press, trade publications such as Campaign and Creative Review, the IPA website (at IPA Jobs Online) and specialist recruitment agencies. However, not all jobs are advertised, so it is also a good idea to approach agencies directly. It can also be useful to network and make contacts within the industry.

Account executives could progress to become account managers. Very experienced account managers could become agency directors, or set up their own agencies.

It is common to move between agencies to gain promotion or work with larger accounts. Head-hunting is also common for senior jobs.

Annual Income

Figures are intended as a guideline only.

Graduate starting salaries are around £18,000 to £22,000 a year.
Experienced account executives earn between £30,000 and £40,000 a year.
Senior directors in advertising agencies can earn £60,000 to £120,000 a year.

Further information

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