Meet Your Industry Advisor

Philip Wilkerson Marketing, Advertising, and PR Industry Advisor
Marketing involves taking a product and identifying its specific features and benefits, creating pricing and promotional strategies, and managing the methods that will be used to bring it to market. Marketers create, manage, and enhance products and services so that they reflect well on the company's brand.
Advertising involves creating brands and persuading consumers to buy them through messages in mass media. Advertising agencies act like a marketing consultant, helping the client with all aspects of marketing their product or service from strategy and concept through execution.
Public Relations (PR) seeks to shape how the consumer, the competition, and the average person view a client. PR often uses the media to reach the target market.
Skills
Skills needed for a career in these industries
- Oral and written communication
- Complex problem solving
- Search engine optimization
- Critical thinking
- Event management
- Technical skills
- Storytelling
- Data analysis
- Social media management
- Client management
- Project management
- Interactive design
- HTML and CSS
Degrees and Certifications
Degrees and certifications in these industries
How to Get Started
5 steps to get you started in marketing, advertising, or PR
- Join a student relevant student organization such as AMA student chapter, PRSSA
- Get involved in the organization as an officer and handle tasks relevant to job functions in which you are interested (e.g. marketing events)
- Complete at least one internship, co-op or job relevant to your industry of interest before graduation
- Become skilled in social media platforms, such as Twitter, LinkedIn, and Pinterest.
- Join a professional association related to your industry of interest, such as AAAA, AMA or PRSA. See the Associations Unlimited database for a full list.
Resources
Research, get experience, and get connected to contacts in these industries
Industry Research
Experiential Learning
- Conduct an advanced search by industry: Marketing, PR & Advertising on Handshake
- Creative Hotlist
Job Search
- Conduct an advanced search by industry: Marketing, PR & Advertising on Handshake
- Talent Zoo
- Media Bistro
- PRWeek Careers
Professional Associations
Job Functions
Account Coordinator
Account coordinators provide administrative support to the account management team. This is an entry level position for the advertising and PR industries. They often send out press releases, monitor their clients' media coverage, and coordinate mass mailings.
Account Executive
Account executives work directly with clients and manage their accounts. They ensure that the projects are managed well, and they monitor the creative team's progress. They hold the frontline positions within account management.
Account Manager
Account managers work directly with clients and ensure that all levels of their organization approve of a project. They oversee project implementation and manage the day-to-day operations.
Marketing Manager
Marketing managers oversee the day-to-day and strategic functions of a company's marketing operations, including activities, budget, development of promotional materials, and more.
Market Research Analyst
Market research analysts monitor and forecast marketing trends, and they assess the effectiveness of marketing programs and strategies. They develop and evaluate methods for data collection and analyze data using statistical software.
Public Relations Specialist
Public relations specialists design media releases to shape public perception of their organization. They write press releases, help clients communicate effectively with the public, and draft speeches for top executives in their organization.
Public Relations Manager
Public relations managers plan and manage the creation of material that aims to enhance the public image of their client. They write press releases, help clients communicate effectively with the public, and they may supervise public relations specialists.
Copy Writer
Copy writers write advertising copy for use by publication, broadcast or Internet media. They discuss with the client the product, advertising themes and methods as well as any revisions necessary to the advertising copy.
Advertising Manager
Advertising managers collaborate with sales staff and others to create ideas for an advertising campaign, and they oversee the staff that develops the advertising. They generate interest in a product or service for an organization, department or on a project basis.