Job seekers in a variety of specializations are drawn to the day-to-day responsibilities that come with working at a digital marketing agency. People with both creative and technical backgrounds can thrive in a common work environment, as well as collaborate on the same projects.
Are you an expressive content writer or an out-of-the-box designer? Maybe you’re a data-driven SEO or a critical-thinking developer? Digital marketing agencies look at the skills that each job role brings to the table to help their agency stand out from the rest. This makes an agency one of the prime settings for job seekers looking to jumpstart their career or those with more experience under their belts.
Life Inside a Digital Marketing Agency
Listen, we won’t lie to you. Working at a digital marketing agency is pretty great. The perks include working with clients that span across many industries, monthly social outings to get out of the office for a couple of hours, and having co-workers that back up the decisions you make for clients.
Innovative Minds All Around You
Creativity and innovation are the backbones of any marketing agency. Your role is to get as many eyes on your brand as possible and keep them engaged with your services and product offerings. Without innovative minds to drive your strategy, it would be difficult to properly market a brand.
Fast-Paced Environment
In a competitive industry where multiple agencies are vying for the same project, employees must represent their agency to the best of their ability. There may be on and off seasons where you don’t have as many projects, but you’re still expected to use your time to better your clients or the agency itself.
Whether you’re knee-deep in a website redesign or implementing a new SEO campaign that you’ve been inspired by, there’s never a dull moment working at an agency.
Strong Agency Culture
Agencies thrive on having a strong culture present across their team. Culture resonates with employees, motivates them to perform their best work, and helps them feel recognized for their efforts.
When spending 40+ hours a week in the same building with the same people, it can easily begin to feel stressful at times. While it’s not all rainbows and sunshine working for an agency, a positive agency culture supports your employees and nurtures loyal ones. Birthday surprises, social outings, and work anniversary gifts are just a few of the ways we instill culture within our agency.
Need a Helping Hand?
Agencies are not ones to leave their employees behind. You know how the saying goes – “you’re only as strong as your weakest link.” Employees are extremely open to helping their co-workers to move past problems and succeed in their work.
Agency employees are always willing to help others with their projects if needed. Even team leads, project coordinators, and account executives are there to tie up any loose ends you may have regarding a task.
Benefits of Working as a Digital Marketer at an Agency
In-house vs agency? That’s the never-ending debate when potential applicants are on the job hunt. While each has its pros and cons, we tend to be biased when suggesting where you should start or continue your career.
Agencies can give you exposure to an assortment of skills, industries, and job roles, making it a perfect starting point for those looking to move into a new industry. Experiencing life inside an agency is an adventure everyone should try out at some point in their career.
Exposure to All Aspects of Digital Marketing
In some job positions, you’re restricted to the responsibilities that come with your position. At a digital marketing agency, you may wear multiple hats that don’t typically fall under your job title.
As an SEO, I’ve now gained skills in email automation, content writing, and social media management that I might not have acquired if I hadn’t worked for an agency. With the emergence of the T-shaped marketer, it’s essential to possess skills that set you apart from your competition.
Not Focused on One Particular Industry
Fashion, education, manufacturing, and non-profit work are just a few of the industries you may encounter when working at an agency. Agencies enjoy building a diverse portfolio so prospective clients have proof of their work across industries.
For employees, it’s the perfect learning experience because you’re required to learn more about industries that may be out of your comfort zone. This allows you to work with industries you may have never thought you’d be interested in!
Balance of Autonomy & Collaboration
Do you prefer to go through your thought-process on your own, or do your best ideas surface when you’re throwing them out to other team members? In an agency environment, both paths are encouraged.
Teamwork and collaboration are always present when devising new tactics for a client, but employees can bring their ideas to brainstorming meetings. You may even have a complete strategy in your head that you’re welcome to pitch to management.
Interaction with All Job Roles
A typical job environment has a hierarchy of job titles, from the CEO of a company to entry-level specialists. If you’re working for a corporation, it may be hard to voice your ideas to get the CEO’s attention. But within a digital marketing (particularly a smaller agency), everyone is treated equally and you’re able to consult with all job roles.
Signs You Should Avoid Working for Certain Ages
Most digital marketing agencies are great places to work. The majority of people in the industry are looking to educate those starting their careers or pursuing a new one. But in a world of good agencies, there are bound to be a few bad apples.
Negative Job Atmosphere
We’ve talked about positive agency culture as a way to motivate employees in their work but what happens when a job atmosphere seems toxic? Unfortunately, it may be difficult to identify a negative job atmosphere before actually working there. Here are a few tell-tale signs you should be on the lookout for:
- Bad Leadership
Do your research before accepting a job offer. How do members of the leadership team interact with their employees in the office or on social media platforms like LinkedIn?
- Employee Dissatisfaction
As you’re walking through the office, see if you can spot current employees. Do they look engaged with their work? Are they collaborating with their team? Do they generally look happy to be working there?
- No Culture Exists
Look at the agency’s website and its social media accounts. Does the agency support their employees? Do they give shout-outs for achievements, both professionally and personally?
Disorganized Interview Process
A disorganized interview process can be the tip of the iceberg for a disorganized agency. This can cause stress when trying to maintain tight project deadlines and create tension within the team. We know accidents happen and things are forgotten, but if your entire interview process is out-of-whack, it may be best to just move on.
Job Requirements are Unclear
Within agencies and especially the digital marketing industry, it’s normal for a single person to wear many hats. This allows for better teamwork, improves your role as a digital marketer, and can help your agency overcome any hurdles if a person is out for an extended period.
The problem arises when these responsibilities aren’t discussed from the beginning of the interview process. It can become stressful for all parties in the future if you’ve been tasked with responsibilities outside of your position that you’re not able to get to.
No Signs of Company Growth
Everyone wants to be able to move up, whether it’s for a team lead position or you’re trying out a completely new job role. When your company limits its growth (thus limiting yours), it can be hard to remain a part of that company.
How to Get Started in Your Digital Marketing Career
Like starting any new career, ensure that you’ve done research on prospective companies and have the right experience under your belt to make sure you stand out from the crowd.
Prepare Your Professional Accomplishments
Whether you have five years of experience leading a project or you just completed a full-time internship, you need to add all of your professional achievements to your resume. This is the first impression you make on prospective employers, so make it count!
Check Out the Agency’s Culture
Culture, culture, culture! Have I said it enough in this blog post to show you how important work culture is to employees? Employees want to feel valued and recognized in their workplace. Feeling unsupported or ignored can negatively impact someone’s willingness to work for a company. As stated before, check out a prospective company’s website and social media to see if they possess a healthy company culture.
Own That Job Interview
Resumes get a company’s attention, but a job interview is when your personality shines beyond that piece of paper. Get all of your paperwork in order so you can focus on showcasing your accomplishments and why you would be the best fit for a position. It’s okay to brag about yourself a little!
Continue Expanding on Your Skills
Whether or not your interview leads to a job offer, never stop expanding your skillset as a digital marketer. More and more companies prefer to hire employees who can perform multiple job responsibilities.
Applying as a content writer? Make sure you’re aware of SEO best practices that will help your content’s visibility in search. More interested in becoming a developer? Stay up to date on UI/UX design trends and what’s needed to transfer a designer’s mockup to a functioning website.
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