Before you get into the advertising business, you need to know the basic mechanics of how an advertising agency works. Agencies vary greatly in size and shape, but most follow and tried and tested structure that works well, whether they employ a dozen people, or several hundred.
In the smaller agencies, some people will perform more than one role; one person may actually be the entire department.
In larger agencies, some of these departments are broken out again for efficacy. But the fundamentals are the same, and it’s because this model was born out of necessity; and it works.
The Six Major Departments in Any Advertising Agency
Six very different, but essential, departments make it possible to produce effective advertisements. These can be split into other sub-departments, or given various creative names, but the skeleton is the same across the board. These departments are:
Account Services
Account Planning
Creative
Finance and Accounts
Media Buying
Production
Now, let’s take a look at the breakdown of those six major departments. Remember, although many agencies have different takes on these, the premise is the same.
1. Account Services
The account service department comprises account executives, account managers, and account directors, and is responsible for liaising with the agency’s many clients.
This department is the link between the many departments within the agency and the clients who pay the bills. In the past they were referred to as “the suits,” and there have been many battles between the account services department and the creative department. But as most creatives know, a good account services team is essential to a good advertising campaign.
A solid creative brief is one of the main duties of account services.
2. Account Planning
This department combines research with strategic thinking. Often a mix of researchers and account managers, the account planning department provides consumer insights, strategic direction, research, focus groups and assists helps keep advertising campaigns on target and on brand. Chris Cowpe described account planning as “…the discipline that brings the consumer into the process of developing advertising. To be truly effective, advertising must be both distinctive and relevant, and planning helps on both counts.”
3. Creative
This is the engine of any advertising agency. It’s the lifeblood of the business because the creative department is responsible for the product. And an ad agency is only as good as the ads the creative department puts out. The roles within the creative department are many and varied, and usually include:
Copywriters
Art Directors
Designers
Production Artists
Web Designers
Associate Creative Directors
Creative Director(s)
In many agencies, copywriters and art directors are paired up, working as teams. They will also bring in the talents of other designers and production artists as and when the job requires it.
Sometimes, traffic is handled by a position within the creative department, although that is usually part of the production department. Everyone within creative services reports to the Creative Director. It is his or her role to steer the creative product, making sure it is on brand, on brief, and on time.
4. Finance and Accounts
Money. At the end of the day, that’s what ad agencies want. And it’s what their clients want, too. At the center of all the money coming into, and going out of, the agency is the finance and accounts department. This department is responsible for handling payment of salaries, benefits, vendor costs, travel, day-to-day business costs and everything else you’d expect from doing business. It’s been said that approximately 70 percent of an ad agency’s income pays salary and benefits to employees.
However, this figure varies depending on the size and success of the agency in question.
5. Media Buying
It is the function of the media buying department to procure the advertising time and/or space required for a successful advertising campaign. This includes TV and radio time, outdoor (billboards, posters, guerrilla), magazine and newspaper insertions, internet banners and takeovers, and, well, anywhere else an ad can be placed for a fee. This usually involves close collaboration with the creative department who came up with the initial ideas, as well as the client and the kind of exposure they want. This department is usually steered by a media director.
6. Production
Ideas are just ideas until they’re made real. This is the job of the production department. During the creative process, the production department will be consulted to talk about the feasibility of executing certain ideas. Once the ad is sold to the client, the creative and account teams will collaborate with production to get the campaign produced on budget. This can be anything from getting original photography or illustration produced, working with printers, hiring typographers and TV directors, and a myriad of other disciplines needed to get an ad campaign published. Production also works closely with the media department, who will supply the specs and deadlines for the jobs.
Other Departments That Vary From Agency to Agency
While the six departments above are standard for most agencies, some of the larger agencies may break them down into sub-departments, or departments in their own right. These will often include:
Human Resources & Facilities
Research
Online Development
I.T.
Traffic
Let’s take a look at how these additional four departments work:
Human Resources and Facilities
Most businesses, whether they’re related to advertising or not, will have an HR department. This is the department responsible for the nuts and bolts of hiring and firing employees, dealing with state and federal employee laws, monitoring vacation and sick time, and the overall wellbeing of the staff. They are often rolled in with the facilities department, which is responsible for building maintenance, and keeping everything in the office working, safe, and up to code.
Research
Larger agencies will rely heavily on their own research department to provide a wealth of data on current and future clients. This is the department responsible for focus groups and testing, analyzing and interpreting data, and helping the creative and account teams focus on new market trends.
Online Development
Once relegated to a designer who knew a bit of coding, this is a fast growing department and deals with everything from website and mobile design, to apps and interactive experiences. This department may have its own creative director that specializes in web and online design, including UX, and will have a staff that could rival the size and strength of the creative department.
I.T. (Information Technology)
The I.T. department is no longer just a couple of nerds in a basement (thank you The IT Crowd). It can be a huge department, especially in agencies that have a large creative presence. Most I.T. companies in advertising agencies will specialize more in Mac than PC, as most creative departments run on Apple products.
Traffic
In small to mid-sized agencies, traffic is rolled up into the production department. It is the job of traffic to get each and every job through the various stages of account management, creative development, media buying and production in a set timeframe. Traffic will also ensure that work flows through the agency smoothly, preventing jams that may overwhelm creative teams and lead to very long hours, missed deadlines and problematic client relationships. Traffic keeps the agency’s heart beating.