The work

An advertising copywriter working in an advertising agency generally works as part of a team with an art director. They start as a copywriter, eventually going on to be a director.

The scope of the work depends on the size of the agency and its clients. The work may include writing slogans for posters and advertisements, text for leaflets and brochures, and scripts or jingles for TV and radio.

The challenge is to make the creative solutions new and fresh, while at the same time persuading people to purchase or use a product or service.

The account executive and the client usually decide the campaigns core message. The copywriters job is to find the most effective way of communicating it.

They receive a brief (instructions) from the account management team that gives background information about the client, its products and the target audience. It is important to be aware of the creative work produced by the client's competitors.

The art director and the copywriter 'brainstorms' the brief, rejecting some ideas and developing others. The ideas are based around scripts and rough pictures or drawings. They are shown to the creative director who may suggest further modifications. The copywriter may then be involved with account executives in presenting the ideas to the client, and further changes often follow until an idea is finally accepted.

The rest of the body copy (the detailed information) is completed; making sure it is accurate and complies with the various codes of advertising practice. Copywriters are constantly asked to revise and rewrite their work.

Copywriters will usually work on several briefs at once and although coming up with ideas and writing copy is central to the work, they also spend time in meetings with colleagues, clients and suppliers.

Hours and Environment

Copywriters can expect to work long, irregular and unsocial hours, Monday to Friday, with evening and weekend work when deadlines demand. Flexible hours may be available.

Skills and Interests

An advertising copywriter needs to be:

• creative, with excellent writing skills and commercial awareness
• able to express a message clearly, briefly and persuasively
• able to understand the target market
• familiar with design, photography and typography
• able to work as part of a team and with a range of people
• computer literate; able to use the Internet and other databases to find information
• resilient, able to cope with criticism and work under pressure
• enthusiastic, with an eye for detail and good all round general knowledge.

Entry

There is no upper age limit for entry to copywriting but advertising is a young person's industry, with 80 per cent of agency staff aged under 40. Some copywriters may be former journalists and/or have experience of selling classified ads in newspapers. Few agencies provide formal training for copywriters.

Training

There are no minimum educational requirements, but entry into advertising is fiercely competitive.
Most entrants are graduates
A degree or higher national diploma (HND) is often required by large agencies, while smaller agencies also look for relevant work experience.

Opportunities

Advertising is a very popular career among graduates, and applicants outnumber vacancies by ten to one. Agencies with a structured graduate recruitment programme are listed in the IPA Factfile although the best approach may be to contact agencies directly.

Most agencies employ fewer than 50 staff and the majority of opportunities occur in the larger agencies, which employ 80 per cent of the total workforce.

Annual Income

Further information

The Advertising Association
www.adassoc.org.uk