Listen, as someone with a bachelor’s degree in communication with an advertising concentration and currently pursuing my master’s degree in digital marketing and analytics, I get it; I’m having trouble choosing which industry to go into as well!
First off, I think it’s really helpful to understand the core differences between the three job areas: digital marketing, advertising, and PR, as well as some examples of various job options that the industries offer! Honestly, this has been the most helpful for me in noting what professions i’m most interested in and what skills I should continue developing or acquire to get there, which I think is a really good way to approach things with how unique each of these industries are.
Starting off with marketing, marketing is all about the product, what the market is asking and/or looking for, campaign analytics, and ultimately, is the driver of PR and advertising. The primary goal of marketing is to identify consumer needs and behaviors to deliver value through services and/or products, aiming to increase sales and brand awareness and build consumer-brand loyalty. Spanning across many various channels and tactics, some marketing core elements include product development, market research, promotions, and user analytics, serving as a strategic foundation to aid in data-driven decision-making and further advertising and public relations planning.
Some top marketing positions include:
Marketing Manager:
Role: Oversee marketing campaigns, ensure strategy is aligned with current business goals, and manage marketing efforts across multiple channels. Responsible for campaign budget allocation, content approvals, and team management.
Skills: Strategic Thinking, Leadership, Analytics Analysis, Project Management, Strong Communication Skills.
Workplace Environment: Various industries, typically in-house brand marketing departments spanning across industries (retail, tech, healthcare, etc.)
Market Research Analyst
Role: Responsible for collecting and analyzing data on consumer behaviors, preferences, market trends, and competition to guide business goals, marketing strategy, etc.
Skills: Data Analysis, Research Techniques, Trend Forecasting
Workplace Environment: Consulting firms, marketing agencies, corporate in-house marketing departments, and market research agencies.
SEO/SEM Specialist
Role: Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and Search Engine Marketing (SEM) specialists are responsible for improving online reach through strong organic search results (SEO) and paid search ads (SEM). This is done through webpage text optimization, paid ad campaigns, and using analytic insights to direct future SEO/SEM efforts.
Skills: SEO & SEM Tools, Google Analytics, Keyword Research
Workplace Environment: Digital Marketing Agencies and In-house brand marketing departments.
On the other hand, Advertising is driven by marketing user insights and focuses on grabbing the attention of a target audience through traditional mass media; from print, broadcast, SEO, to content marketing, advertising spans across many different avenues, making it a great career choice for someone who enjoys the spontaneity of unique projects, and thrives in multiple areas of the industry, being able to understand the best tactics for each advertising channel and adjust according to company goals.
Some of the top job options in advertising include:
Creative Director
Role: Overseeing the entire creative process of an ad campaign, working with various teams of designers, copywriters, and marketers to ensure visuals, brand messaging, and key concepts align with campaign goals and overall brand goals.
Skills: Leadership, Strong Creative Vision, Strategic Thinking, Strong Communication Skills, Strong Organizational Skills
Work Environment:
Advertising Agencies and in-house marketing departments for brands & companies.
Copywriter
Role: Responsible for writing text copy for various media channels (TV, radio, print, digital, etc.) for campaigns while keeping in mind brand voice, campaign goals, and brand target audience to promote consumer engagement with the campaign.
Skills: Creativity, Strong Writing Skills, Understand Customer Behavior, Adaptable to specific writing styles, Strong Organizational Skills.
Workplace Environment: Advertising Agencies, In-house marketing departments, and freelance work.
Account Executive
Role: Acts as the bridge between company and client, ensuring a smooth and worry-free experience for the client by ensuring proper management of consistent client communication, deadlines, client expectations, and key project goals. These professionals act as the face of the brand for projects with clients and are responsible for keeping client happy and satisfied with the company as a whole and the project at hand.
Skills: Strong Communication Skills, Strong Organizational Skills, Professionalism, Project management
Workplace Environment: Advertising Agencies and Marketing Firms
Next, Public Relations (PR) is all about the people and managing the public image and reputation of a business or individual. Unlike advertising and marketing, PR isn’t inherently sales-focused and instead focuses on maintaining positive consumer-brand relations, brand reputation, and crisis management. Some examples include creating unpaid media coverage (press releases, interviews, product releases), media relations (news articles, bloggers, influencers, etc.), damage control during crisis situations, and managing events and audience engagement to strengthen brand reputation.
Some of the top job options in public relations include:
Public Relations Specialist
Role: Develop and execute communication strategies to build brand reputation and foster consumer-brand trust for organizations or individuals. Responsible for crafting and releasing press releases, pitching stories to media sources, managing media relations, etc.
Skills: Excellent Writing Skills, Media Relations, Storytelling, Crisis Management, Excellent Communication Skills, Strong Organizational Skills
Workplace Environment: PR Agencies, Government Agencies, Corporate PR, Non-Profits, Freelance, Etc.
Media Relations Manager
Role: Focus on building and maintaining relationships with journalists, bloggers, influencers, press outlets, etc. in an effort to generate positive media coverage for the company or individual they’re working for. They manage press outreach, monitor trends, manage brand deals, respond to press inquiries, and much more.
Skills: Media Networking, Writing Press Releases, Pitching Stories, Public Speaking, Strong Communication Skills, Strong Organizational Skills
Workplace Environment: Media Agencies, Corporations, Non-profits
Crisis Communication Manager
Role: Handle PR efforts during crisis situations such as product recalls, company scandals, data breaches, etc. During these situations, crisis comm. Managers create and release press statements, work with company legal representatives, prepare executives for public interviews, and ultimately work to protect the brand’s overall reputation and maintain customer satisfaction.
Skills: Strong Communication Skills, Strategic Thinking, Strong Problem Solving Skills, High Level of Professionalism
Workplace Environment: PR Firms, Corporate Communication teams, Government Departments, etc.
With that being covered, I think it’s a lot easier to have a bit of a better understanding of what realm of the kind of pyramid team that marketing, advertising, and public relations are, as well as which direction you may be leaning, which is a great way to further plan your learning and really personalize it to you! As a fellow multi-discipline student, I think utilizing free resources across the skills and concepts needed for certain jobs I’m interested in has been the most useful in getting a bearing on what I want my future career to look like. For me, I enjoy the creative and strategic sides of things, which have lead me further into advertising as the field as a whole brings a bit more creative freedom, and digital marketing as I really like being able to understand what makes campaigns work, how to reach target audiences, and how the campaign works on the inside as well.
Truthfully, everyone is going to be different, so I hope this article can help you understand a bit more about these industries and their differences and hopefully guide you into focusing your learning on skills and concepts needed for your dream job!