- Mark Dolliver

NEW YORK Here's an endorsement of sorts for advertising: A majority of respondents to a new survey wouldn't object if their offspring (actual or hypothetical) chose to go into the ad profession.

In polling conducted for AdweekMedia among members of LinkedIn, respondents were asked how they'd react if a kid of theirs wanted to go into advertising: "disown the kid," "encourage the kid," "suggest a different career" or "let well enough alone"? An outright majority, 57 percent, said they'd encourage the kid, while a mere 5 percent said they'd disown their progeny. Twenty percent said they'd suggest Junior pursue a different career, while 16 percent said they'd let well enough alone. (To see the full results of this survey, click here. And to participate in another ad-related LinkedIn poll for AdweekMedia, click here.)

In a breakdown of the findings by job function, those in a "creative" role were the least likely to say they'd encourage the kid (45 percent) and the most likely to say they'd suggest a different career (34 percent). Those in "business development" roles were the most likely to say they'd encourage the kid to pursue the ad career (67 percent) and the least likely to suggest another line of work (10 percent). Respondents in "marketing" positions fell in between, with 60 percent saying they'd encourage the kid and 18 percent saying they'd suggest another career.

In a reflection (perhaps) of mother love, female respondents were just half as likely as their male counterparts (4 percent vs. 8 percent) to say they'd disown a kid who wanted to go into advertising. Otherwise, there wasn't much of a gender gap. Young adults look more favorably on the ad profession than do their elders, judging from the fact that 68 percent of the poll's 18-24-year-olds said they'd encourage a kid who wanted to go into that field. The "encourage" tally was a robust 60 percent among the 25-34-year-olds, but slid to 49 percent among the 35-54s and to 48 percent among those 55 and older. The 55-plusers had the highest proportion of respondents saying they'd suggest a different career (26 percent).

A number of participants in the survey offered comments along with their votes, some more flattering to the ad business than others.  On the positive side, several people noted that a career in advertising gives one a window on all sorts of industries. One such comment: "This is a great industry with brilliant career options. The culture is good, it attracts interesting people and you have the opportunity to get under the skin of lots of different organizations and sectors."

One ad-agency veteran wrote, "Where else can you be exposed to so many different leading companies -- and their leadership?" Others noted the appeal of advertising's creative aspect, as with the commenter who wrote: "Advertising has a great balance of Art and Science."

But advertising also had its detractors. One of these wrote, "Advertising is primarily lies! I am so glad my kid has no interest in that." Then there was the indulgent fellow who remarked, "I can think of better jobs, but at least it's better than wanting to be a pole dancer." If that doesn't make you proud to be in advertising, what would?