Is This News? Media Buyers Also Need Digital Experience

So you're not a creative, you're a media buyer or planner. You're looking for a job. Guess what? You still need digital experience, so throw out that typewriter and get on the Twitter and the face book, it's where all the kids are. Recruiter Patricia Sklar, president and founder of Sklar & Associates, talked to Media Life about the media jobs market, which jobs are in demand, and why you need digital. Are you starting to see an uptick in demand for jobs now that the economy is slowly starting to show signs of improvement? I am seeing some people get hired, yes. Especially in the past couple weeks. But I don't think we're seeing a real uptick yet. There is some movement, yes. But I don't think it's significant enough to really say a turnaround has occurred. But we are seeing some candidates receive offers. A few years ago, after the last recession, we heard from some readers that senior media people were having trouble finding work. Are you seeing this pattern again? Yes, we are seeing that pattern. Individuals that aren't integrated or don't have a firm background in online and offline are having the most difficulty. Those that are integrated, those who have a strong grasp of online and a strong grasp of offline, are the ones getting hired. If there's a senior-level person with very little experience in digital, they will have a hard time. How important is it to have online experience these days? It's extremely important. You need to be diversified. The key to being hired today is to really bring more to the party. The more experience you have, that's the best thing. The more you can come in and say that you've worked in different media, with different types of accounts, whatever you can bring that makes you look like you've got more is just key. Those are the people I feel are getting hired. Clients are looking for the most compelling story, that [a candidate] led the efforts or are involved on Twitter, or have a blog, then they're engaged in media. Clients are asking, "What kind of media person can I bring on staff that can really add something?"

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Is This News? Media Buyers Also Need Digital Experience

Rachel Kaufman

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Rachel Kaufman