Wednesday, February 11, 2009

In The News: Marketers cutting budgets amidst record job cuts

Part of prepping yourself for the ad world is to know the ad world. As of today I will periodically link up to some articles that are not only important to WE as interns but WE as an industry.

According to Ad Age, 77% of marketers are planning to cut their media budgets. The result of our 14-month recession is definitely taking a toll on the ad industry and those who work in it are being directly affected.

In another Ad Age article, the advertising industry cut 18,700 jobs in December alone, bringing the total job loses since the recession to 65,100.

As an intern or entry-level applicant, it's incredibly important to know the state of the industry. Expec more competition for entry level jobs & internships and less interest from recruiters in the upcoming months.

Just yesterday, a fellow blogger pointed out that an internship that Saatchi LA had posted on Youintern was no longer in place. It makes sense in hindsight, Saatchi LA, like almost every shop out there is suffering from the recession.

There is a silver lining. For those students who still have a few more semesters before they graduate, digital experience is key. In fact, internet-media companies and web-search portals are the only sector of the industry adding jobs.

That said, I'm curious to know what you've been doing in light of the economic downturn to make you stand out from the rest. Use the comments section to post your tips, stories, and reactions to the news.

Update: Adrants posted more information from the survey from the Association of American Advertisers (the source of Ad Age's article). Check it out.

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