Looking to Work at an Agency? Here's Honest London's Founders Top Tips.

Are you looking or recently been hired to work at an agency?

We’ve had more years than we’d like to admit in this industry (25 shh) working in-house for agencies, client side plus working in the media… Oh, how could we forget.. We have Honest London/Stateside now! From our shared experiences, we run our agency the way we wished the agencies we have dealt with in the past worked.. Honest and friendly.. Nice and simple.

Here are our top 3 tips we believe is the key to success with a role at an agency (most jobs for that matter) that we have observed over our careers:

1. Competence (Be good at your job). You laugh, but by this I mean do a good job at the day-to-day tasks in your job description. Most people think this is all you would need, but actually it's the bare minimum. For you, at entry level account services, this means attention to detail, thorough note-taking, fast follow-up, organisational ability, demeanour toward clients (to name a few).

2. Vision (Have good business ideas). The people who only pay attention to #1 and don't master this one (and #3) stay in middle management for their entire careers. But you're more ambitious than that, right? Understanding your clients' industries, being creative, and coming to them with strong business ideas that they didn't ask for is the "extra" that will set you apart from your peers.

3. Showmanship (Be able to communicate your ideas succinctly and effectively). If you can't do this, the ideas you have in #2 either won't go anywhere, or you'll need to find (and share credit with) partners who can do this for you. Being able to tell compelling stories, sell your ideas (and others'), and explain complex concepts very simply are skills that only a small subset of professionals in our industry have mastered.

For your first few years, focus on #1 and develop a reputation for competence. Then move on to #2 for a few years, then #3. Once you master all three, you'll have the skillsets and experience you need to manage 8-figure P&L's and pull down a mid-6-figure salary. And you'll have a reputation with your peers that will make it much easier to land business, choose the work you want, and find fulfilment in those choices.

We wish you the best of luck with your agency career!

Written by Founders A&L

If you are looking for a role, it’s always worth checking out Honest London’s careers page.