Advertising Agency Services, Jobs, Training, and Salaries

Key takeaways

Advertising is all around us. It’s present in social media platforms, TV, the internet, and physical ads like billboards, panels, and signs. Working for an advertising agency can be an opportunity to produce creative marketing pieces with other talented professionals for clients. 

• Advertising professionals can do creative work, copywriting, design, media buying, digital marketing, or ad placement work.

• Media buying agencies, creative boutiques, and full-service agencies employ advertising professionals and may be good places to look for work.

• The U.S. market for advertising agencies surpassed $380 billion in 2024, and is expected to continue growing through 2027. [1]

Developing communication and project management skills, along with earning a degree, may help you get a job at an advertising agency. Learn more about the types of ad agencies, roles, what a career in an advertising agency entails, and the requirements to start. Then, you can learn more about online advertising, media planning, social media marketing, and more with the Google Digital Marketing & E-Commerce Professional Certificate.

What is an ad agency?

An advertising agency is a company hired by clients and marketers to produce promotional advertising across various media formats.

How does an ad agency work?

Ad agencies are outside companies that a brand might hire to manage marketing strategy and advertising. Hiring an ad agency allows a company to access high-quality marketing strategy, components like media buying, and resources like ad copy without hiring creative professionals directly. An ad agency will hire or contract with creative professionals and marketing strategists to create and implement advertising campaigns.

What do advertising professionals do?

Advertising professionals can work in various roles depending on the type of services the ad agency offers. Full-service agencies offer broad services, from creative work to media buying to ad placement. Smaller, niche advertising agencies may specialize in a few core services like rich media or banner ads for clients. Here are some top advertising agency types of jobs and roles to explore. 

Copywriting

If you enjoy writing, you might consider becoming a copywriter at an advertising agency. Copywriters are creative storytellers; they come up with promotional advertising copy, brand stories, social media content, and product copy to promote and sell the products. Copywriters’ work includes:

• Crafting the messaging used by brands overall or for specific campaigns

• Working individually or on a team to tell a story about a company or product

• Understanding tone & voice and the impact they have on audiences

Artwork

The team responsible for the overall artistic direction of an advertising campaign is typically the art or creative director and their respective teams. In these roles, some responsibilities may include:

• Building the image of an advertising campaign

• Determining how a product should look

• Choosing which colors to use for campaigns

Media planning and buying

Media planning is another part of an advertising agency. It involves finding the target audience for the advertised product or service. 

Media buyers’ work may include: 

• Using advertising platforms like Google Ads to place ads for clients within Google search results

• Using artificial intelligence tools and algorithms to enable real-time bidding for advertising space on channels that match the client’s target audience

• Negotiating advertising rates and run times with advertisers, also known as direct buys

Producing commercial spots on radio and television 

In these roles, you'll consider the audience's needs and current state of affairs. This work may span:

• Completing market research to identify customer demographics and how to position a product to this specific group

• Assisting with creating storyboards and scriptwriting to plan the ad

• Overseeing production of the ad by managing the set during filming

Social media manager

Social media is often the voice of the brand. Social media professionals’ work might include:

• Creating a social media calendar to plan the frequency and format of posts

• Engaging with and responding to customers on behalf of the client

• Tracking customer engagement through social media and assess data to pinpoint the social media strategy’s overall impact on business

Public relations

Public relations (PR) is media coverage earned through your efforts, compared to paid media, or paid advertising. PR professionals often:

• Create, write, and distribute newsworthy items or press releases that media outlets are likely to carry

• Pitch stories or media kits to journalists or media outlets to support brand authority through a trusted third-party

• Monitor public sentiment about clients, and prepare crisis management communication when needed

Merchandising and sales promotion

In merchandising or sales promotion work for an advertising agency, you’ll likely handle:

• Requesting and ordering specialty items like coffee cups, t-shirts, and other promotional products

• Manufacturing demand for a product through contests or giveaways, coupons, or loyalty programs

• Creating merchandising kits and store displays for stockists to use on shelves in retail stores

Marketing manager

A marketing manager is responsible for analyzing and tracking aspects of advertising campaigns, such as marketing budget, creative materials, and web analytics.

To succeed as a marketing manager, having a digital marketing background would be helpful. You’ll need to understand the brand you're working with and its industry.

What 3 kinds of work do advertising agencies do?

Ad agencies tend to use the following three terms to describe the services they offer.

1. Above the line advertising (ATL)

Above the line advertising refers to efforts aligned with large-scale national advertising campaigns that bring repeated exposure to customers through various channels. ATL advertising often involve efforts across TV, movie, radio, newspaper, and billboard ads targeting a broad audience. 

2. Below the line advertising (BTL)

Below the line advertising often refers to more specific, targeted advertising aimed at a focused group of consumers. These are targeted advertising efforts toward a smaller audience than ATL.

Examples of BTL advertising include search engine marketing, paid search, events, social media marketing, and content marketing.

3. Through the line advertising (TTL)

Through the line advertising is a mix of both ATL and BTL strategies. TTL might entail creating and managing the flow of online banner ads, TV commercials, and podcast ads, along with targeted blog content, social media contest posts, and email marketing.

What are the most common types of advertising agencies?

If you’re starting a career in an advertising agency, you may work in one of several different advertising agency types.

• Full-service agencies: Full-service advertising agencies provide services from planning to production and analyzing marketing efforts. They also provide advertising in many media formats, including print, digital, audio, and video. Clients choose to work with full-service agencies when they want their creative work managed by a single agency entity. 

• Interactive agencies: Interactive agencies work with digital advertising. To work for an interactive agency, develop an understanding of how online advertising works Examples of digital advertising services include social media, email, search engine marketing, mobile device campaigns, and more.

• Creative boutique agencies: Creative boutiques typically focus on smaller, more specialized advertising agency work. These agencies are typically small, and support branding and identity work, campaign development, social media planning, and content production.

• Media buying agencies: Media buying agencies work as the media buyer for a campaign. Media buying agencies work to identify the ideal timing for a media buy, identify the best markets for advertising, and recommend a specific budget for the client. 

• In-house agencies: An in-house “agency” is a group of professionals who are employed by the client as its internal creative team. The work is generally both creative and functional, as it’s designed to support the brand mission. You may be tasked with brainstorming creative solutions, in addition to executing the work.

Career outlook

The US market for advertising agencies will be worth $424 billion by 2027 [1]. Within the advertising industry, some higher-earning jobs include advertising, promotions, and marketing managers, who earn an average of $156,580 per year [2]. The US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) predicts these professions to see an 8 percent increase in employment from 2023 to 2033 [2].

4 skills and qualifications for advertising services

Working in advertising often requires a college education and a comprehension of business administration, data analytics, and digital marketing. Some of the skills and qualifications required to work in advertising include:

1. Communication skills: Advertising jobs revolve around communication with consumers. You’ll work with teammates, clients, agency colleagues, and media outlets.

2. Project management skills: Strong project management skills will enable you to juggle many projects while paying attention to details and deadlines.

3. Creative skills: Writing, artwork, production, web design, and audio work are all common tasks completed at advertising agencies.

4. Marketing and media skills: Knowing which forms of content perform best on different channels can help you succeed in an agency setting.

What degrees do advertising professionals typically hold?

Many entry-level positions in advertising require a bachelor's degree. Common advertising degrees include a bachelor's degree in communications, marketing, advertising, and business. 

You can also pursue a master's degree in the same fields to qualify for managerial roles or specialize in particular areas, such as international marketing, business administration, digital branding, strategy, or advertising and public relations.

Job titles in advertising

Advertising agency jobs can be creative, administrative, account management, or managerial roles. 

Common creative job titles:

• Copywriter

• Photographer

• Graphic artist

• Web designer

• Video production manager

• Art director

Common account management job titles:

• Account manager

• Account supervisor

• Director of accounts

• Advertising manager

• Director of advertising

• Traffic manager

• Digital ad sales manager

Median salaries for some advertising jobs, as reported by the BLS, include [3]:

• Advertising sales agent: $61,460

• Art director: $111,040 

• Editor: $75,260 

• Financial manager: $161,700 

• Graphic designer: $61,300 

• Market research analyst: $75,950 

• Public relations manager: $132,870 

• Writer: $72,270 [4]

Keep learning with these free resources

If you want to learn more about career paths within advertising and how you can get one of these jobs, check out these free resources:

• Bookmark our digital marketing glossary to study: Digital Marketing Terms Every Marketer Should Know

• Watch our video on Youtube: Digital Marketing Explained in 5 Minutes | Beginner's Guide

• Subscribe to our newsletter: Career chat

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