Now, I\u2019m on the other side of the table. Top Hat IMC is boutique, but we receive 10\u201320 resumes a week from undergraduates and post-graduates looking for jobs or internships. Through this process, I\u2019ve come across a lot of things that I\u2019ve really liked about candidates and things that have honestly been cringe worthy.<\/span><\/p>\n It\u2019s my privilege to finally reveal some secrets. Here are some do\u2019s and don\u2019ts to help you get hired by an agency. <\/span><\/p>\n Don\u2019t Just Reach Out to An Agency Because It\u2019s An Agency<\/b><\/p>\n I can\u2019t speak for all agencies when I say this, but our website uses inbound marketing software that tracks conversion paths of visitors. Case and point, if you submit a contact form on our website, we have detailed recap of what pages you viewed and how long you\u2019ve spent on each page. <\/span><\/p>\n Based on conversion path, it\u2019s apparent right away who is really interested in us for who we are (someone who\u2019s viewed a lot of pages) and who\u2019s simply submitting messages to as many agencies as possible (someone who\u2019s only viewed the home page and contact page).<\/span><\/p>\n The bottom line here is this\u2014don\u2019t just reach out to an agency because they\u2019re an agency. Explore their website. View their work. Read their blog. Get to know them and when you\u2019re reaching out, tell them why you\u2019re interested in being part of the team. <\/span><\/p>\n Do Request a Private Agency Tour<\/b><\/p>\n If you\u2019re interested in an agency, one of the best moves you can make is to request an agency tour. I\u2019d encourage you to not take along classmates\u2014go it alone for what I\u2019m talking about. <\/span><\/p>\n Not only do you get to learn more about the culture of the agency, you get to make some one-on-one connections with people within the agency. This is your opportunity to stand out and really show them your personality. Ask questions, crack a joke, enjoy your visit and be thankful for everything.<\/span><\/p>\n When it comes time to apply for that job or internship, reach out to your point of contact and ask for some pointers. They\u2019ll then be on the lookout for your resume amongst the flood. They\u2019ll also have a face to a name. <\/span><\/p>\n Don\u2019t Use That Resume Template Everyone Else is Using<\/b><\/p>\n About 97 percent of the resumes I\u2019ve reviewed are utilizing what looks like the exact same resume template. This always baffles me. <\/span><\/p>\n My advice\u2014don\u2019t use the template that your professor or career development center is equipping everyone in your school with. This is especially important if you\u2019re dealing with an agency that is on the creative side. In that case, you\u2019ll want to have a creative resume. I\u2019m not saying that the paper needs to be blue and it needs to be overwhelmed in images\u2014I\u2019m just saying that it should look like it belongs to someone who\u2019s creative. <\/span><\/p>\n If you need help, be creative. Try recruiting someone who\u2019s studying graphic design to give you a hand. <\/span><\/p>\n Don\u2019t Use a Copy and Pasted Message<\/b><\/p>\n Are you copy and pasting a message into the agency\u2019s contact form or to their generic info email address? Trust me, it looks like a copy and pasted message. <\/span><\/p>\n This goes back to doing your research. What do you like about the agency? What struck you? Why do you want to join the team? Also, longer, overly formal messages aren\u2019t necessarily better. Pretend like you\u2019re pitching a reporter\u2014concise and compelling.<\/p>\n Do Say Thank You for Everything<\/b><\/p>\n Been to that agency for a tour? Did that agency team member give you some time on the phone? Did you get and attend an interview? Don\u2019t just say thank you in person or on the phone\u2014send a follow up email at the very least. <\/span><\/p>\n You might be sitting there thinking, \u201cYeah, everybody does that.\u201d The honest truth, however, is that not that many people follow up with a thank you via email. I know\u2014I\u2019m always baffled by it too. If you want to take it a step further, send a handwritten thank you note. If you\u2019re going to do this though, be sure to send it in a timely manner. <\/span><\/p>\n Don\u2019t Show Up Unannounced<\/b><\/p>\n It might seem clever to stumble into an agency without being invited or prior notice, but it\u2019s not. Agencies are busy places where the calendars are always booked. If you want to show up, book your visit in advance. <\/span><\/p>\n Do Have an Online Portfolio<\/b><\/p>\n One of the biggest differentiators today can be the online portfolio. I\u2019m talking a well-designed website that has work samples, relevant experience and some personable details. If you have no development expertise, you might have to be a bit creative. Recruit that developer who\u2019s studying computer science, or invest time working at it in Squarespace. Make sure you include that website link in your resume. <\/span><\/p>\n Do Have a Professional Identity<\/b><\/p>\n Some of the strangest things I come across are often the emails of people submitting their resumes. Some of them I know for a fact are remnants of high school. Make sure you have a professional email address. For LinkedIn and that online portfolio, have a professional photo. If it\u2019s a selfie, I guarantee you that, yes, it looks like a selfie. Need some help? Check in with your career development center or recruit a photography student to help. Professional headshots make all the difference.<\/span><\/p>\n And you\u2019ve heard this again and again, but make sure your social media profiles are behooving. Personally, that\u2019s usually the first place I look when I\u2019m evaluating a candidate. You wouldn\u2019t believe (or maybe you would because they\u2019re in your News Feed) some of things I come across. <\/span><\/p>\n Other questions about how to get hired by an agency? Sound off below.<\/span><\/p>\n \u2014<\/p>\n Ben Butler is an entrepreneur, marketing communications professional and founder of <\/span><\/i>Top Hat IMC<\/span><\/i><\/a>\u2014a fully integrated marketing communications firm in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. You can connect with Ben on <\/span><\/i>LinkedIn<\/span><\/i><\/a> and on Twitter <\/span><\/i>@BenButlerPR<\/span><\/i><\/a>.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" When I was a student, I was obsessed with agencies. To me, it was always big news when a friend or someone in my network scored a job or internship with an agency. I\u2019d quickly sit them down and dig for their secrets. How did they approach them? What did they do? Who did they talk to and how? And […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":23,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2892],"tags":[33,35,76,28,363,341,50],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/progressions.prsa.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6943"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/progressions.prsa.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/progressions.prsa.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/progressions.prsa.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/23"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/progressions.prsa.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6943"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/progressions.prsa.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6943\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6948,"href":"https:\/\/progressions.prsa.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6943\/revisions\/6948"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/progressions.prsa.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6943"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/progressions.prsa.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6943"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/progressions.prsa.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6943"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"Courtesy](\"http:\/\/progressions.prsa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/3870577923_ec1b492b44_o.png\")
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