The Creative Group

Survey Says Facebook is Preferred Social Network of Creatives

When it comes to connecting online with friends, colleagues and acquaintances, Facebook is the favored social-media site of people in creative fields, a new survey by The Creative Group suggests.

More than half (56 percent) of advertising and marketing executives interviewed said Facebook would be their social media site of choice if they were limited to using just one. LinkedIn and Google+ ranked second and third with 21 percent and 12 percent of the response, respectively.

 

Regardless of which social media site someone is using for business, staying active is essential, the survey confirmed: Nearly three in 10 (29 percent) executives said not keeping content fresh is the most common mistake creatives make in their professional online profiles.

The national survey was developed by The Creative Group, a specialized staffing service for interactive, design, marketing, advertising and public relations professionals, and conducted by an independent research firm.

“Those in the creative industry tend to blend their professional and personal lives, including interactions they have online,” said Donna Farrugia, executive director of The Creative Group.

Farrugia cautioned, however, that it’s important to post prudently when business contacts are part of your online network. “Social media profiles have become an important branding and marketing tool for creative professionals. Whether the purpose of your account is purely to connect with friends or drum up referrals and job leads, make sure it paints the best picture of you.”

The Creative Group offers five tips for maintaining a polished and engaging presence on social media sites:

Don’t play the name game. While sites like Facebook and Google+ have guidelines that discourage the use of symbols, numbers or profanities in your username, that doesn’t stop people from coming up with unusual aliases. However, it’s best to stick to your first and last name and select a similar vanity URL that supports your personal brand.

Choose your interests wisely. Just because you’re a fan of reality TV doesn’t mean you have to list every show you watch. No matter how talented you are, a profile that goes into too much personal detail, particularly if those details are unflattering, will work against you.

Share quality content. The average Facebook user has 130 friends, according to Facebook Statistics. You can increase the likelihood others will see your posts by sharing rich content (like photos and videos) as well as information that will elicit comments, likes and shares.

Proof your posts. Always review your status updates and comments before hitting “Enter.” Posts strewn with typos or text shorthand detract from your credibility.

Be a regular. In addition to pushing out interesting content, engage with your online contacts consistently. By commenting on and sharing others’ posts, you’ll build a stronger sense of community.

For additional tips on using social and professional networking sites effectively, download Business Etiquette: The New Rules in a Digital Age by Robert Half, The Creative Group’s parent company. The publication contains insights from industry experts on topics such as email, instant messaging, mobile devices, and phone, video, and web conferencing.

LINKS

About The Creative Group

Business Etiquette: The New Rules in a Digital Age

 

 

Hiring in Creative and Marketing Fields to Be Strong in Q1 2012

Hiring in the creative and marketing fields is expected to remain strong in the first quarter of 2012, according to “The Creative Group Hiring Index for Marketing and Advertising Professionals.”

  • 18 percent of executives interviewed said they plan to add full-time staff in the next three months.
  • 4 percent forecast reductions in personnel.
  • 76 percent expect to make no changes to their current staffing levels.

The national study was developed by The Creative Group, a specialized staffing service providing interactive, design and marketing professionals on a project and full-time basis, and conducted by an independent research firm. It is based on more than 500 telephone interviews—approximately 375 with marketing executives randomly selected from companies with 100 or more employees and 125 with advertising executives randomly selected from agencies with 20 or more employees.

Key Findings

The net 14 percent of executives planning to hire in the first quarter of 2012 is up 10 points from the same time period last year and down six points from the previous quarter.

  • 45 percent of respondents said it’s challenging to find skilled creative professionals today, down 12 points from three months ago.
  • 89 percent of marketing and advertising executives are confident in their companies’ growth prospects for the first quarter, unchanged from fourth-quarter 2011 projections.
  •  Account services, brand/product management, and public relations are the specialties in greatest demand, according to respondents.

“Many companies are looking to refresh their branding to reflect new product and service offerings, as well as take their marketing campaigns to the next level in the year ahead,” said Donna Farrugia, executive director of The Creative Group. “Businesses also may have more budget dollars to invest with advertising and public relations agencies, driving demand for account services and PR professionals.”

When marketing and advertising executives were asked: “In which of the following areas do you expect to hire in the first quarter of 2012?,” their answers were as follows:

Perspectives on Business Growth

Marketing and advertising executives’ confidence in their ability to attract new business remained steady from last quarter: 89 percent of those interviewed said they were somewhat or very confident in their firms’ prospects for growth in the first quarter, unchanged from three months ago.

LINKS

The Creative Group Hiring Index for Marketing and Advertising Professionals

The Robert Half Professional Employment Report

About The Creative Group

RELATED POST

Creative Group 2012 Salary Guide Shows Gains for Creatives

Seven Hot Jobs for 2012

According to salary research from Robert Half, demand for positions such as mobile application developers, web developers, and user experience (UX) designers is expected to grow in the coming year as companies look to invest in their information technology (IT) infrastructure and digital presence.

“A common feature of high-demand jobs is a large degree of specialization,” said John Reed, executive director of Robert Half Technology. “Professionals with the best prospects have finely tuned abilities that enable their companies to take advantage of new technology and the increasing amount of information available to them.”

Following is an overview of seven high-potential jobs for 2012:

Mobile applications developer. As companies strive to reach consumers on smartphones, tablets and other mobile devices, they need professionals who can develop for the small screen. Starting salaries for mobile applications developers are projected to increase 9.1 percent to a range of $85,000 to $122,500 in the coming year.

Data warehouse analyst. Maintaining data has become an increasingly complex task, which is why companies need professionals who can collect, analyze and mine stored data, as well as offer effective storage strategies. Anticipated base compensation for these professionals is expected to climb 6.7 percent to between $88,000 and $119,000 in 2012.

User experience (UX) designer. Since so much customer interaction happens online, companies are looking for workers who can create positive digital experiences. The starting pay for these individuals is expected to rise 6.2 percent to a range of $71,750 to $104,000.

Data security analyst. Security threats are constantly changing, and firms need professionals who can analyze risk and propose solutions. Base compensation for these workers is expected to rise 6.0 percent to between $89,000 and $121,500.

SEO/SEM specialist. Being found online by search engines and consumers is essential to any firm looking to make its digital mark. That’s why companies seek SEO/SEM specialists who can develop strategies to optimize web projects for search and increase online visibility. Those with three or more years of experience are projected to see starting salary gains of 6.0 percent, to a range of $63,750 to $87,500.

Network engineer. Companies’ networks are more intricate than ever, increasing the need for those who can ensure the efficient and secure transfer of data and information. Starting salaries for network engineers are expected to rise 5.8 percent to a range of $75,000 to $107,750.

Web developer. Web developers are increasingly needed by companies looking to enhance their online presence. Base compensation for these professionals is projected to increase 5.4 percent to between $61,250 and $99,250.

More information about the positions listed above can be found in the Robert Half Technology 2012 Salary Guide, which includes a wide range of IT positions, as well as The Creative Group 2012 Salary Guide, which focuses on interactive, design and marketing
jobs.

Both Robert Half Technology and The Creative Group are divisions of Robert Half International, the world’s first and largest specialized staffing firm.

LINKS

Robert Half Technology 2012 Salary Guide

The Creative Group 2012 Salary Guide

 

 

The
Creative Group 2012 Salary Guide

 

The
Creative Group 2012 Salary Guide

 

International, the world’s first and largest specialized staffing firm.

 

Creative Group 2012 Salary Guide Shows Gains for Creatives

Professionals in creative fields can expect average starting salary gains of 3.5 percent in 2012, according to the recently released “The Creative Group 2012 Salary Guide.” The guide lists starting salary ranges for more than 100 positions in interactive, content-development and management, advertising and marketing, and public relations.

Professionals with interactive skills, such as user experience (UX) designers, are especially sought after as firms look to improve their web presence and transition many of their marketing programs online. Other in-demand creative professionals include online project managers, search-engine optimization (SEO)/search-engine marketing (SEM) specialists, video producers, web analytics specialists, and web designers/developers.

The figures in the guide are national averages for the U.S., but can be adjusted for more than 130 U.S. markets, using the local variance figures also included in the guide.

The Creative Group 2012 Salary Guide is one of five new Salary Guides released by Robert Half International. The Salary Guides include:

2012 Salary Guide from Robert Half for accounting and finance

Robert Half Technology 2012 Salary Guide

The Creative Group 2012 Salary Guide

Robert Half Legal 2012 Salary Guide

OfficeTeam 2012 Salary Guide 

Among the fields researched, technology positions are projected to see the largest gains in starting salaries, with an anticipated 4.5 percent increase in base compensation. Accounting and finance professionals can expect starting salaries to rise an average of 3.5 percent. Starting salaries for administrative professionals are expected to rise 3.4 percent, and starting salaries in the legal field are anticipated to rise 1.9 percent on average.

Salary calculators that can be used to determine average starting salaries in hundreds of local markets can be accessed via the links to the Salary Guides above.

Since 1950, Robert Half has produced Salary Guides to offer business owners and hiring managers information on prevailing starting salaries in their geographic areas and insight into employment trends. Information in the guides is based on the thousands of job searches, negotiations and placements managed each year by Robert Half’s staffing and recruiting managers, along with the company’s ongoing surveys of executives. The U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics has used the guides when preparing its comprehensive Occupational Outlook Handbook. The salary guides only report starting salaries, because continuing salaries are based on many other variables, such seniority, work ethic, job performance and training.

On the Robert Half International website, you can find a variety of reports and white papers, including “Business Etiquette: New Rules for the Digital Age.” The guide discusses etiquette related to Facebook, Twitter, instant messaging, and phone, video, and web conferencing.

LINKS

About Robert Half International

Salary Guides

The Creative Group 2012 Salary Guide

About The Creative Group

Business Etiquette: New Rules in a Digital Age

 

Avoid Common Errors When Showing Your Design Portfolio

DESIGNERS. A new guide entitled “Creating and Presenting a Powerful Portfolio” can help you avoid some common mistakes when presenting your work to advertising a marketing executives. The guide was produced by The Creative Group, a specialized staffing service for creative professionals.

To identify the most common mistakes, The Creative Group commissioned an independent research firm to conduct a national survey of advertising and marketing executives.

The number-one complaint voiced by survey respondents was that portfolios that showed more style than substance. Thirty-two percent of advertising and marketing executives interviewed said the biggest misstep creative professionals make when assembling their portfolios is including samples that don’t show value provided to the company. Lack of organization was the second most common blunder, cited by 19 percent of respondents.

The chart below shows how advertising and marketing executives responded when asked, “In your opinion, which of the following is the single most common mistake creative professionals make when assembling a portfolio that will be presented to a potential employer?”

“Creative professionals often think their work speaks for itself and, unfortunately, it doesn’t,” said Donna Farrugia, executive director of The Creative Group. “Compelling design has a story behind it, and it’s vital for job seekers to provide that narrative so employers can see how they think and solve business problems.”

The Creative Group offers four tips for building and presenting a portfolio that demonstrates value to potential employers:

Prepare. Before meeting with a hiring manager, research the organization to assess its particular needs and which work samples might best address them. Also, ask the prospective employer about the format of the portfolio review process. For example, find out how long you’ll have to present, how many people will be in attendance and whether they prefer to review hard-copy or online samples.

Paint a clear picture. Make it easy for reviewers to evaluate your book and recognize what you can bring to the company. Label each piece with the client’s name (assuming you have their permission), project objective, your role, and any positive outcomes.

Talk the talk. Presenting your work confidently and intelligently can make hiring managers take a second look at samples they may otherwise have missed. Develop short, engaging sound bites that tell the story of how each piece solved a business problem or filled a specific need. Don’t be afraid to show enthusiasm and passion for your work.

Take it for a test run. Before you officially present your book, turn to a trusted colleague, mentor or member of your professional network for feedback. Consider using social media sites to solicit critiques from your online contacts. This can help you fine-tune the content and delivery of your portfolio.

About the Survey
The national study was developed by The Creative Group and conducted by an independent research firm. It is based on more than 500 telephone interviews — approximately 375 with marketing executives randomly selected from companies with 100 or more employees and 125 with advertising executives randomly selected from agencies with 20 or more employees.

About The Creative Group
The Creative Group specializes in placing a range of highly skilled interactive, design, marketing, advertising and public relations professionals with a variety of firms on a project and full-time basis. More information, including online job-hunting services, candidate portfolios and The Creative Group’s award-winning career magazine, can be found at www.creativegroup.com.

LINKS

Free Guide: Creating and Presenting a Powerful Portfolio

RELATED POSTS

The Creative Group Publishes 2011 Salary Guide

Report Describes the Creative Team of the Future

 

 

Marketing and Ad Execs See Modest Increase in Hiring in Q4

The hiring of full-time creative and marketing professionals is expected to increase slightly in the fourth quarter of 2011, according to the most recent The Creative Group Hiring Index for Marketing and Advertising Professionals.

Twenty-five percent of executives interviewed said they plan to add full-time staff in the next three months, and 5 percent forecast reductions in personnel. The resulting net 20 percent of executives anticipating hiring is up one point from the third-quarter forecast.

The national study was developed by The Creative Group, a specialized staffing service providing interactive, design and marketing professionals on a project and full-time basis, and conducted by an independent research firm.

Key Findings

The findings are based on more than 500 telephone interviews—approximately 375 with marketing executives randomly selected from companies with 100 or more employees and 125 with advertising executives randomly selected from agencies with 20 or more employees.

  • The net 20 percent of executives planning to hire is up one point from third-quarter projections.
  • 57 percent of executives said it’s challenging to find skilled creative professionals today, up 15 points from the previous quarter.
  • 8 to 9 percent of marketing and advertising executives are confident in their companies’ growth prospects for the fourth quarter, a two-point increase from the third-quarter projection.
  • Web design/production, account services, and social media are the specialties in greatest demand among the survey respondents.

“As more business is conducted online and via mobile devices, companies are moving quickly to promote their products and services using a variety of channels,” said Donna Farrugia, executive director of The Creative Group. “Experienced web designers and developers, and marketing professionals with proven success executing innovative social media campaigns, are sought by organizations of all types and sizes.”

Marketing and Advertising Specialties in Demand

When executives were asked in which areas they plan to add staff, web design/production ranked first, with 25 percent of the response, followed by account services (23 percent) and social media (22 percent). The 57 percent of executives who said it’s challenging for their firms to find skilled creative professionals, is up 15 points from the previous quarter’s survey.

Marketing and advertising executives were asked, “In which of the following areas do you expect to hire in the fourth quarter of 2011?” The top responses are shown in the chart below:

Perspectives on Business Growth

Marketing and advertising executives’ confidence in their ability to attract new business increased slightly from last quarter: Eighty-nine percent of those interviewed said they were somewhat or very confident in their firms’ prospects for growth in the fourth quarter, up two points from the third-quarter survey.

LINKS

About The Creative Group

 

The Creative Group Publishes 2011 Salary Guide

DESIGNERS. WRITERS. The Creative Group, the staffing organization that places creative, advertising, marketing, web, and public relations professionals with a variety of firms, has published its 2011 Salary Guide. Designed to guide companies that plan to hire creative professionals this year, the guide features projected starting salaries for the more than 100 creative, interactive, marketing, and PR positions that The Creative Group recruits.

The Creative Group 2011 Salary GuideSome of the titles for which high and low projected starting salaries are listed include: creative director, interactive creative director, senior graphic designer, mobile apps designer, illustrator, technical illustrator, video producer, blogger, podcaster, online editor, web content writer, copywriter, proofreader, social media designer, SEO/SEM specialist, event/trade-show manager, marketing director, and PR agency account executive.

The content of the 2011 Salary Guide is based on thousands of freelance and full-time placements that The Creative Group makes each year. It includes local-market insights from staffing and recruiting teams in different cities, data from surveys of advertising and marketing executives, and an analysis of the 2011 hiring environment and trends.

For example, the report observes that “Although companies are gradually getting the green light to hire, they are still looking to maximize their budget dollars.” So, when hiring for full-time positions, they tend to seek candidates who have a range of skills and experience and can offer expertise outside their specialties.

The guide lists the nine most in-demand positions, average starting salaries nationwide, and methods for calculating and adjusting local salary ranges.

Not surprisingly, salaries have to be adjusted upward in cities such as San Francisco, Boston, San Jose, Los Angeles, Chicago, and New York. Salaries tend to be lower than the national averages in cities such as: El Paso, Texas; Sioux City, Iowa; Lincoln, Nebraska; and Youngstown, Ohio. Cities with salaries right around the national average include: Salt Lake City, Utah; Milwaukee, WI; Cincinnati, OH; and St. Louis, MO.

The 2011 Salary Guide also explains “how to turn freelancers into rock stars.” The report notes that “Firms are finding that augmenting full-time staff with freelancers provides protection from staffing mistakes, whether the economy is contracting or expanding.”

The Creative Group is a division of Robert Half International, Inc., the world’s first and largest specialized staffing firm.

The Creative Group’s 2011 Salary Guide is just one of several resources available through the Salary Center on The Creative Group’s website. A salary calculator and list of job descriptions are also available.

The resource center of the Robert Half International is another good source of career-development, staffing, and job-search advices. White papers include “Conducting an Online Job Search” and “The 30 Most Common Mistakes Managers Make in an Uncertain Economy.”