You may have heard a lot about the ways of ‘The Agency Life’ from your friends or family… but we want you to forget all that for now. Every Agency differs in its atmosphere, portfolio, people and culture. Hence, generalising what it might be like to work in the field will either scare you away from something you need not fear or attract you into something you may not like.
We’ve broken down the facts for you to help you decide whether the Agency Life is for you or not, laying down the truths and leaving it up to you to make the right call.
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Getting paid to be creative.
Getting paid to express your creativity and think outside the box… sounds cool, doesn’t it? It’s a fast-paced world where you’re required to keep up with and chase trends that can be used to market your products/services while simultaneously experimenting different ideas to see what gains the best reactions and most traction.
It differs from most corporate jobs as it requires you to be more flexible and think on your toes to keep up with the rest of the world. Variables change almost every day when it comes to your daily work, which keeps it interesting. It’s also fun to brainstorm with the whole team and laugh at each other’s silly ideas before we strike gold!
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Having fun is part of the job.
Here’s where most agencies differ. The culture.
The culture of each agency does not depend on the agency itself, but the people who ply their trade there. You’ll also find that this culture can drastically change with each new addition to the team. Smaller agencies tend to be tight knit units, where everyone has each other’s backs in any situation. At Thinktree, we don’t work with colleagues, we work with friends. It makes it easier to get out of bed in the morning to know you’ll be having fun with riveting brainstorming sessions that may or may not include a beer (If it’s a socially acceptable time.. i.e 10am onwards).
From hosting pot-luck lunches to drunken team parties to just the usual Friday night chilling session, it’s the work environment you dream of!
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Frustration is a friend indeed.
As you’d expect, it’s not all fun and games. There’s a lot of work that goes into working at an agency. Whether it’s chasing each other around for work, thinking of quirky ideas every day for the rest of your life or making 64 changes on the same creative… this life can make you pull your hair out if you let it.
Unreasonable timelines and vague client briefs is as good as Bangalore’s traffic. Everybody knows it, everybody hates it, but everybody lives with it. Stress levels rise when work shoots in and you don’t have enough time to do it, but somehow, all teams come together as a cohesive unit to pull multiple rabbits out of the same hat. The stress keeps you on your toes and you learn to like it or you leave it.
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The struggle may be real, but the reward is realer. (We know that’s not a word)
All said and done, there’s no greater satisfaction in this industry than seeing your idea come to life on a billboard, a magazine or even on TV. People have often compared it to raising a child to see it become a famous football player one day (none of us actually have children, what do we know).
You also get to expand your horizon by working with a variety of clients, giving your mind the freedom to run around with flexible shackles. Working with different brand categories makes sure your ideas aren’t restricted in a bubble that eventually bursts. It allows you to grow as a person, as part of an agency and it doesn’t harm your resume either.
We may be biased, but we love our Agency life. However, this explicit spectrum of stress to success is a long and gruelling one that you need to ache for. So if you think you have what it takes, then this life is for you. In the end, the rewards are greater than the hair you tend to lose.
Feel free to reach out to us, your friendly neighbourhood Digital Marketing Agency, at info@thinktreemedia.in or visit www.thinktreemedia.in if you have any questions!
About the author:
Vishnu Rajaram, is the chief copywriter and baller at Think Tree Media House. His pet peeves include backseat driving, the way the world works and vegans.
