Expert: Sean Trapani - 9/4/2007

Question
QUESTION: Dear Prof Trapani,
I have just completed my degree in commercial art and am preparing myself for jobs in the creative dept of (preferably large)advertising agencies. But i am having a tough time preparing my portfolio. i majored in illustration whilst in college, but i don't want to make illustration a career. so basically i'm applying for jobs at the entry-level as...say...a visualiser, in a creative dept. i have a lot of illustration and design wrk already in my portfolio as well as some good copy writing......but wt do i need to add to my book to say to employers thru my work that i'm a good ideator, and a visualiser....wud it have to be like the usual visual metaphor type stuff that we see in print these days..? or wt ?....i'm really stuck right now, and don't know where to start. I wud really appreciate any advice and suggestions that u can provide. Thankyou very much.

ANSWER: Hi, Richard

I understand the challenge that you're having, and would be glad to offer a few pieces of advice.

A degree in illustration to advertising is like a degree in dentistry to cardiology. Sure, there are aspects of your training that are relevant. But an ad agency creative director will want to know that you understand the marketing side, too - things like branding theory, message appeal techniques, PRISM clusters, media strategies, to name a few.

Having knowledge of these things is the first step. Knowing how and when to apply these principles is even more important.

I'm not trying to dissuade you from your career path. But you will need to pause for a moment and immerse yourself in the "deep end of the knowledge pool, " as it were.

Being an ad man is not about being a good writer or artist. It's about understanding people and knowing how to persuade behavior. The creative skill sets are WHAT we do, but they are not HOW we do it. The distance between those two concepts can fill a text book...or 20.

If you are really serious about a career in advertising, then you have two options in my opinion. Read a lot of books on advertising and re-do your book to reflect your understanding of WHY your ads look a certain way; or, go back to school and study advertising.

If you're interested in either path, let me know. I'll do my best to suggest a reading list and/or some schools with good advertising programs.

In the mean time, you can always begin having a personal relationship with ad agencies in your area. Offer your services as a freelance illustrator (for a low rate). You'll learn people's names. Earn their trust. Then when you're ready, you'll have an easier time with the interview process.


Sean Trapani

PS - I would encourage you to stop spelling like you're texting, Richard. Break that habit right now. Today. Employers hate it. It makes you look lazy or sloppy (no matter how intelligent you really are).


---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Dear Prof. Trapani,
Thankyou for your very prompt and informative reply. I do appreciate you taking the time to answer my questions so thoughtfully and carefully. However, there are a few things that I did not mention(on purpose) in my first question to you that I feel I must mention to you here. I am an Indian student, from Mumbai. So what I meant when I said 'majored' in illustration is.....that in our system, under our B.F.A Commercial Art Degree, we are taught Advertising, Visual Communication and Communication Design, and in our final 2 years, we get to choose 'elective' subjects like illustration, photography, etc. which we learn side by side along with our main work which is basically- plain and simple advertising. The reason I did'nt go into all these details is because it was my first question, so I was concerned about size and also whether it might complicate things....because I did'nt want to confuse you and what I wanted was just some advice on portfolio building.....After all, in a way, Advertising is a universal language :-)
So, basically....I guess my only problem is that a lot of the advertising work in my book was carried out with the help of illustration and design. And it tends to appear that I was exclusively an illustrator/designer - which I know I am not. So...when it came down to adding stuff to my book, to say I understand Advertising...the reasons behind my thinking etc. .... I was having a difficulty knowing where to start as in....what should I do? should I creat some print ads in a campaign...or what? what sort of physical work will allow me to convey this message....In short...that's what I wanted to ask you.
Ok,....I do hope I've managed to explain myself and I hope that my question is not too long. Thank you very much once again and sorry for the delay in replying, as my computer was out of order for a few days.

PS - Thanks for your advice on my text messaging style of typing.

Answer
Richard, I guess the short answer is, if your book has too much illustration-based ads in it, then take them out.

As to what to replace them with, I'd have to see your book. But at a general level, I'd say replace the illustration-heavy  pieces with photography, headline and visual metaphor (photo manipulation) dominated pieces.

I might also suggest that, when going in for an interview, you could also pretend to be considering grad school as an option. Then ask the interviewer if they think you should go back for your MFA, and for specifics on your work. "Is it ready for 'prime time?' What's missing? What's working?"

Again, without having your book in front me me, it's impossible for me to know what's missing, if anything. At the very least, I would be looking for:

- 4-5 different campaign ideas
- 4-5 different individual, non-campaign ideas
- wide diversity of style (ability to understand different brands and brand-speak)
- and, examples of headline writing ability

Overall, I'd be looking for big ideas (if I was considering you for an art director position).

If you have your portfolio in electronic format, which you should, I'd be glad to review it for you.

Send a pdf or link to: strapani@scad.edu

PS - Use more paragraph breaks and fewer ellipses (...). Even in your casual writing. Nobody wants to read a giant block of text. Not even copywriters :-)