The changing face of an Advertising Professional

Not that long ago, an Advertising Professional might have come directly from an Art School or a Communication Program, and worked their way up through the ranks. Those ranks were either in:

• the Publishing industry as a content creator (e.g. a broadcaster, photographer, cameraman, cinematographer, writer, editor, etc.),
  
• a Marketing Department as an Advertiser (e.g. a coordinator, manager, etc.), or
  
• at an Advertising Agency in the production and buying of advertising (e.g. copy writer, creative, creative director, account director, buyer, etc.).

But as the Advertising world shifts from a traditional media world to an online interactive world, new skills are necessary. Those skills are coming from the Systems Integration world. New skills that are necessary include:

• Technology-Savvy Creatives - People who really understand what can be done with a given technology and how to make it "sing"
  
• Business Analysts - To help define what is being built, how it should behave, and the desired outcomes
• Architects - Technical Analysts - Including Design Engineers and Architects who will lay the physical framework for the new system including security, volume-performance, database table structure, and other design elements
• Developers - To actually put the application together - be it an interactive ad or a web-site
  
• Test Analysts - To create and execute a test plan that will ensure the application works
• Project Managers - To keep the team and the work on track and mitigate risks to budget, scope, or delivery time.

Marketing is changing. Jump aboard for the ride.