When I first started my career, I was a Graphic Designer. In the early 1990’s. I owned and operated my own “shop” and I serviced clients in the areas of consumer products, landscaping services and small businesses.
Back then, Graphic Designers and Writers needed only to have knowledge of the print world – which was a mainstay of the creative marketplace. Today, the floodgates have opened to a new kind of marketing and my own role has changed from Designer to Recruiter – but I still keep my hand in the world that I love best by placing freelancers and creative professionals into new job opportunities.
I am constantly telling the people I work with (both candidates and clients) that you can’t stay “old school.” Newspaper columnist Don Marquis may have said it best when he coined the phrase, “Procrastination is the art of keeping up with yesterday.” Today, there is a greater demand for Web Savvy Front End Designer along with Web Developers and Web Content/Social Media gurus. Small in-house marketing departments, big and small advertising agencies and Fortune 500 firms alike – virtually all of them are transitioning from traditional print marketing strategies to full-fledged Interactive Media Campaigns and Social Media game plans. If you’re not keeping up, you are doing a total disservice to your career.
While there is still a demand for print, designers now need a full range of Interactive Media skills to succeed and advance in the interactive world. Marketing Writers are evolving from pen and paper to screen as opportunities become more abundant in Online Content, Social Media Messaging and Blogging. Editors who have knowledge of html are also finding opportunities that include Web Content Editing.
As technology changes at a rapid pace, so do the demands of marketing and advertising needs. There are many new opportunities for creative professionals who have the foresight and ability to expand and develop new skills in an online world. One of the more
reasonable options for creative professional to advance their skills is to do some cost-effective online learning. We tend to recommend sites like http://www.lynda.com for tutorials and skill specific coursework.
If you are a “creative” or an employer, I always welcome the opportunity to chat and discuss new trends in talent and the marketplace. HBocker@LLoydcreative.com