Howdy, agency job hunter! So, you’re looking for a new job. One that’s better than what you have now. Or maybe you’re out of work. While of course, you just may want to talk with an experienced, friendly recruiter… there are lots of other ways to find an agency that will hire you.

Hint – it ain’t the job boards. Many of the candidates I speak with – terrific, well qualified professionals – send their resume in blindly to a posting they see on LinkedIn, for instance…only to never hear from the agency in question.

Sigh.

Get ahead of the listing

Better to be one of six versus one of sixty. You have a dramatically better chance of getting the job with fewer candidates in the mix. So here’s some context around two things you’re probably already doing that will help you get ahead:

Pay attention to agencies that are winning business

Uh, yeah. Agencies hire people when they’ve just won a piece of new business. And they’re usually looking for people with category experience.

Keep on top of the go-to resources: Ad Age, Adweek, AgencySpy, Mediapost, Drum and more. And if you have specific expertise in a category, take a look at trade magazines that cover that industry.

Need to stay local? Keep the newspapers in mind, too. Print isn’t quite dead. And, of course, your local business journals.

Looking for a longer lead time? Pay attention to pitches. Or pay attention to new CMOs. And then let your target agencies know a new CMO has landed, particularly if you feel it’s a good new business fit (not a conflict and looks like they’d have a good story to tell).

Pay attention to people that have just been hired at an agency

You can see new hires listed in the online trades listed above. Typically, those are senior-level announcements. You might think you’ve just missed a chance for a job. And yes, if you’re senior, that may be true. But the new person coming that was just hired probably came from another agency. And that other agency might now have an opening. And that other agency might be looking for someone like you!

What if you’re looking for a mid-level position? Well, a newly minted department head will probably making a few changes in their department. Those Account Supervisors, Strategy Directors and creatives that might be hired once the senior professional has settled in.

A new Account Director, Account Supervisor, Strategy Director or creative being hired at an agency may not be big enough to make Adweek. So go local and/or regional. Most business journals and dailies have new hire listings. Crain’s, for instance, lists this section as People on the Move.

You can also use LinkedIN for this kind of thing, too. Your mileage will definitely vary there. The easiest thing to see are friends who have changed jobs. But with some title searches and some time, you can identify recent hires at “target” agencies – agencies you want to work at.

Find more triggers, too

Hope this inspires you to look for other triggers that signify an agency will be hiring someone with your skill set. This is absolutely the kind of thing that will improve your shot at getting a job.

Layoffs, for instance, can spell agency hires. Because the agency is trying to optimize their resources (and you might have something they don’t already have.)

Or an agency moving into new markets will be hiring, too. I can think of two terrific agencies that are building footprints in great markets that could be a good fit for you.

Should you have any questions or would like to discuss your career and related interests, feel free to contact me at your convenience. Thanks!

Other articles that may be of interest:

• Recent CMO changes – pitch predictions
• Recent agency pitches, wins and losses
• How to avoid being lost in the candidate sea of sameness

photo credit: ell brown Snowshill Manor – Wolf’s Cove – a model village – telescope via photopin (license)