What it's REALLY like in an interview for JWT Graduate Scheme

Hello,

As part of my blog, I'd really like to describe my graduate job hunt, the application processes and my experiences along the way!

The truth is, I went in to the whole process slightly too optimistic, I was convinced that having secured dozens of placement year interviews, and passing my very first assessment centre ever, securing a job with IBM straight away and turning all of my other ones down! I presumed it was going to be just as easy to get a graduate role- I couldn't be more wrong! It's a billion times harder!!! The applications are ruthless and the deadlines are much earlier!

Recently, I was lucky enough to have an interview with one of the biggest advertising agencies in the world, JWT. After a lengthy application process, I was invited to the Account Management interviews in London.

I was told the interview would be 45 minutes long and there would be nothing to prepare. So I headed over to London, had breakfast with my friend Umesh in the Hospital Club (shout out!) and prepared for my interview. We went over my competencies, skills and experience of the marketing/ advertising world plus general facts about the company and their clients. I thought this would be great preparation as knowing the company is a great start to acing an interview!

The email said 'Smart Casual dress code' so I opted for a Black Ted Baker dress, a tailored jacket and plain black heels- as apposed to my usual suit.... however when I arrived at the offices in Knightsbridge, I couldn't have been more overdressed! Everyone else seemed to be in leggings!!!!! jeans, super duper casual wear! I stuck out like a sore thumb!

Before the interview I had been reading the graduate blog that JWT published which contained profiles of all of their 2014 grads. Literally, every single one of them attended Cambridge, Oxford, UCL, Bristol and the likes.... this immediately worried me even before I arrived on the day. I go to UWE, a previous 'poly' which focuses highly on employability through practical skills and application rather than simply academic theory. I love this part of my uni experience and honestly, I believe UWE has been great at providing me with the skills and experience and I feel 100% ready for the world of work..... something which I doubt a lot of graduates share. However, I couldn't help but feel that JWT didn't value these types of skills, however they valued a highly academic, book-smart candidate, something which I couldn't necessarily provide to that level.

However, I had been offered one of 100 interviews out of 1000's of applications- so they must have liked something right?

There were around 4 or 5 interviews happening at the same time as mine, so I chatted to a few of the other candidates whilst we were waiting, yep Cambridge studying philosophy.... Bristol studying psychology..... London studying Latin.......... thank you for confirming all of my doubts! When I told the girl from Bristol I was from UWE I think she was a little shocked! I was so proud to be sat amongst these brainy, brainy people and know that I had earned my place there! Speaking to them, I realised that none of these people were from business/ marketing backgrounds and therefore advertising agencies aren't really valuing these types of degrees!

Once I was called into the interview, I was met by a lady and a man, one from HR and one who I believe was a fairly recent graduate account manager. They were both really nice and helped me relax.

We started by talking about my degree- I wasn't really expecting this but went on to talk about my dissertation, the modules I was studying and the people I had met. We then talked about IBM, Vet's Kitchen and a couple of other projects I've been working on (read previous blog posts for more info!). This was all fine and I have written so many applications, I know these roles and skills inside out!

We then went on to talk about advertising in general and they asked me about which adverts I really liked..... my mind went really blank and I think this is where I messed up!! I had researched JWT's advertising in-depth and had hundreds of THEIR examples, without really thinking about the industry as a whole! I ended up talking about Sainsbury's Christmas advert and then M&S Christmas advert....... zzzzzzz how boring and cliche!!! My mum (a midwife) could have probably given those answers, nevermind someone who's supposed to be a mini expert in the field! She even asked me "what about non-christmas adverts" and I gave her a really crap answer about Oreo........ I literally froze I struggled so hard to find a answer that would blow them away!

I know I write a bloody blog about great advertising campaigns!!!!! But at that moment I couldn't think of a single one!!!!

We then looked at a number of adverts, the first one was a picture of a tomato on a white background with GAZPACHO written across it..... tell me how in god's name you are supposed to analyse that! It's crap!

Then there was an army advert which I think I analysed well and one for electronic cigarettes which allowed me to speak about ethics etc. which i think was ok!

Then, they asked me about my 'culture' and what I like to do in my spare time, I spoke about Enactus, my entrepreneurial society for social action- something I thought they'd really like, but they were like "No, what do you do for FUN".... but Enactus is fun!!! So I spoke about Bristol Wine Club which they seemed to like, then they said "What about aside from wine?" I just wanted to turn around and say "Well aside from studying a full time degree, running events at least 5 times a week, attending a monthly wine club, seeing my friends, writing my dissertation, acting as marketing director for enactus and doing job applications there isn't much time to do anything else" but I was too scared so I just said travelling........

All in all, I left thinking it had gone really badly- turns out it had as I didn't get a second interview! Honestly, they were ruthless and I guess I don't fit the perfect mould of candidate they were looking for, but that's OK!

I have learnt a lot about Ad Agency interviews and although I really wanted the job before I went, I am OK with not getting it! I think I would be a lot more prepared if I ever went for a similar job....these opinions are totally my own and I would love to hear if you've had a similar or completely different experience!!!!

Thank you for reading!!

Steph

PR Comedy!

Usually, I blog about huge brands with vast marketing and PR budgets and some of the industry's most talented and experienced talent! However, marketing isn't about who can spend the biggest budget or who can create a viral campaign with no reasonable purpose or intention. Sometimes, marketing can be about thinking on your feet and reacting in real-time with wit and initiative.

Check out this customer complaint from Baluga Bar & Club, local to my hometown of Preston:

Of course, this complaint was sent to the completely wrong Facebook account- the bar in question doesn't even serve food!! 

Now, the managers at Baluga, Preston had two options in this situation, reply to the message apologising for the mistake in the confusion and suggest that Bianca seek the correct restaurant OR, to use this opportunity to create some great PR and to reply to the comment with humour..... which is exactly what they did:

I think Baluga did a great job- they then shared this great response with their social media. As it was a lighthearted joke I'm sure Bianca and Baluga's REAL clientele found it funny! 

The great thing that Baluga managed was crisis aversion, by producing a humorous response to something unexpected, they managed to produce a great piece of PR!

Awesome work! :-)

Celebrity Endorsements

Every one can think of at least one advert which features a famous celebrity endorser and in advertising it is a great way of making your ads stand out!

Here are a few recent celebrity endorsement campaigns inspired by Brand Republic:

Miranda Kerr for Swarovski




This advert stood out to me recently due to the mesmerizing beauty of the products and the advert as a whole. The advert features Miranda Kerr as the beautiful jewelry model as well as a song by Pharrell Williams- two absolute superstars! The brand association with 1st class stars is a great choice and conveys the luxury element impeccably. However, the ad is just a little boring, and isn't terribly memorable. There is no story nor defining features of the brand. A competitor could easily produce something similar! Make yourself stand our Swarovski!!

Peter Andre for Iceland




This advert is unbelievably cheesy! Peter is trying to promote the low offers that Iceland can offer... yet I am distracted by the terrible acting! Iceland are famous for their cheesy celebrity endorsements, from Sharon Osborne, Kerry Katona and Ant & Dec..... but you only have to have a quick read on twitter to see the lack of disbelief that any of these stars ACTUALLY shop at Iceland!
They haven't been getting the best response over social media either:

Peter Andre/Iceland advert... Does he really get his food from there? No. Will he be tucking Into Iceland gateaux on xmas day? No.
— Renegade Economist (@RenegadeEcon) December 15, 2014

I used to be completely indifferent to Peter Andre until he started doing the Iceland ads. Now I want to kill him dead with a prawn ring.
— Hoppy The Hag (@hoppythehag) December 15, 2014

If I ever saw Peter Andre in Iceland, I'm not sure what would be worse, seeing Peter Andre or actually being in an Iceland.
— Neil Johnson (@n_gjohnson) December 15, 2014

so gutted I'm a celeb is finished but at least I don't have to watch Peter Andre attempting to promote Iceland
— amy (@innocxnce) December 7, 2014

I'm not going to lie- I didn't see one positive comment about the ads! However, Iceland know their market and at least people are talking about their brand! We will see if Peter's work with Iceland continues in to the new year!

Nicole Scherzinger for Muller



I actually really, really like these ads! And in this press release the endorsement clearly has proved success for the brand. I think Nicole is a really down to earth, glamorous person and is in touch with the UK market therefore was a great choice for Muller.

She even gets involved on Social media, which adds to the authenticity of the campaign and shows she really does endorse the product!

My fridge in my flat here in #London. #Mullerlicious baby!

A photo posted by Nicole Scherzinger (@nicolescherzy) on Dec 12, 2014 at 4:36pm PST

However, Muller need to be careful with their endorser as she was seen buying a competitor's brand in this article!

Mo Farah for Quorn



The dull voice, the boring story, you can hardly call Mo charismatic! However, I think the emphasis on protein in the diet is really important and usually overlooked by large companies who try and promote fat free or low sugar products! Also, having Mo as an endorser- an actual ATHLETE, rather than a housewife or someone who doesn't exercise.

I hope you enjoyed this post, I look forward to seeing what celebrity endorsements advertising will bring in 2015!

Stephanie

Vintage adverts!

Just looking back at adverts 50, 40 even 20 years ago and you really can see what a fast-changing industry advertising is. I have become a little fascinated with vintage advertisements and honestly, some of them are pieces of art!

Now a days, I would never dream of putting any of the posters on billboards you see on bus stops or billboards in my house, but I truly think these are worthy of an artistic accreditation!

Here are two of my particular favourites:

Can you believe this is for toilet roll! It looks angelic and the height of luxury. Of course, people who buy the product won't receive this beautiful lifestyle, however the product will make them feel like they have a tiny part of it. I think it's beautiful and extremely eye catching without being too in-your-face!

I looked at this advert for such a long time as I love the detailing in each shoe! I think it's an awesome example of appealing to female emotion and delight and taps into that feeling you get when you try on a beautiful pair of shoes! 

I think modern day advertisers could take a leaf out of our ancestor's books when it comes to the beauty within advertising!

Steph

Genius Revolution in Advertising from British Airways

Check out one of the most innovative adverts I have seen from British Airways:

As part of the #LookUp campaign, BA set up a billboard in Piccadilly Circus which tracked flights and named them as they were passing. What an amazing attraction which is not only interactive, fun and interesting but allows consumers to engage with the brand on a real-time basis.

It ignites the imagination and child-like curiosity in people and for those who imagine where the plane they see up in the sky, they can find out instantly! It is inspiring and an absolutely phenomenal piece of innovation within advertising. 

I believe the campaign could also be extended through various platforms such as a smartphone app and to give British Airways phenomenal coverage and brand experience!

The ad was created by Ogilvy!

Dylon Print Ads

Check out these beautifully creative ads from Dylon fabric dyes by Grey Paris

The campaign was titled "Give clothes a second chance" and I love the adverts! They are totally unexpected for such a low involvement product. I feel as though the emotions in the adverts are conveyed extraordinarily and are humourous! 

The ads give the viewer an emotion towards the brand and are very memorable! 

Great job!