Chapter 8: Making the Leap

I've been "swimming in the creative services pool" for a long time.  In fact, CBS' "Catch the Brightest Stars on CBS" campaign (you can look up the year) was my first and the great Jack Sander was my first boss.  Jack's retired now, but I'm still beating the drum for those of us who love promos, promoting stations and believe in the power of what a station means to its local community.  But, as our jobs have changed, our commitment to our communities has not.

Still, it's so common for promosapiens to get discouraged and look for greener pastures outside of television.  The reasons are simple:  more money, more respect and February, May and Novembers off.

Perhaps you've made the leap into a new marketing or creative career yourself, or are thinking about it.
I'm sure we've all done this during our careers.

"I don't need this crap.  I'm going into medical transcription.  At least I'll get sweeps off."

I certainly understand how you feel.  The same sweep stories,  the belligerent news director who feels they are an expert in marketing, the micro-managing general manager and the sales manager who needs you to produce that commercial yesterday.

But consider this about your colleagues--reporters report, engineers keep you on the air, videographers shoot and salespeople sell.  There is no one in your building who can do what you, which is everything else--and do it so well.  An old announcer friend of mind used to describe us as "The Department of What's Happening Now."  That about says it.

I don't know about you, but I can strategize, analyze, write, produce, direct, light, announce and help push any turd of a newscast to a number one position.  I'll bet you can, too.

In short, promotion people are valuable, but don't let anyone devalue you.  It's because you're a creative type and they are wannabees.  You have skills most of your peers wish they had.  But are those skills transferable to other industries?

I would love to tell you that being able to do so much with so little will be recognized and applauded by other companies that might interest you.  Medical?  Sports?  Non-profit?  All are interesting fields and ones in which you would thrive.  If you can market a newscast or image of a station that is doing better than it should, could you market a hospital, store or corporation?  Of course.  You are nothing if not versatile.

But will these other businesses you're interested in be able to "make the leap" from what they need and what you can do?  Doubtful.

When asked about my job, I describe it as "I run the in-house advertising agency, and I only have one client."
This is a concept that is foreign to a lot of businesses, specifically ad agencies, which take months to create one spot for $100,000.   The fact that you do over a thousand spots a year at a budgt of $1,000 will not make them see clearly enough to hire you.  They will NOT admire you for it.

So, what to do?  If you're ready to leave television or radio, be prepared with a pitch that really boils your skills down so you can spoon-feed your potential new employer.  You know a lot of stuff, but it might take a lot to make this apparent to someone who's never been in a station or even thought of how television promotion seeps into their minds without their even knowing it.  They've probably seen a lot of your work--they just don't know it.

If you're thinking about working at an agency or in corporate marketing, have a chat with someone in that business about what they need and want and are looking for.  Don't expect them to know what you do.  It will go right over their heads.

When you're this versatile and talented, it shouldn't be so hard to get someone outside of our industry to notice it.  The problem is that television and radio promotion is very stealth.  We get you to watch or listen to our stations without your even knowing why.  Now, that's a talent.  After thirty years, my mother still asks me "now, what do you do?"

So, go forth, but have your guns loaded.  Be ready to explain why you can do their job, because odds are, they won't see it.  I've made the leap into non-profits, and it wasn't an easy journey to a job that pays less.

If you can convince viewers that another TSR of "Killer Fish" in your newscast is a reason to watch, you can make the leap into another career.  Beware the corporate alligators, though.  They are untalented and fear what they don't understand.

They'll hire an untalented hack who comes from their field before they take a chance on you.  Hold their hands and help them live the Promo Code by making the leap together.

--RB

  

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