An Advertising Assistant working for a book publishing house assists the advertising manager and other members of the advertising department in selling books. Duties of an Advertising Assistant vary depending on the size of the publishing house and the number of people working in the advertising department.
If the house is small, and the only other employee in the department is an advertising manager, the Advertising Assistant might be expected to fulfill administrative duties such as typing letters, updating the returns from mail or ad campaigns, returning phone calls, keeping records of the cost of ads, and checking prices.
In a larger house where there is an advertising manager, receptionists, and administrative assistants, the Advertising Assistant would have many more diversified duties. In this case the individual would assist in more creative ways. For example, an Advertising Assistant might be responsible for writing copy for book jackets. This could include the blurbs describing the book’s contents or information about the author. To do this the individual may have to call and interview the author to gather information.
He or she might also be asked to write copy for sales letters, circulars, direct-mail pieces, and book catalogs. It is, therefore, important that the Assistant be able to write clearly, concisely, accurately, and with style. The Advertising Assistant works with the advertising manager, learning how to budget the amount of money to be spent on each new book. For example, a book written by an author who has already written three best-sellers will have a bigger advertising budget than a book by a new author. Advertising is expensive, and publishers can’t afford to spend a great deal of money on a book subject or author not proven to be in the best-seller class.
As advertising is so costly, the advertising manager might decide to do something called list advertising. This is a type of ad in which many different books from the publisher are listed, with a short description of each. If this type of advertising is used, the Assistant will be called upon to write the descriptions of the books. At other times the Advertising Assistant writes copy for display ads for different types of publications. For example, he or she might have to write an ad for a book to go into a consumer publication, a specialty publication, and a trade journal. While the ads would be for the same book, the advertisement might be different because the periodicals are geared toward different audiences.
He or she learns how to read and use Advertising Rate and Data, the book that lists advertising rates for television, radio, magazines, and newspapers throughout the country. He or she also becomes familiar with rate cards, which tell all about prices of ads in a certain medium. At this time the individual learns the lingo of advertising—terms like ad frequency and audience size.
It is important that an Advertising Assistant know how to use a calculator and/or adding machine to check numbers and prices when working on advertising costs. In certain positions the Advertising Assistant might also be responsible for laying out ads for which he or she has written copy or those created by the advertising manager. Working in the advertising department, the Assistant may devise and/or design promotional material that will be used to advertise or sell books. Copy for materials such as the posters you see in bookstore windows, display racks, and flyers that can be given to customers must all be created and written. At times the Advertising Assistant acts as a buffer for the advertising manager. For example, irate authors may call the advertising department demanding to know why their book wasn’t advertised properly or wasn’t advertised sufficiently.
The Advertising Assistant works closely with people in the sales, promotion, and publicity departments. Together they work toward the common goal of selling as many books as possible. The job can be quite stressful due to deadlines that must be met, ads that have to be designed, or budgets that must be maintained. Hours are not always the traditional nine to five. When work has to be finished, the Advertising Assistant must usually stay late with the rest of the department.
Annual earnings for Advertising Assistants depend upon the size and location of the publishing house and the experience and responsibilities of the individual. Salaries for Advertising Assistants can range from $23,000 for a beginner in a small company to $29,000 or more for an individual in a larger publishing house.
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