Advertising Industry Overview

The US advertising and marketing services industry comprises about 37,000 companies with combined annual revenue of about $88 billion, according to Hoovers. Some of the largest players offering jobs in advertising are Interpublic, Omnicom, Valassis Communications, as well as the US operations of Publicis and WPP. The industry is fragmented: The top 50 companies generate about one-third of revenue. In this creative business, size does not always correlate with success.

Advertising Job Market

Advertising, promotions and marketing managers held 216,800 jobs in 2010, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). Jobs for managers of advertising, promotions and marketing operations are forecasted to grow by 14 percent from 2010 to 2020, about as fast as the average for all occupations, the BLS reports. Nearly 30,000 new advertising job opportunities are expected to open up over the decade.

Both corporate marketing departments and advertising agencies offer numerous career opportunities in advertising. Advertising jobs at some small boutique ad agencies are among the most prestigious in the industry.

Although many advertising professionals still devote most of their efforts to print, broadcast and cable media, the Internet and other digital media offer the greatest potential for career growth.Professionals who can successfully integrate campaigns in traditional and digital media and measure results to continuously improve performance are well-positioned for success in their advertising careers.

Typical jobs in advertising include advertising director, creative manager, digital strategist, media planner, media buyer, copywriter, designer, sales executive and account executive.

Advertising Salaries

Median annual wages were $45,250 for advertising sales agents in May 2011, with the middle half earning between $30,750 and $68,900, the BLS reports. For advertising and promotions managers, median annual wages were $87,650, with the middle half earning between $59,780 and $128,840 and the top 10 percent earning more than $186,600.