It’s All About Who You Know. So Get Involved Today!
In today’s society being highly qualified for a job is good but being highly qualified AND having good relationships with people in the business is better. You’ve probably heard it a thousand times, “It’s all about who you know” but let me be the 1,001 person to tell you it’s true. So now that your fully convinced that it is indeed fact time to venture out into the world of networking here are a few suggestions for getting involved and meeting people in the advertising industry.
1. Philly Ad Club–
The Philly Ad Club is a great place to start if your an undergraduate advertising student looking to meet others in the Philadelphia area. The Philly Ad Club website is a great asset because you can browse through various Philadelphia Advertising related events as well as the jobs tab which also includes internships. A student membership for the Philly Ad Club is $25 and is designed for undergraduate students in any major. As a member you will receive discounts on all Ad Clu events, access to the free professional workshops that occur throughout the year, opportunities to network and gain visibility through committee involvement, free subscription to the bi-monthly Philly Ad News magazine, and many others. There is also the Philly Ad Club Young Professionals which is a subset of the Philly Ad Club. It is a community tailored to Young Professionals in the communications industry.
The American Institute of Graphic Arts is another great way to enhance your presence in the design industry and another outlet to find amazing events in the Philadelphia Area. AIGA also has several beneficial tabs on their website including, an events tab, a portfolio tab where featured portfolios are displayed, and a jobs tab. What sets AIGA’s job tab apart from the rest is that they participate in the Unpaid Internship Pledge which makes an effort to support the ethical treatment of professional designers and students in the workplace. What this means is that the jobs listed ensure that students who accept an internship at a private sector business must receive a fair wage that meets the states’ minimum requirements. AIGA also has a Mentorship Program which engages professionals in a short-term one-on-one mentoring relationship with a design student or recent graduate in the Philadelphia area!
3. ADCP–
The Art Director’s Club of Philadelphia is yet another great way to discover Philadelphia industry events including several NomAD events where students are invited to local agencies for a networking happy hour. A student membership to AIGA is $20 and includes discount tickets to all ADCP events, discounts to area businesses, free entry to the Annual Awards Show, free online job postings on the ADCP website, and free subscription to the ADCP newsletter.
4. PhIMA–
Philadelphia Interactive Marketing Association is another great place to engage with industry professionals. They aim to open communication in a effort to increase a sense of community within the Greater Philadelphia market. Once again an events tab offers some unqiue opportunities in the area and the jobs tab lists several new openings in the industry. Joining PhIMA is free and includes networking opportunities as well as professional and personal development.
The above listed communities are just a starting point for getting involved in Philadelphia’s adverting, marketing, and design events but check out Philly Creative Guide for a complete list of creative professional organization resources and meet ups available in the Philadelphia area!
