Advertising is a type of marketing communication used to promote or sell something - like goods, services, or ideas. Because there are so many steps to creating an advertisement, and given the varied types of jobs in the industry as a whole, there are many advertising job titles and descriptions.

Advertising is usually paid for by sponsors and viewed through various media such as websites, newspapers, magazines, television, radio, outdoor advertising, or direct mail. An advertising firm might create advertising campaigns for various clients, or for one company.

Read below about some general advertising job categories, and a list of advertising job titles.

Use these lists when searching for a job in advertising, or learning about opportunities in the advertising industry. You might also use these lists to encourage your employer to make certain the title of your position to fits your responsibilities.

Types of Advertising

Commercial

Commercial advertising describes advertisers who are selling a product or service. Advertisements for these items showcase the features of goods and services appropriate to the type of media involved. Television and video stream ads might focus more heavily on graphics, while magazines or internet blog ads might be more text-based.

Non-commercial

Non-commercial advertisers spend money to advertise items other than a consumer product or service. These would include political parties, interest groups, religious organizations, and governmental agencies.

Advertising Job Titles

People in advertising have a wide range of skills, especially strong communication skills which are required in many different kinds of jobs within the advertising industry. Below is a list of some of the most common advertising job titles. For more information about each job title, check out the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Occupational Outlook Handbook.

Creative Development

The creative arena of advertising employs many workers responsible for putting together the visuals for magazine and newspaper advertisements, television advertisements, or brochures and corporate reports. Jobs such as advertising copywriters and graphics designers work under a creative or art director. Advertising copywriters write print ads, online ads, brochures, or commercial scripts for a variety of ad mediums, and also need to be able to spot spelling and grammar errors easily. Graphic designers create visual concepts, by hand or using computer software.

Advertising Copywriter

Advertising Photographer

Art Director

Copy Associate

Copyeditor

Copywriter

Creative Technologist

Editorial Photographer

Graphic Artist

Graphic Designer

Illustrator

Motion Graphics Designer

Preprint Analyst

Print Traffic Coordinator

Production Artist

Producer

Web Designer

Writer

Management

An advertising manager oversees all of the advertising activities of a particular company. They help implement advertising campaigns, oversee all employees within the advertising department, maintain the advertising budget, and make sure each campaign is a success. They are in charge of making sure the client is satisfied with the ad agency’s advertising strategies.

Account Director

Account Executive

Account Manager

Account Supervisor

Advertising Campaign Manager

Advertising Director

Advertising Manager

Advertising Sales Director

Advertising Traffic Manager

Broadcast Account Manager

Creative Director

Digital Advertising Manager

Digital Advertising Sales Manager

Events Manager

Major Account Manager

Marketing Manager

Media Account Director

Media Director

Online Advertising Director

Online Advertising Manager

Print Traffic Director

Print Traffic Manager

Promotions Manager

Sales Manager

Senior Account Director

Social Media Advertising Manager

Marketing

A marketing associate helps a marketing or advertising office run smoothly. They might perform administrative tasks and conduct market research, analyze consumer data or create marketing and advertising materials such as brochures. Marketing associates need strong written and oral communication skills in order to interact with employers, colleagues, clients, and vendors.

Advertising Assistant

Advertising Buyer

Advertising Coordinator

Advertising Specialist

Agency Account Coordinator

Assistant Account Executive

Assistant Buyer

Assistant Media Planner

Brand Manager

Client Strategist

Client Support Specialist

Communications Coordinator

Content Marketer

Developer

Digital Advertising Specialist

Digital Media Planner

Interactive Media Buyer

Interactive Media Planner

Internet Advertising Buyer

Junior Account Planner

Marketing Associate

Marketing Coordinator

Media Buyer

Media Coordinator

Media Planner

Media Research Analyst

Media Specialist

National Account Coordinator

Online Advertising Coordinator

Target Marketing Strategist

Traffic Manager

Web Analytics Consultant

Sales

An advertising sales department is responsible for selling media space to advertisers. If they work for a magazine publisher, they sell space (such as half a page or a page) in the magazine. If they work for a TV station, they sell airtime to advertisers. They locate and meet with potential clients, provide all necessary information, and close advertising campaign sales.