The advertising industry is amuck with Millennials, like myself. Yet, without age knowledge, can you find us in your sea of employees? In contract to my colleague Kelly Eidson's article regarding the advantages of youth, I feel a Millennial must blur her age to succeed. We live in an oxymoronic world wherein agencies value Millennials' ability to fuel digital advertising growth yet do not trust us with their strategic checkbook. Americans associate business intellect with age. The greater your age, the greater your business intellect and vice versa. As the oldest of my generation start to assume management positions, we feel our success depends upon our ability to appear to be young and uncharactically tech saavy Gen-X account manager rather than an old but slightly less managerially experienced Millennial.

Few people want to tell their client that a 26-year-old is manging their account, regardless of that persons' education and experience. We use Wizard of Oz tactics to conceal ourselves behind the veils of technology. It is more difficult to detect an account managers' age if they are never seen. Yet we cannot remain that way forever. Managers meet clients. Clients, colleagues, and classmates would almost always jokingly ask 'how old are you?' upon meeting me. Despite the positive financial/brand impact that Millennials' digital advertising skills brings, the age/experience correlation is a dial which will take much longer for the industry to change.

As a result, advertising agencies need to train us on how to position our youth to our clients. Advertising agencies also need to support us and push us into the spotlight. We aren't just any account managers. We are Millennial account managers. We are helping to drive a digital revolution and your advertising account checkbook and strategy couldn't be in more capable hands.

Well, If You Want to Build Me a Gym

Incentives. Few single words possess such great power. For prospective employees, incentives in an offer letter serve the same purpose as a child in an advertisement: the target is instantly attracted to it. Prospective employees drool for Fortune Magazine's 100 Best Companies to Work For 2008. Why? Benefits. Yet, as Spiderman's Uncle Ben says, "with great power comes great responsibility." Benefits are only good if both employees and companies understand and benefit from its value. For example, recently, when I received two jobs offers from two amazing organizations with the same salary, I was torn between job responsibility and corporate perks. The strategic marketing position provided a standard incentives package: Health, Dental, 401K, and Education Compensation. However, here is a sample of the tactical marketing position's benefits: Health, Vision, Dental, 401K, Education Compensation, Complimentary gym, free beverages, referral bonuses, and volunteer days. I won't lie. I wanted the gym. I really wanted the gym. I came from the Google world: a world where you had more perks than you could ever use. However, that world also taught me that companies use perks to substitute for salary, especially in economic hard times. Just like one works for salary, one also works for incentives. They are part of your compensation, not an added bonus (literally and figuratively). If we are going to be compensated via perks, I only want useful perks or the cash. My now supervisor recognized that. She told me that although she couldn't build me a gym, she could increase my compensation. Although not all employees would benefit from a gym, she understand that benefit's value. I took the strategic position (and the cash).

Yes, free food is amazing (and no longer working for a company with a bazillion cafes still makes me heave a hungrily longing sigh). Yes, a free gym is a great incentive to stay fit (and burn off the calories from said bazillion cafes and reduce health care). And yes, transportation subsidies decrease my commute and increase my productivity. I have worked for one of the top companies on Fortune's list. However, not everybody is drawn to those incentives or those incentives have catches (cafes open between pre-work and post-work hours without to-go boxes). Although, you may think your benefits will draw young advertising professionals to you like a moth to a flame, I recommend that you segment your employees and re-prioritize your benefits list to suit each employee segment. And if not everybody will or can eat on campus, provide your employees with cookbook compensation.

Breaking Through the Millenial Clutter

I'll proudly admit that I'm a Millennial! A marketing millennial who has admired one brand for creatively breaking through the clutter. Samsung Instinct, the greatest product placement movie of all time! What is there not to love about this brand campaign?

First, I know it might be hard to believe, but Millennials are on to marketers' product placement game. Since we are on to it, why not publicly call a spade a spade in an entertaining way? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v8-GIgkyWMY. It humorously acknowledges the target's intelligence. However, Instinct's cinema quality film production and storyboard enables the brand to own a high penetration level at a low level of frequency. The action film characteristics initially attract the audience, who expect a film preview, engaging them with the ad. Once engaged, it is difficult for the audience to tune out. Finally, the brand is developing by using engagement and presenting selling points in an audience expected manner: like film stars. I.e. "featuring turn by turn GPS navigation." As one contribution to film attendance is its film stars, people pay specific attention to the 'features,' thus remembering the selling points.

How to Court a Pretty Woman

Just because I'm a Craigslist job whore does not mean that you should not treat me like Pretty Woman! Recessionary times call for drastic measures, especially for online advertisers like myself. However, despite living in an employer's market, an employer should still behave like a gentlemen on a first date in order to retain positive talent relationships.

I recently courted a best-in-class digital advertising agency only to find myself quickly dumping them at the dinner table! After LinkedIn stalking one of its directors, developing a long-term email business relationship, and finally meeting over drinks, I was very excited to finally speak with a recruiter. As we started to conclude our phone date, the recruiter asked me my target salary. Upon hearing it, he promptly informed me about the position's highly competitive talent pool - a talent pool willing to work for $30K. Opportunities are certainly worth quite a lot, but so is my credit rating! While I still am attracted to the agency's work, I could never date them long term. Top talent seeks a long term relationship and will partner with companies whose manners mimic its soul, like Zappos.com. The only prices discussed were potential media buys. Our date included an all expenses paid trip to Vegas, a trip to the "Soul Doctor," and a Polaroid for my personal scrapbook. Now, there is a company with great soles! Had things worked out between us, I could easily see myself growing old(er) with them as can other swooning potential employees.

To attract top talent, I recommend these behaviors: 1) Don't make me go Dutch! Please pay for interview travel. It indicates financial stability and employee value. 2) Don't speed date. This is a courtship. Get to know me beyond a pre-prepared questionnaire. 3) Breakup via phone not silence. Quickly tell me that we are through rather than dragging it out in ambiguity. 4) Value me for me. As an MBA, I know what I'm worth. Although advertising agencies are notorious for paying under industry average, please do not immediately low ball my desired salary. Treat me like a lady. Ladies require negotiation. Remember. Any company can find employees. However, a gentlemen company who uses these manners will almost always get the most beautiful ladies in the employment pool - and keep them too! Which do you want to be?

A YAP Bio: The Beginning (a.k.a. Why the Arts?)

Sarah Ewing started her advertising career as a five year-old belting jingles at family gatherings, holidays, and the always-popular public arenas. She graduated from the University of Notre Dame in 2004 with a BBA in marketing, a minor in music, and a dream of working in music business. Little did Sarah realize how the online marketing world would transport her career, byte by byte. She launched her marketing career composing email blasts, analyzing web impact of offline marketing initiatives, and launching national musical theatre tours at Kansas City's Starlight Theatre. The luck of the Irish whisked her across the Atlantic to Export Edge Services Inc. in Dublin, Ireland. However, Sarah did not need luck to utilize direct online marketing, website restructuring, and client management skills in a strategically crafted marketing program that acquired new multinational corporate accounts and doubled the company's net income. She simultaneously obtained a Professional Diploma in Global Trade & e-Business, winning the prize for the Best Business Information Systems student in Ireland in 2005. It was this successful passion for international online marketing that landed her Adwords Coordinator position at Google. Adding SEM to her web portfolio of marketing tricks, Sarah led and trained teams on effectively managing, optimizing, and cultivating a $2B AdWords account portfolio.
Sarah Ewing recently completed her MBA with high honors in 2008 from the University of Notre Dame Mendoza College of Business and is actively pursuing a career in digital advertising.