Want to opt for a career in media planning? Here are some tips

Debojit Ghosh, a digital media planning trainee at Dentsu X, shares how his alma mater Apeejay Institute of Mass Communication (AIMC) prepared him for the advertising industry, from providing hands-on learning to mentoring him for his job interview. Edited excerpts:

How did you decide to opt for advertising?

After completing my graduation in Economics, I worked for two years as an equity trader. However, I wanted to do something different. I had never really done anything creative in my life, so I wanted to explore that side of myself. Advertising was something that brought both worlds—creative and business—together. Upon researching courses, I was drawn to AIMC’s hands-on curriculum and went on to join the institute to pursue its advertising course.

Did you get the practical learning you desired at AIMC?

Absolutely! I knew nothing about advertising when I joined college. So, I was open to all the fields and participated in a variety of college activities. We had marketing classes, marketing communication classes, public relations classes, and all of them required preparing presentations and projects. We wrote copies and made our own ads with creatives on Photoshop. I did it all and enjoyed it thoroughly. Towards the end of the course, I realised my interest lies in media planning and decided to pursue it as I had a knack for numbers.

Can you share some tips for students who want to pursue media planning?

You should opt for media planning only if you are good with numbers and interested in the technical aspect of advertising. It is an unconventional but lucrative field. He or she should work on their quantitative skills, MS Excel, and PowerPoint. They should also work on their communication skills.

Can you share some details about the work you do at Dentsu?

I make digital media plans, especially for YouTube and OTT. After making the plan, I need to execute the plans. We set up YouTube campaigns using the Display & Video 360 platform. For OTTs, we send the plans to the respective platforms, and they run the campaigns on their own after the negotiation phase. I also track the campaign performance and make reports.

Most people today, especially in tier I and tier II cities, are largely consuming digital data and digital content. So, it is a very big market for advertisers and organisations in general. This is a shift that I have observed.

You bagged the job from campus placements. How did your mentors prepare you for the job interview?

My mentors prepared me thoroughly. We had regular mock interviews. The college alumni also visited us on a weekly basis and shared industry insights with us. For media planning, AIMC director Professor Sajal Mukherjee, who specialises in the field, took special classes before the interview. He guided us on how to present ourselves in front of the interviewer.