Reflections on #MedComms Day

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For us, one of the best things about Med Comms Day, was the chance to talk to people in the industry about almost anything – not to be restricted to Med Comms (much though we love that subject of course!). We genuinely enjoy talking to candidates about their ideal job, advising them (and clients for that matter) about salary surveys and industry news, but it’s also lovely to interact on a, frankly, much sillier level. Thinking of #medcomms films, for example (I think ‘Three Billboards Outside Ebbing Missouri Are Still in Medical Review’ remains my favourite – props to @CelloHealth), and sharing picture of fluffy bunnies etc, was great fun.

I’m not the first to say it, but just watching people from all around the world get involved and seeing the wealth of variety and creativity in the industry was lovely too. We’re already looking forward to next year and, in the meantime, I have vowed to do Twitter better!

Alys Barber-Rogers (@ArsenalAlys)

How Media Recruiters Can Help Graduates Break Into The Media Industry

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How Media Recruiters Can Help Graduates Break Into The Media Industry

It is that time of year again when the final academic term ends and floods of fresh talent hit the job market! As the media industry continues to evolve and expand in scope, it is becoming one of the hardest industries to break into. However, to have a good recruitment consultant on your side can really help you to find and apply for jobs in a more targeted and effective way. Whether you’re looking for a job as a medical writer or a conference producer, an account executive or want to try sales for example, as specialists they already know the key players, where the jobs are and how to get them, so they are the best people to get in touch with.

Skills and Experience

Graduates tend to have a unique skill set, they are naturally tech-savvy innovators and social media gurus; key skills that employers are seeking in this new digital age. However, a degree alone is not going to set you apart from other graduates, understanding the importance of gaining experience is vital and that is what will keep your CV from being brushed under the pile. Here at Media Contacts we hold CV workshops to show you what to include and how to present it, enabling you to put your best CV forward to employers.

Salary and Incentives

According to The Sutton Trust, who work to raise aspirations of young people from low income backgrounds, graduates leave UK universities with an average of £44,000 of debt! Comparing this figure to the average graduate annual salary of £18,000 – £22,000, it starts to become apparent how your first pay packet can be a harsh wake up call. However, most companies have great benefits packages, offering incentives including health insurance, pension schemes, free gym memberships and a generous amount of paid holiday. Media recruiters will fight your corner to negotiate you the best salary and incentives package, leaving you free to concentrate on other things.

Top Tips for Graduates

  • Social Media

Potential employers will look through your social media. FACT. So make sure it’s clean! Showcase your skills and experience in a professional manner that reflects what is on your CV. After all, if you’re are applying for jobs in PR but your LinkedIn page says you want to be a superhero, it doesn’t look good.

  • Experience

Determination is essential to break into a competitive industry, experience is critical when job hunting, therefore DO ANYTHING YOU CAN to get a head start while at university, even if it means taking on unpaid but relevant roles.

  • Know your stuff

As well as having experience within the industry, conduct some thorough research and find out relevant information from as many sources, including, but not limited to subscribing to industry magazines, attending graduate career fairs and asking people you know already if they have any contacts. This will help you to keep up to date with what is going on, who is who and which companies are doing what.

Media Contacts is one of the top media recruitment consultancies in London, you can contact us if you have any questions and our experienced consultants will be happy to help.

What Does It Take to Secure one of the Best Publishing Jobs in London?

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Publishing jobs in London

 

Publishing has always been a hot sector, but with publishing jobs in London now more sought after than ever, how do you stand out from the competition?

 

Whilst there are always great publishing jobs in London, it can be extremely hard to land one when you are fresh out of university and looking for your first proper job. So how do you get ahead of the competition and show that you’re the one for the role? These are some of the attributes that will make a difference.

 

The Ability to Self-Publicise

Do your own PR: think of yourself as the brand and demonstrate your promotional skills throughout your CV and application. So don’t be bashful – present every skill, every bit of relevant experience and personal trait that you have in the best possible light. Remember that there may be hundreds of other applicants lining up for the few publishing jobs in London, so it’s not time to hold back. You might also consider some voluntary work, perhaps for a charity but if within a publishing team even better, through which you can get the essence of real life work experience which will be good addition to your portfolio.

 

Consider Other Locations

Yes, the publishing jobs in London tend to be the ones that everyone goes for, but there are plenty of other cities in the UK in which you can forge a rewarding publishing career. Look at Birmingham, Manchester and Leeds or Cambridge, for example, and build your contacts. There might be fewer jobs in the mix, but there are also likely to be fewer applicants per posting too, swinging the odds in your favour.

 

Broaden Your Skillset

The publishing jobs in London these days require more than the ability to engage with journalists, write press releases and hold launch events. Social media has made the industry far quicker and more exciting, so if you can demonstrate a real passion and aptitude for effective social media promotion and engagement, you will be at an advantage in the jobs market.

 

Consider Aligned Careers

The actual publishing roles are the obvious ones, but publishing houses all have a range of exciting professions that require similar skillsets. For example, you could work in sales, marketing, communications, rights, production and other areas. This will help to build your knowledge of how the industry works and make you more employable, and it will give you the chance to side-step into other roles of interest as you progress within your employer’s organisation. Often the trick is just to get into a company and then work hard to prove yourself and develop your career in the direction you want..

Employers Speeding up Hiring with the Aid of Media Recruitment

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media-recruitment

 

Unemployment is at an 11-year low and so employers are being literally forced to speed up hiring or lose top talent. Media Recruitment makes it possible.

 

The news is good. In fact, it is very good! The latest report coming out of the ONS is that unemployment is at its lowest level in the past 11 years and this means that more people are on the job in the UK. However, there is a flip side to this and that would mean that employers now have to speed up the hiring process or they stand in danger of losing top talent to the competition. With the help of Media Recruitment online, the entire process can be cut to a fraction of the time traditional recruiters take and employers get the talent they are looking for.

Recent Survey Reflects State of UK Job Market

According to a survey cited in Business Matters magazine for SMEs in the UK, almost half the 100 employers surveyed said they have had to significantly speed up the entire hiring process or lose top talent to competitors. As well, 59% of those polled said the entire process is now taking just short of two weeks and in addition to that, 92% said they were issuing offers within a 7-day period following the initial interview. To date, this rapidity in the hiring process is almost unheard of. The speed at which candidates can be found is entirely due to the capabilities of online recruiters such as Media Recruitment.

Media Recruitment Solves the One Real Issue

The biggest problem many employers are having is in finding ways to attract the top talent they seek. Many are putting out online adverts of their own or are using means to attract talent that are, for lack of a better word, archaic. It is no longer sufficient to contact a brick and mortar recruitment agency because that process is much too lengthy and by the time candidates are collected, an online recruiter (again like Media Recruitment) has snatched them up for employers they work with.

Marketing Is Key

One thing that Media Recruitment has that many recruiters lack is the knack of marketing for talent. It is, after all, the same as attracting customers to a business. It’s all about marketing and if an employer wants to attract the cream of the crop, it is essential to pull out all stops and employ a recruitment marketing strategy. This is why we excel at Media Recruitment and how we will continue to place the very best candidates in touch with the very best employers. It’s what we do, have always done and will continue to do. This new rapid-fire market enables us to shine and it is this light that brought you here today.

The Hidden Key to Successful Media Recruitment

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Media Recruitment

The hidden key to media recruitment can land you the perfect job by setting you apart from other candidates. Can you guess what it is & where to find it?

Today’s job market is more competitive than ever before and this is one of the main reasons why media recruitment is in such high demand. There may be twenty, or more, applicants vying for the same position and many of those will have comparable skills, education and even experience. However, once you find the hidden key to successful media recruitment you will unlock a door to a room where you will be the only person left standing. So, what is the key and how can you find it? You’ll never believe how simple it is!

What You Are Up Against

A large part of the problem when trying to stand out in a crowd of applicants is that you are virtually unknown. It is just as relevant to today’s employers as it is to consumers to be able to identify the face behind a brand and when it comes to applying for a job, you are your brand. You have expertise in digital media but unfortunately, to date, you are merely a presence in the ether, in cyberspace. The hidden key to successful media recruitment is visibility.

Gaining Recognition in a Sea of Faces

Every job applicant knows that a successful interview is one in which the interviewer will remember your face long after those few minutes spent in the office answering a series of questions about yourself and what you have to offer. Many recruitment professionals offer tips on body language and other ways in which to ‘ace’ those interviews, but one thing they usually don’t talk about is that hidden key – visibility.

A Different Slant on Networking to Gain Visibility

Now we get to the crux of the matter! If you step back a moment to what was said about consumers, remember that they want to know a face behind a brand. Well then, your interviewer is your consumer because you are trying to sell him or her something. That would be yourself as the person best qualified for the job. The very best way to make yourself visible to your interviewer is to find out who it is in advance and what charities they donate time and services to.

Volunteering in the same ‘cause’ will give you that instant recognition you need to set yourself apart from other candidates. It’s networking with a totally new and different perspective. By joining forces in causes that are important to that company, that interviewer, you will gain instant recognition and chances are great that it will be your name that heads the list and gets that call!