English copywriter job position in Dubai, UAE for award-winning advertising agency April 16, 2008
Posted by Farrukh Naeem at www.copywriterjournalist.com in : Advertising, Advertising Agencies, Advertising in Arabia, Advertising in Dubai, Advertising in the Middle East, Advertising in the UAE, Copywriter job, Copywriting, Copywriting vacancy, Jobs in advertising , 6 commentsA hot and creative advertising agency based in Dubai, with a wall full of creative awards and a regional and multinational presence is looking for a full time English copywriter to join them immediately.
You need to have a stunning portfolio of ads across all media, and be an expert in BTL. Long copy should come easy to you. Brochures, leaflets, posters, direct mailers should be your forte.
The agency started out as a creative hot shop around 10 years ago. Swept quite a few coveted awards as it grew, adding PR, events into its portfolio. And very soon, you could be at a good position in its own independent BTL division as its chief copywriter?
Interested?
Rush you CVs to farrukh.copywriter(at)gmail.com and I’ll forward them on to one of the founders of the agency who’s looking to meet the prospective copywriter in Dubai asap.
NOTE: To keep track of new posts and advertising jobs in dubai and uae that I put up on this blog, you can bookmark it, favourite it or scribble www.copywriterjournalist.com on your wall. Best thing to do however is just fill in your emailin the ‘Get email updates FREE!’ box on the left hand side panel and click ‘Subscribe’. You’ll get automated email notifications when I put up a new post. Cool, innit?
Ikon Advertising puts women first with Jill and Jack press ad March 8, 2008
Posted by Farrukh Naeem at copywriterjournalist.com in : Advertising, Advertising in Dubai, Advertising in the UAE, Ajmal, Copywriting, Ikon, Women's Day Ad , add a comment
Ikon Advertising published a good press magazine ad ‘Jill and Jack’ on the occasion of Women’s Day on the back page of Khaleej Times weekend.
Dubai Lynx Academy to sponsor 20 students for Dubai International Advertising Festival March 5, 2008
Posted by Farrukh Naeem at copywriterjournalist.com in : Ad Blogging, Advertising, Advertising Agencies, Advertising Awards, Advertising Events, Advertising in Dubai, Advertising in the UAE, Arabic Advertising, Art Director Job, Copywriter job, Copywriting, Dubai International Advertising Festival, Dubai Lynx Awards, Dubai Media City, Lack of creativity in advertising, Marketing , 2 commentsThe Dubai International Advertising Festival is based around the theme ’Learn to Win‘. And in line with that central theme, professionals and students from the advertising industry will have a chance to not just be inspired by award winning ads from the region and around the world, but also by the seminars and workshops that will be conducted by the top ad gurus like David Droga and Piyush Pandey.
Job for senior English copywriter, senior Arabic copywriter and PR professional for UAE January 17, 2008
Posted by Farrukh Naeem at copywriterjournalist.com in : Advertising, Advertising in Dubai, Advertising in the UAE, Art Director Job, Copywriter job, Copywriting, Freelance Journalist, PR , 6 commentsIf you’re a senior English copywriter, senior Arabic copywriter or a senior Arabic PR professional looking for an exciting project in the UAE, here’s an opportunity.
Business writer / reporter wanted for Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) October 4, 2007
Posted by Farrukh Naeem at copywriterjournalist.com in : Advertising, Advertising in Dubai, Advertising in the UAE, Copywriter Job in UAE, Copywriter job, Copywriting, Copywriting Job in UAE, Copywriting vacancy, Jobs in advertising , 4 commentsIf you’re a freelance writer, reporter or journalist willing to take up an assignment in Saudi Arabia, this post is for you.
Anti-smoking ad released on 9/11 in UAE - thought-provoking idea, copywriting and art direction September 16, 2007
Posted by Farrukh Naeem at copywriterjournalist.com in : Advertising, Advertising in Dubai, Advertising in the UAE, Copywriting, Corporate Social Responsibility, PerceptGulf, Prashant Sankhe, Prashant Yeware, Shock Advertising, Sudeep John Koshy, Tobacco Advertising , 16 commentsAnti-smoking ads are never in short supply, but this one published in Khaleej Times on 9/11 this year really made an impact on me. I think it’s a thought-provoking idea, backed by great compelling copy that makes one think and an image that sends a shiver down one’s spine.
Plagiarism in advertising: Copywriting legend Indra Sinha from the UK shares his views June 11, 2007
Posted by Farrukh Naeem at copywriterjournalist.com in : Advertising, Advertising Awards, Advertising in Dubai, Advertising in the UAE, Business Ethics, Copyright Permission, Copywriting, Corporate Social Responsibility, Ethics in Advertising, Indra Sinha, Journalism, Lack of creativity in advertising, Marketing, Plagiarism, Plagiarism in advertising, Tobacco Advertising , 18 commentsThe discussion on plagiarism and copy-paste creativity in advertising continues with this post. Looks like my earlier post has struck a chord, with the kind of response I have received. Everyone has, at least once in their life, had their idea stolen, borrowed, killed only to be resurrected again with someone else’s name on it.
An interesting, almost ironic, thing happened right after I posted my content online. Zeid Nasser of MediaMe.com, a friend and fellow ad blogger in the region, re-posted my post, almost in its entirety, on his home page with a link back to my blog. (Thanks, Zeid.) The post has been titled ‘Plagiarism in the Middle East on the rise‘ which I have asked Zeid to reconsider since my post is about the ad industry not the Middle East. Interesting how far one post can go on the net, isn’t it?
I was also asked by a member of the Arabic media to comment on this issue. Good to know the interest generated by this theme. As I had written, plagiarism is a relevant issue that needs to be talked about. The post might have made some creative directors uncomfortable. Cool.
The most amazing part has been the mail sent in by Indra Sinha. He is a copywriting legend who needs no introduction. His work for Amnesty International and Metropolitan Police will have any ad lover mesmerised. I would even go so far as to say that Indra is what young copywriters may want to be when they grow up. And this is what Indra wrote to me that I would like to share with you:
Plagiarism and copy-paste creativity in advertising – copywriter in Dubai, UAE, continues the discussion on ethics in advertising June 9, 2007
Posted by Farrukh Naeem at copywriterjournalist.com in : Advertising, Advertising Awards, Advertising in Dubai, Advertising in the UAE, Copyright Permission, Copywriting, Ethics in Advertising, Farrukh Naeem, Internet Advertising, Journalism, Lack of creativity in advertising, Marketing, Plagiarism, Plagiarism in advertising , 36 commentsWe the creative people in advertising – the creative directors, copywriters, art directors, graphic designers – take great pride in producing original ideas. At least that’s what we claim.
Then we see from amongst us, creatives being caught for copying not just a treatment or idea but entire sentences, phrases, tag lines, layouts with the fonts and visuals. I have even received emails from you, dear readers, alerting me to plagiarised ads. (An ad-blogging friend had sent me a copy of an ad he felt was a rip-off which he couldn’t put on his blog because they were also working for that client.)
The lack of self respect when one simply lifts someone else’s concept and execution is one of the reasons why we the advertising people have earned ourselves the notoriety of being in one of the least respected professions in the world. We have brought this upon us. (That email forward about “Don’t tell my mom I work in advertising…” comes to mind.)
Some of us just can’t help lifting stuff from advertising awards books. I have seen it happening so much, it has almost become an industry norm. Sad.
I remember one creative who kept the awards book he copied from, safely tucked in his drawer. So that no one will ever know where his ‘inspiration’ came from. His best idea was traced back to that book in his drawer.
Perhaps it’s the pressure of winning awards. Perhaps it’s the lack of confidence in some people about creating something world class with their own mind. It’s not what one would expect from an industry like ours, bursting at the seams with highly talented people. We have some of the brightest minds in business in the ad agency cubicles, halls, water cooler areas.
Call me a dreamer, but I am sure many of us in advertising believe that we don’t have to copy things from awards books and other people’s portfolios and websites. Yes, ideas are everywhere. But taking someone’s layout and copy?
And people who get into the habit of copy-paste don’t just stop at ad layouts. I recently came across a profile of an ad man that reads just like mine with exact phrases from my profile, on the same online network, in my own city!
I am reproducing a few of the many, many ’coincidences’ I found below in this person’s profile:
My network profile: (Wants) partnerships for projects across the globe
Copy-paste profile: (Wants) Partnerships for projects across the globe
My network profile: campaigns for TV, radio, press, magazines, outdoor, direct marketing and the internet
Copy-paste profile: campaigns for TV, radio, press, magazines, outdoor, direct marketing and the internet
My network profile: worked on some of the hottest brands in the world
Copy-paste profile: worked for some of the hottest brands and companies in the world
I could have provided you a link to our friend’s profile – but then this post isn’t about any particular person. However, if you want to hire a ‘global creative director’ who’s good at copying and pasting things, email me and I might just give you the link.
Anyway, this post is about an unethical and unflattering practice that I feel does disservice to our advertising profession. It’s about two buttons on our keyboard - ‘Ctrl’ and ‘C’. Let’s not use them too much.
In the coming days, I plan to have a few more posts on copy-paste creativity in the world of advertising because discussion on this is relevant and needed, specially in the time of the internet which makes plagiarism easy to do. But then, it has also become easier to track. Thank you, Google.
Take the case of this blog as an example - I caught someone copying content from my blog, from as far as Russia, and pasting it as his own writing. Such a content-scraper can be easily banned from their web host on charges of copyright violation and breach of TOS. (Quoting from this blog, as this blog’s copyright notice says, is fine as long as the quote is attributed and linked back to my blog as the source.) I believe in open source and information sharing but am strongly against plagiarism and credit-stealing.
What is your verdict, dear readers?
When does inspiration or benchmarking become plagiarism?
Have you met friends in the profession who feel it’s cool to copy as long as one doesn’t get caught?
Have your ideas and ads been lifted by other creatives who don’t have what it takes but are faking it?
If you are a brand manager or marketer, would you hire a self-professed ‘global creative director‘ who’s been caught stealing ideas from others and passing them as his own?
Comments are open… I don’t fancy anonymous ones though.
Creativity and advertising in the UAE - The important role young creatives play May 25, 2007
Posted by Farrukh Naeem at copywriterjournalist.com in : AGA, Advertising, Advertising Awards, Advertising in Dubai, Advertising in the UAE, Apple, Arabian Gulf Advertising, Bilal Kerbaj, Cannes Lions 2008, Copywriting, Farrukh Naeem, International Advertising Association (IAA), Journalism, Keshav Naidu, Marketing, Sheetal Rajan, Shiva Kumar Thekkepat, Team Y&R , 4 commentsKeeping you posted on the latest advertising, marketing and creativity trends in the UAE and worldwide, I’d like to recommend today’s Gulf News Friday article by the senior journalist Shiva Kumar Thekkepat.
The report is in the light of the recently concluded Cannes Lions Young Creatives 2007 competition, which pits the wits of young agency creatives under 28 years for a chance to represent their agency and country at the global level.
The global Gold winners will enjoy a full delegate registration to Cannes Lions 2008, including hotel accommodation courtesy of the Festival, and many other goodies, like an Apple iPod!
The winning work is made available to a real client, usually a non-profit/charity organisation.
In the Gulf News article, Shiva talks to Sheetal Rajan and Bilal Kerbaj of Arabian Gulf Advertising (AGA) Dubai who won Gold and Keshav Naidu and Umran Shaikh of Team Y&R, Dubai who won Silver.
And a little surprise - you’d see your favourite ad blogger in the feature too. I shared views on the importance of encouraging young talent. And the days when agencies here in the UAE insisted on only talking to people with ‘minimum 10 years of experience’. And what global creative bigwigs who were here during Dubai Lynx said about our standards of creativity.
Also, why I respect creative people in the Middle East because I believe we try harder (think the legendary ‘We Try Harder‘ campaign). Like when we get a brief to promote skin care without showing any skin. And sell lingerie but stay clear of any product shot. Well, you get the picture 
Farrukh Naeem, copywriter and journalist, talks to Shiva Kumar Thekkepat of Gulf News on advertising and creativity in the UAETechnorati Tags:
Farrukh Naeem, Copywriter Dubai, Copywriter UAE, Media in UAE, Team Y&R, AGA, Young Creatives, Shiva Kumar Thekkepat, Keshav Naidu, Advertising Blogger, Arabian Gulf Advertising, Bilal Kerbaj, Cannes Lions 2008, Sheetal Rajan, International Advertising Association (IAA), Dubai Lynx, Copywriting, Friday, Dubai, Creativity, Apple iPod, Journalism, Life In The UAE, Gulf News, Advertising in the UAE, Middle East Advertising, Creative Awards, Advertising Awards, Advertising in Dubai, uae advertising, Marketing
Apple Macintosh’s legendary ‘Think Different’ campaign by TBWA Chiat/Day: A dream ad for any creative copywriter
Posted by Farrukh Naeem at copywriterjournalist.com in : Advertising, Advertising Awards, Apple, Apple Advertising, Copywriting, Farrukh Naeem, Freelance Journalist, Jennifer Golub, Jessica Schulman, Lee Clow, Marketing, Richard Branson, TBWA, TBWA\Chiat\Day, TV commercial , 10 commentsFor me as an advertising copywriter in Dubai, UAE, it’s good to benchmark with ads that have made a global impact. What is the stuff that memorable ads are made of?
One campaign that remains etched in my memory and gives me the I-wish-I’d-done-that feeling is Apple Macintosh’s ‘Think Different‘.
The personalities that the campaign featured were the ‘crazy ones’, who zigged when others zagged. The campaign theme ‘Think Different’ itself is a rule-breaker, as my fellow copywriters will notice. Here’s what the script of Apple’s legendary ad spot said…
Here’s to the crazy ones.
The misfits.
The rebels.
The troublemakers.
The round pegs in the square holes.
The ones who see things differently.
They’re not fond of rules.And they have no respect for the status quo.
You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them.About the only thing you can’t do is ignore them.
Because they change things.They push the human race forward.And while some see them as the crazy ones,
we see genius.Because the people who are crazy enough to think
that they can change the world… are the ones who do.
The ‘Think Different’ campaign featured many people whose lives and thoughts I find inspiring - Mahatma Gandhi, Albert Einstein, John Lennon, Bob Dylan, Mohammed Ali and Richard Branson whose autobiography I am reading these days.
This is what I am talking about:
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KreJkItCk4E]
Some of the people from TBWA\Chiat\Day who made this award-winning ad campaign happen - Lee Clow, Chief Creative Officer, Jennifer Golub, Executive Producer, Jessica Schulman, Art Director - share their experience in ‘The Making of Think Different’ on YouTube.
Which one is your favourite legendary ad? An ad made you wish you were in advertising when you were a kid? Let me know and maybe we could share it here on this blog…
Your comments are welcome and appreciated - click here to -> ’add your comment‘.
Useful Links:
1. Electric Escape reproduces an article by Stuart Elliott of the New York Times with an interview of TBWA Chiat/Day’s Lee Clow, Jessica Schulman, Jennifer Golub and Dan Bootzin
2. Detailed info by canadian-helper-ga on Google Answers about the background, credits and awards won by the ‘Think Different’ campaign
3. Wikipedia entry for the ‘Think Different’ campaign (yeah, it’s that legendary!)
Technorati Tags:
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Web copywriter job at WSI Dubai, UAE February 10, 2007
Posted by Farrukh Naeem at copywriterjournalist.com in : Advertising, Advertising in Dubai, Advertising in the UAE, Copywriter job, Copywriting, Copywriting vacancy, Jobs in advertising, Marketing , 5 commentsCreative advertising copywriters looking for a job in Dubai or UAE - here’s an interesting Web Copywriter vacancy in the Dubai office of WSI, ranked the #1 Internet Services Business in the world by Entrepreneur magazine.
Here’s what they have told me they are looking for:
Web Copywriter job profile
The Web Copywriter would responsible for the editorial development of Search Engine Marketing campaigns. This includes writing keyword rich and marketable titles, descriptions, Web content, articles, and news releases.
Web Copywriter skills needed
Candidates must have a strong interest in search engine marketing, enjoy internet research and demonstrate solid writing skills. A basic knowledge of HTML is preferable. Also, strong learning skills are a must, as the company will be providing a full learning program covering writing for the web in general, and for search engine marketing in specific. As this is an entry level position, they do not require long experience record. Fresh graduates are welcome to apply. Main language is English, but being bilingual (+Arabic) would get you extra points.
Interested?
Rush your CVs to copywriter@ezwsinet.com
[If you are an advertising agency recruiter looking for creative directors, copywriters, art directors, graphic designers, account servicing or account planning people, I'd be happy to post your vacancy on my blog like the post above and take your message to many thousand ad agency people who visit my blog. Mail me at farrukh_copywriter@yahoo.com with your advertising vacancy details or call me at 00 971 50 7151722 for a chat. I reserve the right to publish a vacancy. Any ads asking for specific nationalities or ethnicities will be rejected outright.]
Technorati Tags:
Advertising, Copywriting Job in the UAE, SEO, Copywriter, Job in Advertising, Web Copywriter, Copywriter Dubai, Copywriter UAE
Dubai Lynx 2007: World’s top advertising creatives to gather in Dubai, UAE February 7, 2007
Posted by Farrukh Naeem at copywriterjournalist.com in : Advertising, Advertising in Dubai, Advertising in the UAE, Copywriting, Dubai Lynx Awards, International Advertising Association (IAA), Marketing , 8 comments
Dubai Lynx, the inaugural advertising and communication awards honouring creative excellence across the Middle East and North Africa have handpicked the jury members from creative teams across the world.
Which means that once again Dubai is going to host some of the top personalities of the advertising world, after it made history last year by having the largest ever World Congress of the International Advertising Association (IAA). You can see pictures of the IAA event in my earlier entries on this blog.
As an agency creative, what pleases me most is that while the IAA event was swarming with the ’suits’ – this one’s the creatives’ night out. The judges are top creative people from around the world, the judged being adventurous creatives from the region. Also, in the past few award functions held locally, people have felt that the local interactive work needs to be judged by experts in interactive media - and Dubai Lynx has a dedicated jury for interactive submission. That should make everyone happy.
Needless to say - it’s a pioneering effort - a first time event in the UAE. Can’t wait to cover it!
Here are the creative people you’re likely to rub shoulders with at the Dubai Lynx…
Dubai Lynx: TV/Cinema, Print, Outdoor & Radio Jury Members
USA, Jonathan Harries, Worldwide Chief Creative Officer, Draft FCB Group (Jury President)
Australia, Rob Belgiovane, Executive Creative Director, Belgiovane Williams Mackay
Germany, Amir Kassaei, Chief Creative Officer, DDB Germany
India, Ravi Deshpande, Chief Creative Officer, Contract Advertising
South Africa, Conn Bertish, Executive Creative Director, JWT
Spain, Jürgen Krieger, Executive Creative Director, Grey & Trace Barcelona
Sweden, Tove Langseth, Creative Director, Lowe Brindfors
Sweden, Adam Kerj, Executive Creative Director & Founding Partner, Saatchi & Saatchi
Thailand, Chukiat Jaroensuk, Chief Creative Officer, Euro RSCG Flagship
UK, Alasdair Graham, Creative Partner, Ogilvy Advertising
Dubai Lynx: Direct & Interactive Jury Members
Austria, Fred Koblinger, CEO, PKP Proximity & BBDO Holding Austria , (Jury President)
Australia, Chris James, Creative Director - Interactive, BMF Interactive
Finland, Kari Eilola, Creative Partner, Bob Helsinki
France, Valérie Lévy-Harrar, Chief Creative Officer, Euro RSCG 4D
France, Eva Klaass, Creative Director, Draftfcb
Germany, Olaf Oldigs, Executive Creative Director, KolleRebbe Hamburg
Italy, Fidelio Perchinelli, Managing Director, Assocuminicazione
Norway, Öystein Svaröd, Owner, Svaröd Direct
The Netherlands, Coen Weesjes, Creative Director, Downtown – Actionmarketing
Portugal, João Novais de Paula, President, DirectiMedia, Marketing Directo
South Africa, Nici Stathacopolous, CEO, Proximity#ttp
Spain, Stephane Sembinelli, CEO & Founder, SHOOT!
Switzerland, Roger Ruegger, Creative Director, FutureCom Interactive
Turkey, Salih Güngör, Creative Consultant, Guzel Sanatlar Saatchi & Saatchi
UK, Colin Nimick, Executive Creative Director, OgilvyOne Worldwide
“We are so pleased to have such gifted, well respected and prominent industry figures to judge the new Dubai Lynx awards. It’s important that agencies in the Middle East and North Africa benefit from their work being judged impartially by an international panel.”
- Phil Thomas
CEO of Cannes Lions, Eurobest and Dubai Lynx
Looks good, doesn’t it? What do you think? Is this going to make a difference in the region’s creativite benchmarks? Will more awards make us do better work? Will these make clients eager to try more courageous campaigns and take leaps of faith with their agencies?
Click the ‘Add comment’ link to express your opinion…
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Dubai Lynx, Advertising Awards, Cannes, Advertising, Creativity, Marketing, Advertising in UAE, Advertising in the Middle East and North Africa, Advertising MENA, Creative Awards, Dubai, Lynx, Advertising Agency, International Advertising Association, IAA, Dubai Media City
Advertising and Creativity in the UAE on the 35th National Day of the United Arab Emirates December 2, 2006
Posted by Farrukh Naeem at copywriterjournalist.com in : Advertising, Advertising in Dubai, Advertising in the UAE, American Garden, Arabic Advertising, Copywriting, Etisalat, Home Centre, Leo Burnett, Marketing, The Classic Partnership, UAE National Day, du , 5 commentsThe United Arab Emirates (UAE) celebrates its National Day on 2 December. Occasions and celebrations like this one are a good time to check out and compare ads - the playing field being somewhat level even though each brand might have a different take on the same occasion. Here are a few ads from the UAE that caught my attention. Your feedback is welcome, as always, in the comments section of this post.
American Garden Ad - Way to this man’s heart
Credits: Face 2 Face (Thanks to Mohamed Somji who has supplied the credits for this one and explained why this ad was taken off the mupies in the comments section)
The ad above was my favourite this year. Fresh, relevant to the brand, and very tasty looking. If you haven’t already noticed, I have a weakness for appetising ads.
du Ad - Don’t you just luuurv these cute beoble?
Credits: Is it Leo Burnett? They’re handling du, but I don’t know if this was created by du or by the guys responsible for Freej - Lammtara Pictures.
It’s just amazing the way du has adopted these adorable characters - excellent strategy to win the hearts and minds, at least of the local community. Freej is a local Emirati animation series which made its debut this Ramadan and du is the new telco in town in the UAE, now competing with Etisalat which had been the sole telco operator in the Emirates till earlier this year. Ready made brand ambassadors for du, solid corporate support for the film makers - I’m a believer in such strategic partnerships.
I wish they’d translate Freej and introduce expat characters in there too - to make both the series and the appeal international. If that does happen, remember, you read it here first. Hey, if you think of having a weird Indian character in there, you know who to call for writing the dialogues!
So, what do you think of these ads? Did you see or make any other that you would like to see on my blog? Comment, email, call - our lines are open, now…
Technorati Tags:
Advertising, Advertising in the UAE, United Arab Emirates, UAE, UAE National Day, Leo Burnett, The Classic Partnership, American Garden, Freej, du, Lammtara Productions, Creativity, Dubai, Marketing
Brilliant advertising copy for a brilliant client - Hewlett-Packard (HP) the company of inventors November 21, 2006
Posted by Farrukh Naeem at copywriterjournalist.com in : Advertising, Copywriting, Hewlett-Packard, Marketing , 10 commentsHewlett-Packard is a dream client to make ads for. In fact, most IT brands are great to work for, specially if you are a techie like me. I have written for HP, Compaq and Microsoft and I just can’t get enough.
There’s one ad by HP which is a part of its memorable ‘invent’ campaign that I would love to hang as a poster on my wall. It has what HP calls “Rules of the Garage“. The copy is simple, powerful and inspiring - it works for any team, in fact, not just a bunch of IT wizards.
My salute to the writer who wrote this and the agency and client team that made this ad happen.
What do you think? Do you find the copy inspiring? Have you written an ad like this? If so, mail it to me at farrukh_copywriter@yahoo.com and I’d be happy to share it here with our readers. If you’ve worked on this ad, mail me the credits and I’ll put them up here.
Credits Update:
Special thanks to Mark Wenneker who’s emialed me the credits. So, the guys behind this amazing ad are:
Client: Hewlett Packard
Agency: Goodby, Silverstein & Partners
Creative Director/Writer: Steve Simpson
Art Director: Mark Wenneker
Perceptgulf’s vacancy ad for copywriter, art director and account manager November 16, 2006
Posted by Farrukh Naeem at copywriterjournalist.com in : Advertising, Advertising in Dubai, Art Director Job, Client servicing job, Copywriter job, Copywriting, Copywriting vacancy, Jobs in advertising, Marketing , 30 commentsThere was recently a flood of recruitment ads by advertising agencies in Dubai looking for copywriters and art directors. Perceptgulf’s ad made me smile a wicked smile.
I talked to Prashant Sankhe, the Creative Director at Percept Gulf who made this ad happen.
“I think nobody has portrayed the pencil like this before,” he said.
As you can see, this ad shows a pencil labelled with ad vacancies on its various parts. The lead tip invites English copywriters and proofreaders to apply, the sharpened end calls art directors and graphic designers, the middle part is labelled for production coordinators, and the punchline…
The eraser is labelled ‘client servicing’ - Arab and European - for account manager and account executive posts. Clever!
And he’s been asked more than once: “Why did you put the eraser like that?”
“That’s the interesting point,” is Prashant’s answer. You bet!
Perceptgulf is affiliated to Hakuhodo which is among the top ten advertising groups worldwide. You can mail your CVs to prashants@perceptgulffz.com for creative positions and to cheriank@perceptgulffz.com for client servicing positions - you erasers (sorry, couldn’t resist that.)
If you are a creative reading this - tell me why this ad makes you smile. And if you are a ’suit’ reading this - tell me why you don’t love me anymore (wicked me). The comments are open.
Technorati Tags:
Advertising, Marketing, Copywriting, Art Direction, Client Servicing, Copywriter, Creative Director, Jobs in Dubai, Advertising Jobs in Dubai, Copywriter Job, Art Director Job, Percept Gulf
Copywriting jobs in the UAE January 31, 2006
Posted by Farrukh Naeem at copywriterjournalist.com in : Advertising, Advertising in Dubai, Advertising in the UAE, Copywriter Job in UAE, Copywriter job, Copywriter job in Dubai, Copywriting, Copywriting Job in UAE, Jobs in advertising, Marketing, advertising jobs in uae, copywriting job in dubai , 74 commentsIf you’re looking for a job in advertising in the UAE, these are the usual routes:
1. Spot the vacancies in the local newspapers
Gulf News and Khaleej Times are good places to start. The print editions have supplements dedicated to ‘Appointments’, while the usual classified ads can be browsed online.
2. Look for your dream job in an advertising/marketing community website
My friend Zeid Nasser’s mediame.com is a good place to begin.
3. Go through recruitment agencies and headhunters
Most advertising vacancies are posted in the papers through recruitment agencies. Many advertise the jobs available on their own sites and you can apply online.
SOS and Kershaw Leonard are currently looking for copywriters. You can visit them online and apply.
4. Contact your dream agency directly
Sometimes, the best thing to land a good job in advertising is to meet the Creative Director of your dream agency directly. Even if a CD does not have a copywriting position waiting to be filled, a few minutes with a good one can get you valuable feedback on your portfolio.
Visiting an agency and meeting its creative head helps you understand the agency and its expectations better.
But be warned: CDs are very busy souls and you must not be pushy in trying to arrange a meeting with them. Most will be happy to give you a few minutes of their time, when they have a few to spare. Which is rare. It rhymes, eh?
5. If you apply everywhere and nothing seems to work, don’t get mad…
Get even. Start your own agency. Or freelance copywriting business.
Dubai Media City and RAK Free Zone can help you establish your own advertising/copywriting operation with minimum red tape.
There are many other ways to stay in touch with the advertising world.
Networking helps. Knowing people in the industry will keep you updated on the trends: who’s moving, who’s scouting for talent, etc.
In a multicultural place like Dubai, a few advertising decision makers have a tendency to try and pull in their ex-colleagues from back home, whichever country they are from. Unfortunately, I have seen this sometimes leads to groupism in the agency, so this is an option I do not personally admire or encourage.
Even though I usually have a friend or two in most top agencies but I don’t use friends to pull any strings. Because if one is good at what one does, getting spotted in a crowd of applicants isn’t usually a problem.
Of course, there are Murphy’s laws. And luck too.