Being within the creative industry usually provides a number of different ways you can navigate your career, which is usually working within a creative agency, (whether it’s in-house or agency) or you decide to freelance.

As a Creative, I’ve been able to experience working as both a full-time freelancer and at a creative agency. It’s coming up to a year working at a creative agency and I’ve learned a few things that I would not have if I didn’t, which I think could serve valuable to those that are considering their career path.

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So, here are some useful things that I have learned from my experience at a creative agency

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Creativity Holds More Significance than I Thought

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I always knew that creativity held value, but being in an environment where creative work was constantly being pitched to well-known brands with big figures, that was definitely an eye-opener that quickly made me realise how much brands understand the significance of its impact on their marketing. To add to this, the figures that are attached to these projects came at a price I never would have thought of, or why, which actually helps lead to my next point

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You Gain a New Understanding of the Creative Process

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When I was a freelance designer I was driven by creating, I had to learn accounting and sales when speaking and reaching clients too. However, in an agency, everyone has their role that they do best, though it requires collaborating with other departments to get projects going. From being immersed in the process I could see the significance of having a team to bring the ideas to reality, as well as handling the tasks that you would rather not want to do.

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I always heard about ‘strategy’ but didn’t really understand its role in creativity until i realised the role it plays when pitching ideas to clients and why an idea would be the correct route in addressing their business pain-point. A resource that helped me understand Strategy and provide a comprehensive guide was a book called ‘Creative Strategy and the Business of Design’ by Douglas Davis. Strategy allows for flexibility in how you can pitch your work, where you can provide additional routes a client could potentially execute and explore which shows you’ve considered the client’s budget.

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Paid Training

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Getting the opportunity to go to workshops, learn from industry leaders, and getting to learn new technical skills on the job is something that comes in super handy when working in an agency and works out a lot cheaper compared to having to buy them as a freelancer. However, with the amount of autonomy that you have as a freelancer, you can dive deep into a skill set that can set up your niche and allow you to really learn to master that skill if you wish to.

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Network Building

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Working in-house at a creative agency has opened up the opportunity for me to meet so many people, each with their own skills, and has heightened my curiosity. Just being around people with such a diverse range of skills has helped me to approach projects with a new perspective, improve upon the skills that I already possess, and provide the chance to have a go at something I may not have had the chance to previously. For example, directing has not been something I’ve had a lot of experience in until being able to have the opportunity to do so here. That includes writing a visual treatment, script, and sound design - my perspective of the creative process has broadened so much due to the people that I’ve met and built good relationships with.

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And Lastly…

The thing that I found that stands strong for those who are in the industry is being able to build trust with those around you. If you show that you can be trusted to do a good job on projects, there’s a good chance that you’re going to be able to work on more projects that you like and take on more work that you like.

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Everyone has to start somewhere, and this is a journey that I am highly enjoying. I get to be creative and make a living out of it. Everyone is at different stages in their career so there’s no need to compare. Working in-house comes with so much, but I think there’s a lot of good that comes out of it. There are a few options on how to navigate your time in the creative industry, so definitely find what works for you, maybe you prefer freelancing, or maybe you like being at a creative agency. Whatever you choose, just make sure it brings the best work out of you.