How competitive is it getting on the ESPN advertising team?
I am a college student at San Jose State University study majoring Economics and minoring in Advertising. I have always been interested in creating ads and I have always loved sports! So I feel like ESPN would be an awesome fit for me. What does it take for me get on the ESPN team? #sports #advertising #sports-marketing #espn
3 answers
Brittany’s Answer
Hey Ben!
You probably want to look into Marketing. There are a lot of different areas you can go in marketing so it really just depends on what you are interested in. There is the marketing group who creates promotional campaign for events and programming and there is the marketing group who create a more ESPN/Advertiser integrated campaign. There is also the marketing group who work with our advertisers on integrating their create into or shows (i.e. Coors Light Cold Hard Facts). There is also the sales part that bring these marketing concepts to life for the most part - Working in Ad Sales and helping to facilitate media campaigns that an advertiser has with us so their concepts actually come to life on TV or on any of our digital platforms.
So many different areas - not sure what year you are in school, but you could look into applying for an internship so you can explore some opportunities. Even if you end up working in one particular area you can still do a lot of networking and overviews of other groups.
My biggest tips are networking & internships!
Hoping this is helpful - good luck!
Hi Brittany,
First of all thanks so much for your answer, it is super helpful! I will definitely look into internships at ESPN, I am a third year in college and I already have been a part of two internships. One Content Marketing internship and a Business Operations internship. I think it would super awesome to intern at ESPN, do you know when ESPN normally posts internship job postings for the upcoming summer (summer 2017)? I would love to apply as soon as possible! Again thanks for your answer and I hope you have a fantastic day! :D
Ben
Hey Ben! No problem at all - always here to help. I believe you are in the ideal year in college to apply for the ESPN internship program so definitely make sure you apply - I'm not exactly sure when we post for the internships (think it's probably December or January), but you should look on the DisneyCareers website and see if there is a way for you to set up some kind of alert when it becomes available. Sales and Marketing is primarily based out of the NYC and Bristol, CT offices so be prepared to be in either of those locations. Remember to keep networking... best career advice I could possibly give.
Good Luck - let me know if you have any other questions!!
Brittany Kouris
Wow I guess I get to spend my summer in either NYC or Bristol! Exciting! I see that you are working in the LA area. I would be interested in interning in the LA offices if possible. What types of interns do you normally interact with in the LA area?
Ben
Charlie’s Answer
You know, I think you have things a bit confused. If you like how they promote themselves, then you want to be part of their promotions team. Those are niche jobs, but I'm sure maybe available. However recently, with stories of talent layoffs I have heard due to crumbling viewership that many feel is tied to unneeded politics in sports coverage, they are not the strongest company right now.
If advertising the products you see on ESPN interest you, then I suggest looking into the many ad agencies that exist that market major brands. There many specialities open you in that regard in ad work. Social media, web, print, television, production, account management, sales, writing, producing, research and analytics, etc.
Don't confuse your love of sports thinking you will get paid to watch basketball in a promotions/advertising role. Selling it is far different than reporting it. I work in tv and actually don't get to watch a lot of it. If that's the case, I think you may want to learn about being an editor or producer who prepares content for broadcast. I'm not sure what they pay for those people.
Amy’s Answer
A career at ESPN can be a very exciting one, but it is competitive, as is the advertising industry as a whole. There are many paths that you can take in advertising at a network, so I would suggest narrowing it down to advertising sales or marketing. Most networks require you to begin your career as an account services representative (ASR), which is an introductory position that allows you to learn the industry. I started my ad sales career as an ASR and worked my way up to a Sales Planner before switching to the agency side. I worked at Turner (now WarnerMedia) and my time as an ASR allowed me to explore different paths at our network and also different networks within Turner. One of these is Turner Sports. If you are set on sports, I would recommend exploring all sports networks (Fox, NBC, Warner, ABC, CBS, ESPN, etc.). Know that it is easier to move around different divisions once you have the "in" and a position at the network, so consider taking a position with a non-sports network if you are offered. It's great to get that first foot in the door. I know multiple past co-workers who moved from working on TBS/TNT and moved to Turner Sports and/or ESPN.
A career at a large network is very rewarding and I had some of the best years of my life working for Turner. It's a very fun, but competitive career, but I personally love the competition aspect. Best of luck in your career search!
Thank you!
Amy