Planning Your Advertising Campaign
Advertisement Copy Dates and Brochure Lead-times
Traditional, paper-based advertisements are either published annually (for example, GCA’s Graduate Opportunities directory, also available on the web at www.graduateopportunities.com
), or in updates throughout the recruitment year. When you've decided which of these options you want to pursue, get hold of the critical dates from the publishers well ahead of when you want your advertisement to be available.
The design, writing, sign off, printing and delivery of a large brochure can be an extremely lengthy process, and it may be as much as six months from inception before it is delivered to your target audience. You should be aware of the requirements of your organisation – for example, there may be strict corporate guidelines about the presentation of any publicity material. Some managing directors will want to see the brochure during its production, and it is wise to ensure that it meets with approval the first time round – however you need to build contingencies into the planning too. Quality assurance is much better than quality control!
There are sometimes legal and risk implications which must be addressed, and expert approval is particularly important here. In some organisations the complete design may be left to the recruitment manager, which makes life easier but is potentially more risky! It’s recommended that a professional does the writing and editing, as well as the design and layout. You should stick with what you are good at. Give the professionals a comprehensive brief and let them do their stuff.
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