Crunch time for design and branding jobs
The effects of the ongoing credit crisis are now being felt in many sectors around the world. The marketing industry appears to be no exception, with the most recent Bellwether Report from the Institute of Practitioners in Advertising suggesting that advertising budgets are being revised down for the second quarter in a row. How will this affect the design and branding sector and, in particular, salaries and jobs?
A question of money
For many firms, the credit crunch means that curtailing spending and cutting costs wherever possible may soon be a necessity. However, when it comes to spending on marketing the general argument is that the more that is ploughed into advertising during times of economic uncertainty the better.
According to the Bellwether Report, main media budgets are likely to see the fastest rate of growth this year, while total marketing expenditure is still anticipated to increase over the course of 2008. However, it is specific disciplines that may bear the brunt of the credit crunch’s effects, with the report suggesting that below-the-line activities such as events, PR and market research have seen the biggest cuts in spending so far this year.
So what are the implications for design and branding? The latest Design Week salary survey suggests that while the sector may not see the same level of optimism as it did last year, it may well fare better than might be expected. According to the survey findings, employers are now simply being slightly more careful in their business operations rather than exercising overly extreme caution.
“Salaries are holding strong and it’s still a buoyant, candidate-driven market,” Fiona Sibley of Design Week writes, adding: “On the whole, salaries performed well in 2007 and there has been no obvious dip or surge.”
Number crunching
Design Week’s figures show that junior designer pay in and outside London rose by one and eight per cent respectively last year, with average salaries weighing in at £19,988 a year in the capital and £18,313 in the UK regions over the course of 2007.
Senior design roles also enjoyed an increase in average salaries, rising by four per cent to £36,952 in London and by three per cent to £32,528 elsewhere in the UK. However, it is middleweight designers who have seen mixed fortunes in recent times, with pay dropping three per cent in London and remaining flat elsewhere.
Writing on the London decrease, Ms Sibley states: “This follows a rise in 2006, so it’s perhaps not unexpected … Middleweight designers have been in demand and there has been a rise in freelance activity at this level. Consultants also report a healthy growth in demand for skilled artworkers, with pay rates not far behind those of designers.”
Indeed, while middleweight artworkers in London saw a two per cent drop in average pay in 2007, salaries rose by six per cent elsewhere in the UK.
Back to middleweight designers, the survey suggests that there is particular demand for these workers in fields such as packaging, something that is seen to be a result of a lack of investment in junior design staff. However, consultancies are increasingly waking up to this and are now ploughing more resources into making the most of their junior talent, according to the responses to the survey.
Keep hold of those accounts
Elsewhere, the Bellwether Report’s suggestion that below-the-line sectors may particularly struggle this year might not prove to be entirely true. According to Design Week’s Ms Sibley, consultancies who notice that there is a certain amount of budget-slashing taking place among their clients would do well to keep their account development staff, just in case.
“Consultancies also need to drum up new business rather than push for a bigger slice of cash from existing clients,” she notes.
For those starting out in account management, junior roles across the UK have seen a significant rise in average pay in the last year. In London, salaries rose seven per cent to £24,962, while non-London roles experienced an increase of five per cent to £22,445.
Account directors outside London, however, benefited from a bumper pay boost last year - average salaries for these roles surged by ten per cent in 2007, reaching £42,217, according to Design Week.
“It seems that, last year, working as an account manager outside London paid dividends,” Ms Sibley remarks.
Climbing the ladder
For those in senior roles, London far outperformed the UK regions last year in terms of salaries. Some higher-level creative roles saw modest pay increases last year, while creative directors benefited from an average 22 per cent wage leap in London.
London-based managing directors, meanwhile, experienced a salary surge of 45 per cent, but creative and managing directors elsewhere saw single-digit increases.
“The figures show a smoother salary progression on the management side, with rates curving gently upwards through the skill levels. On the creative side, the jump from senior designer to creative director records a vast increase in remuneration - £32 000 - which perhaps indicates a tough career leap,” says Ms Sibley.
Pay v benefits
If the worst comes to the worst and the UK falls into recession, what will be the options for those looking for a design role? Ms Sibley explains that as pay is not expected to see a substantial increase in the short-term, consultancies are offering more soft perks, providing a key way in which candidates can weigh up the benefits of joining one organisation rather than another.
“Increased holiday and maternity/paternity leave, health insurance, pensions and training are all joining the basic remuneration offer, and recruiters expect to see more of this,” she states.
Other soft perks may also include extras such as a mobile phone and laptop, performance-related bonuses, the option to work from home, flexible hours, gym membership and free breakfast and fruit.
The future?
As has been indicated in various reports, the future of design and branding recruitment is not as clear-cut as might be expected. While the credit crisis may have a negative impact on companies’ budgets, this will not necessarily translate into a direct effect on the design sector.
If anything, the threat of a recession should do more to emphasise the need for clients to maintain and improve their brand and reputation among consumers, as well as put pressure on consultancies to keep account management skills up to scratch.
“Firstly I think that those companies/consultancies capable of thinking and supporting a broader brand framework, particularly internationally, can actually take advantage of what might be ahead,” comments John Mathers, group chief operating officer at Blue Marlin Brand Design.
“Companies will be taking a closer look at above the line and increasingly looking at brands to perform as they connect with consumers. Senior people, capable of holding and building client relationships, will become increasingly in demand.”
And while salaries are generally unpredictable in the long-term, a recent Design Week report suggesting that The Brand Union is pushing for graduate designers to benefit from a minimum wage of £20,000 per annum and improve employment standards in general for this young talent may be an indicator that consultancies are increasingly realising they may have more to lose by failing to invest in rising stars than by ploughing the necessary resources into securing the future of their business.
“The winners in the sector will be those consultancies with a clearly defined and relevant offer, and an unswerving commitment to delivering brand solutions that grow the bottom line - clients will only be interested in investing in brand if we can measure the value it adds to their businesses,” says Cheryl Giovannoni, managing director of Landor.
“And it’s these consultancies that will flourish even in difficult times, when others may well have fallen by the wayside.”
Tags: design and branding, economy
