Film and TV drama
Marketing assistant
Also known as: Brand marketing assistant, Junior marketing assistant, Marketing communications assistant
What does a marketing assistant do?
Marketing assistants do anything that’s needed to ensure the success of a campaign to market a film or TV drama; whether that’s scheduling tweets or ordering in lunch for meetings.
Marketing campaigns for film and TV dramas can include posters, newsletters, content on social media as well as trailers.
Marketing assistants help with proofreading copy, filing, and inputting contact details into research spreadsheets. They often coordinate market research projects and use the data to help assess the effectiveness of current campaigns to help with future ones.
Marketing assistants might be employed by film sales agencies, marketing agencies, production companies or broadcasters. Big production companies will have their own marketing departments for their film and TV dramas. Smaller ones will use a separate marketing company or agency. For TV dramas, marketing assistants are more likely to be employed by the broadcaster or channel, such as Channel 4 or BBC Studios.
Watch and read
- Marketing: crash course film production #13
- Film sales company case study … sales and marketing assistant
What’s a marketing assistant good at?
- Audience awareness: know audiences, research audience statistics, understand how they watch films or TV dramas, be aware of the commercial ‘performance’ of these
- Watching film and TV drama: have a passion for the genre and a love of the industry, have a critical eye and analyse the content
- Taking initiative: observe what’s happening, be proactive, ask questions at the appropriate time
- Social media: enjoy creating a buzz on social media platforms, use scheduling software
- Communication: write compelling copy, engage people from a wide range of backgrounds, seize initiative
- Organisation: anticipate, prioritise and stay on top of tasks, provide support to your team
Who does a marketing assistant work with?
Marketing assistants work with marketing managers and possibly junior production accountants or junior executives within an agency or department.
How do I become a marketing assistant?
There are no set routes to becoming a marketing assistant. However, a degree in a marketing, communication or a film subject is useful. Become familiar with how various social media platforms work and operate.
At school or college:
If you want to go to university, A-levels or Highers in business studies or English are useful. Or you might want to take the following Level 3 vocational qualifications:
- OCR Technical Diploma/Extended Diploma in Business
- BTEC National Diploma/Extended Diploma in Business
- BTEC National Diploma/Extended Diploma in Enterprise and Entrepreneurship
If you want to go straight into a job or apprenticeship, the following Level 3 vocational qualifications will equip you:
- AQA Foundation Technical Level Business: Marketing Communications
- AQA Technical Level Business: Marketing
- NCFE Diploma in Skills for Business: Sales and Marketing
Get an apprenticeship:
Apprenticeships are jobs with training. They’re a great opportunity to earn while you learn. However, it can be challenging to find jobs as an apprentice with production companies as many are not able to take people on for a whole year, which is an apprenticeship requirement at the moment. It might be worth looking for a job as an apprentice in an industry that uses similar skills, such working in advertising. This could help you develop your craft and create a body of work for a portfolio that you can use to find your way into film and TV drama at a later point.
These are the relevant apprenticeships that might be available throughout the UK:
- Digital Content Management (Level 3, 4, England)
- Digital marketer (Level 3, England)
- Marketing executive (level 4, England)
- Marketing manager (Level 6, England)
- Marketing (Level 3, Northern Ireland)
- Social Media and Digital Marketing (Level 3, Northern Ireland)
- Marketing (Level 2, 3, Wales)
- Social Media and Digital Marketing (Level 3, 4, Wales)
- Advertising and Marketing Communications (Level 4, Wales)
You might be able to find degree-level apprenticeships through the following frameworks:
- Digital marketer integrated degree (Level 6, England)
- Digital Marketing (SCQF Level 8, Scotland)
Before taking any apprenticeship, check what you’ll be learning with your prospective employer and college, so you can be sure it will be giving you the skills you want. Check out What’s an apprenticeship? to learn more about apprenticeships and find an apprenticeship to learn how to find one in your region, or approach companies directly. Go to ScreenSkills information on apprenticeships for the main apprenticeship schemes in film and television.
Volunteer:
Find charities, amateur theatre or student film productions. Ask if you can do their social media for them. Create a campaign and keep track of how your campaign has increased visitors to the website, donations or ticket sales. Put that on your CV.
Start your own channel:
Set up a review blogging site or content channel. This is the marketing version of having a portfolio. You can send a link with your CV to show your writing and online skills, and, equally importantly, your interest in film and TV drama.
Get a degree:
A degree in marketing, communication or a film subject is relevant. Subjects related to business can also be suitable. Have a look at ScreenSkills’ list of recommended courses in film and TV. Look for ones that include marketing. We recognise courses with our ScreenSkills Select award where they offer training in the relevant software, dedicated time to building a portfolio and have strong links with the film and TV industries.
Search for jobs:
Make a list of all the companies that you would like to work for, be that TV broadcasters or specialist film marketing companies. Look on their websites to see if they’re advertising for junior positions. If not, write to them anyway and ask if you can do some work experience. Go to approaching employers for advice on how to do this.
Look outside the industry:
Marketing is important in all industries, not just film and TV drama, so there are plenty of agencies and departments elsewhere that have marketing assistant roles. Apply for junior marketing roles in any industry to build up your skills. You can transfer those to the film or TV industry later on.
You might also be interested in…
Being a community manager or marketing executive in the games industry.
