The StuckForStaff.com Guide to working in Promotions & Field Marketing

What is promotion and field marketing?

Basically, any brand, company or service that wants to lift their brand image, especially in public, will undertake some form of promotion or field marketing activity. The aim is to increase their exposure and profile as much as possible. As this activity may be seasonal, one-off, or related to a new product etc. companies will employ temporary staff for these duties.

The normal route is for a brand ("the client") to employ a PR (Public Relations) agency to design them a campaign to achieve their promotion objectives. This may be anything from an exhibition stand to a publicity stunt. The PR agency will then usually employ a Promotion Agency or Field Marketing (FM) company to co-ordinate and staff the campaign. This is whom you will be working for, and also the type of company that uses StuckForStaff.com. This activity may also be referred to as a type of "below-the-line" advertising, and is often called Live Brand Experience.

In the modern market, where there are more TV and radio stations, and internet shopping is the norm, traditional ways of advertising are becoming less popular, as the mass of media competes for customers, and so the response is diluted. Not everyone watches the same TV station any more, and this reflects in the success of the advertising. Below-the-line activity is considered by many as a far more effective way of raising brand awareness, as it gets the product face-to-face with the consumer, where they experience the brand in a live interactive environment, hence the term "live brand experience".

Promotional campaigns are generally to increase brand awareness for the client, and are often also called face-to-face marketing. This can include sampling new products to the public, exhibition work, and anything else that involves getting out there, interacting with the public and communicating the brand message.

Field Marketing campaigns in general look to directly increase sales in the "field" (public or consumer market) and may include merchandising, a sales drive or mystery shopping.


What are the different types of work on offer?

There are a number of different jobs that agencies will ask you to do. These will range from the quick and straightforward, to the downright bizarre, but they will all undoubtedly involve lots of variety and getting out there and interacting with the public.

Awareness / Leafleting

Not particularly glamorous or interesting, but is an easy job of handing out promotional leaflets and other material, and chatting to the public about the product. This is the most likely job you will get offered when starting out with a new agency, but do it and you will be on their side when a nice job comes in.

Costume and Character

This involves dressing up in a costume related to the brand, and is particularly good for those of you with an acting streak. Tends to pay quite well too.

Demonstration

This would require you to demonstrate a product or service to the customers, going through its functions and benefits - often at exhibitions, in-store and trade shows.

Event Management

Once you have experience of promotions, you may be considered to be an Event Manager - this may be for a roadshow or campaign and involves co-ordinating the teams, setting up and running the day. It helps to have a driving licence, and be over 25. Usually very good money, but long days, often staying away.

Exhibition / Roadshow

Basically, this will be promoting your brand from an exhibition, or on a roadshow that stops at various places. Can be good fun if you are with a nice bunch of people.

Hospitality

Meeting and greeting, ushering, waiting/serving and generally being nice at corporate functions. Get to see how the other half live!

Merchandising

Making sure that the client’s product is well presented in the outlets - this may involve calling at stores and other establishments making sure the product is fully stocked, looks nice, and could also involve the setting-up of promotional stands or posters etc. This is usually paid on a per-call basis and it helps to have a car.

Modelling

It is not unusual for an agency to be interested in models for product launches, exhibitions and publicity stunts, and this may involve a corporate photo-shoot, so if you’ve got the look, flaunt it!

Mystery Shopping

Involves going into shops, restaurants, bars, hotels etc. as an anonymous undercover customer to check their products, level of service, presentation etc. A good eye for detail is essential for this job with great perks. (See the guide to Mystery Shopping for full details on this industry and how to get involved).

Presenting

Some campaigns, especially road-shows and exhibitions employ a presenter to talk about the product over a microphone, to create interest. So if you’ve got the gift of the gab, give it a go.

Sampling

Possibly the easiest of all promotion work, as it involves giving away free samples of a product to the public - and everyone loves a freebie!

The above illustrates a selection of the most likely jobs you will be offered - in reality, there is even more variety to what you may be asked to do. But don’t worry - you can always say no if you don’t want to do a particular type of work, and many agencies will ask you on their registration form.


What do I need to be like?

You

Ideally, you will be well-presented, confident, outgoing, pleasant, polite, enthusiastic, and hard-working with good humour. You need to have discipline and drive, as most promotional jobs only last a few days, so you will be constantly looking for work (Joining StuckForStaff.com can help you get work on those free days). You should like meeting new people, as you will mostly be working with different people and the public each day. If you like travel, this is a plus, as you may be offered work away from home. You should be versatile and able to adapt to situations quickly, and take whatever is thrown at you with a positive attitude. If this all sounds like you, you’re ready to write your CV.

Your CV

Your CV should be tailored towards any promotional work or face-to-face marketing that you have done. Even if you haven’t worked for any agencies listed on StuckforStaff.com, the chances are you may have carried out some promotional work for a company you have been employed by - whether flyering for a nightclub or restaurant, or selling brochures at a theatre. It’s all relevant and you should highlight this experience.

Second to that, any work that involves interacting with members of the public, on a service level is good, as are academic qualifications (particularly any related to marketing or PR), and practical achievements, especially a first aid or food safety certificate.

Try to list any skills that may be relevant, for instance roller-skating, dancing or computer-literacy, and definitely mention a driving licence and level (motorbike / car / HGV etc).

Don’t forget to include contact details (always include a mobile, otherwise you will miss out on work) and list your vital statistics. Many promotional jobs will involve a uniform, so it is helpful to know what sizes you are. Useful statistics to include are: Height, hair colour, eye colour, chest, waist, hips, inside leg, hat, and shoe.

If you are an actor, or performer, it is worth briefly listing this experience and any significant roles, but never send only a performers CV - whilst a performing background is useful to this business, a well-rounded work and education background is important and should not be glossed over.

Make sure your CV is well-presented, and typed neatly and accurately - remember, promotions is all about creating a good image for a brand, so be sure to reflect that in yourself.

Your Appearance and Photo

There are no hard and fast rules about what you should look like for promotion work, but you should definitely be well-presented, well-groomed and take pride in your appearance. You will be acting as a brand ambassador, and as such, unless a specialist look is specifically required, you should be clean, smart, neat and have no obvious or strange visible tattoos or piercings.

Guys should generally be clean shaven and girls should wear suitably subtle make-up. Both should pay particular attention to hair, face, hands and personal hygiene.

It is paramount to provide agencies with a photo of yourself. As explained earlier, as a brand ambassador, your look is important, and just like a modelling job, agencies may choose the person for the job based upon their look (ie. A rum manufacturer, may want a Latin-looking team to sample their product to fit in with their brand message.) This photo should be a clear, simple shot of yourself, preferably a head and shoulders, and full length shot. Whilst a good home photo is acceptable, you may want professional shots done - this is a good investment, especially if you are going to do lots of Promotion work. Photos are not so important for field marketing work, but they will do no harm.

A comprehensive list of photographers can also be found at www.net-model.com. Be wary of overpriced photographers - some (especially "makeover" companies) will offer you a free session, but will then charge a ridiculous amount for your prints. Use caution when booking and find out all details. In this industry, it is standard practice to send an agency your "Z-card" - this is simply a printed card with a variety of photos of yourself on it, along with your contact details - to get some printed, try www.bowdesignandprint.com.

So now your CV and photo is done, you’re ready to join some agencies.


Joining agencies

There are a huge amount of promotional and field-marketing agencies across the UK, and you can be with as many of them as you want. You can choose to accept as much or as little work as you like, although if you turn an agency down too often, they are likely to stop offering you work.

Until StuckForStaff.co.uk came along, finding out about new agencies was left to word of mouth. But with a comprehensive directory of details for over 326 agencies in the UK, StuckForStaff.co.uk members can now register with a lot more agencies, and be booked for a lot more work! In order to get you started though, we have listed 5 agencies in this Guide.

When applying to join an agency, you should give them a call first to find out their application process. Many agencies have a specific registration form that they require you to fill in, so this will save time, instead of sending your CV and them sending it back with a form. The agencies we have listed below allow you to join over the internet too – a quick and easy way to apply.

Once you have joined an agency, it is a good idea to get to know the agents/bookers, as they will be giving you the work, and thinking of you when a suitable job comes up. This is not to say you should try to be their best friend and ask them out for drinks, but just be aware of who they are, and the odd phone call to let them know when you are available etc. will put you in a good position. Always be friendly and polite – if you help them out and do a good job, and don't cause any grief or embarrassment to the agency, you will get booked for good future work. In the same way, if you mess up on a job, slack off or cause problems, the agencies are unlikely to use you again.

Agencies

Contact information correct at time of publication – please check websites to be sure. Don't worry if you don't live near one of these agencies – most will have work available all over the state.

Mitchell Stephenson
5 Churchill Court
Westerham
Kent
TN16 1BT
01959 560 550

Complete Models
44 Birch Close

Southampton
SO16 5DE
02380 230 293

Promote
Portsmouth Technopole
Kingston Crescent
Portsmouth
PO2 8FA
0239 2000 760

Gem
Unit 10 Castle Road business precinct
Castle Road

ME10 3RP
01795 500 266

Vision Models LTD
12 Melcombe Place
Marylebone
London
NW1 6JJ
02089 684 718

Please mention StuckForStaff.com when applying to agencies.


What to expect

Irregular work

Work will fluctuate, and is particularly seasonal. If you are registered with lots of agencies, it is possible that you might get continuous work. However, it is more likely that you will get days off when you don't want them - when this happens, treat them as a holiday, or put them to productive use. Logging your details on StuckForStaff.coms lastminute availability database will increase your chance of getting work on these days. It is important to be in good control of your finances, so that you are well prepared for when you have quiet periods, so make sure you have contingency funds to cover this. Agencies will often take up to 2 months to pay you after a job, so the first couple of months are the hardest, but stick with it and the cheques will soon come rolling in. The quietest time for work tends to be late December to early February, and so this is the best time to take a holiday if you want to avoid missing work.

Employment Status

Technically speaking, agencies should deal with your tax and national insurance under the PAYE scheme. However, there is some exceptions to this rule. Depending on the exact role you are carrying out, some agencies will treat you as a short-term employee for each campaign, and will tax you PAYE at source. Others will treat you as a self-employed person, and require an invoice to pay you. Either way, you should think about employing an accountant to deal with these affairs, as they can be extremely confusing, and you could end-up overpaying or underpaying your tax and national insurance contributions. To help you understand this better, you should speak to your local tax office and ask for form IR56 which will explain the difference.

Pay

Pay can differ greatly between jobs, but is generally about £9 per hour or more. For event managers pay can reach up to £200 per day - it purely depends on the client, agency and type of work. If you are staying away on a roadshow or tour, you may also get PDs (per diems) which is expenses money for subsistence (food etc) whilst away from home. However, don’t expect to get paid quickly - most agencies pay wages at the end of the month, after the month that you filed your claim - i.e. if you worked anytime in May, you would be paid at the end of June.

If you are asked to provide an invoice, make sure it is clear, professional and includes the following:

It is advisable to keep a close track of the work you have done, and exactly who owes you what, as you may find yourself, on occasions, chasing payments. Keep copies of all invoices and wageslips, and all receipts for things such as parking, travel, haircuts etc - they are all relevant to your end-of-year accounts, which your accountant will explain more about.

Perks
There are plenty of perks of working in this industry - the variety of work and locations; meeting new people; and good wages. You may often find that your working day finishes earlier than expected, or that you may get to sample some free products. You might be working at fun locations like festivals or events that you get to stay at afterwards. Some jobs can actually be quite glamorous and land you smack-bang in the VIP enclosure of a concert with a free-booze pass. However, there are some negatives to consider...

Negatives

Irregular work, fluctuating pay, doing your accounts, working away from home, and working with people you don’t like is all par for the course, but stay above these things in a confident and sensible manner and you’ll find it can be a very rewarding and fun time.

Rules and Etiquette

The following guidelines are good to follow in order to be successful in promotion work, and should be followed closely:


The Promo Union

It is a very good idea to join the GMB Promo Union if you are going to be working in Promotions or Field Marketing. Like any Trade Union, this organisation provides advice, insurance, and legal help when you need it, and is absolutely essential in circumstances when companies are late with paying your wages. The Promo Union are able to chase up payments for you, and have a very high success rate.

Being a member of the Promo Union also shows Agencies that you are someone that takes their work seriously and are committed, which will result in you getting better work. It provides you with a status in the industry in a similar way that Equity does for actors and performers.

Membership of the Promo Union also covers you for any other job that you do as well as promo-work, so it’s essential that you join up as soon as you can.

For more details, see the promo union page.


The "Perfect Promo" checklist

So that you are armed and ready to go in this industry, below is a checklist of the essential things you need. Get these in place and you are well on your way to being a top-earning promo!