Account Executive

Full-service creative advertising agency in River North is seeking a motivated, uber-organized, local Account Executive to join our growing team. Do you dream in spreadsheets? Can you juggle chainsaws and bowling balls at the same time? Hyperbole aside, if you have excellent project management skills and are comfortable interacting directly with clients and vendors in a fast-paced environment, we need YOU to help us manage the day to day activities associated with one of our fastest growing accounts. As Account Executive, you’ll serve as the primary link between the agency and the client, as well as an active liaison between the account and creative teams. Timing is always of the essence around here, so dawdlers and dilly-dalliers need not apply. The ideal candidate will be an avid multi-tasker who is great at managing deadlines and working under pressure. We’re nimble by nature, and we’ve spoiled our clients by expediently producing great creative work time after time. What our team needs now is that amiable, detail-oriented account counterpart to wrangle the reports, shepherd the schedules and keep our clients grinning from ear to ear. Sound like anyone you know? Before banging that “apply now” button, please review the requirements below to see if you qualify. Nothing says, “I lack attention to detail” like applying for a job for which you are not qualified. QUALIFICATIONS & REQUIREMENTS

• Bachelor’s Degree
• 2-3 years of ad agency experience
• Proficiency with Excel, Word and PowerPoint
• Ability to multi-task and juggle numerous projects and clients at any given time
• Extremely organized and detail oriented
• Strong written and verbal communication skills
• Excellent project management skills
• Solid understanding of estimate and budget development

Art Direction/Interactive Intern

We’re always on the lookout for the Chicago area’s best and brightest next-generation marketing minds to lend energy and enthusiasm to our creative process. It just so happens that right now we’re currently accepting applications for paid creative advertising internships in art direction/interactive/web development. So if you’re looking for that big break into the biz, this could be the shot you’ve been waiting for. We're looking for Art Director candidates who are at near-wiz level with the Creative Suite and have production experience. Read: You won't be photocopying presentation decks and transferring toner (most days). You'll be working with real clients on real work. And the same goes for Web Developers. You might be young, inexperienced, and jumpy, but you'd better be a bad@ss with code and have an eye for design as well. There's a lot of work to be done, and many challenges ahead. We're looking for interns that can rise to the occasion, and then a some. People who are hellbent on proving themselves. Strategic, creative, dedicated people. If that sounds like you or someone you know then send an email to bourcreativeintern@gmail.com right now. Include your NAME and THE INTERNSHIP YOU'RE APPLYING FOR in the Subject Line. In the body of your email you should paste a copy of your cover letter and a link to your portfolio. Please attach your resumé and any non-internet dwelling portfolios.

QUALIFICATIONS

• College Juniors, Seniors, or recent Grads in Advertising or related discipline
• Familiarity with Adobe Creative Suite (art directors), Wordpress and other CMSs, HTML, and CSS (web devs)
• Working knowledge of basic advertising principles
• Solid written and verbal communication skills
• Cooperative spirit and willingness to learn
• Resourceful, motivated types who can get stuff done
• Strong Internet research skills, including knowledge of social media channels and outlets
• Loosely-bridled enthusiasm, even in the face of great obstacles
• Local (Chicago) applicants strongly preferred

RESPONSIBILITIES

• Assist Art Directors, Copywriters, Creative Directors, and Web Developers in meeting a diverse range of client needs
• Help develop concepts, write code, and generally do great work for the agency and our clients
• Actively participate in creative brainstorm meetings
• Conduct research in support of the concept development process
• Stay current on the latest and emerging digital/interactive trends, and the integration of technology in the development of new media marketing solutions
• Support a wide variety of agency initiatives toward providing additional value
• And whatever else we trust you to handle

Art Director – Digital/Interactive

Are you sick of the bureaucratic B.S. and petty politics that plague so many corporate-run agency environments? Tired of slick-talking know-it-all account heads watering down your ideas and pushing their personal preferences into your concepts? Is some pompous CD bogarting all your brilliant ideas? Have you been staring down that tiny clock in the corner of your screen, dying a slow death by disillusionment? It may be time for a plan B.

Get your mojo back at our rapidly expanding creative agency in River North where ideas still rule, and creative is king. Trade in that soulless churn and burn routine for a chance to really make your mark – and take your career to the next level in a fun, ego-free environment where it’s all about the work. If you feel your talent is going underutilized and/or under-appreciated, this could be your great escape.

We’re looking for an exceptionally talented digital thinker AND visual communicator—an Art Director with a beautiful mind who can take and own an assignment from start to finish, building thoughtful, strategy-driven creative work that turns heads out of the gate. A champion of organized aesthetics, and a sworn enemy to mediocrity.

We have a growing roster of blue chip clients who demand rock star work, so you'll have plenty of opportunities to flex that creative muscle here, and to work alongside talented colleagues in producing what will likely be some of your finest work. Get ready for healthy portions of both B2B and B2C as part of a steady diet of web, digital, mobile, print, direct, and yes, even broadcast.

If you share this commitment to producing top-shelf, award-winning creative work, this could be a match made in River North. Local candidates only, please.

REQUIREMENTS:

• Minimum 3 years Art Direction & Graphic Design experience, preferably in an agency environment
• Strong knowledge of Adobe Creative Suite software
• Strong digital background required, with front-end web development skills a plus
• Strong critical thinking skills and ability to visually organize complex concepts
• A multi-talented generalist who can design with purpose
• Video editing and/or motion graphics experience a plus
• Local to Chicago

Want to take your career by the reins in a fun, fast-paced creative shop? Shoot a resume, brief cover note, and relevant samples to QualifiedTalent@gmail.com.

Junior Writer

We're at a loss for words…so we’re auditioning talented young writers for upcoming assignments and potential long-term employment.

Are you sick of toiling away in the belly of the beast, burning your creative candle at both ends and having little to show for it? Hopelessly stuck on a mind-numbingly humdrum account, cranking out endless versions of uninspired ad copy from dawn to dusk? Pigeon-holed as the “ fast food banner ad” expert?

Maybe it’s time you expanded your horizons. Come flex your creative muscle in an exceptionally collaborative agency environment where ideas rule, ambition is handsomely rewarded, and self-starters thrive. A place where the reins are yours for the taking, and every day is a new opportunity to make your mark. Where the daily project list is like a box of chocolates.

Craving variety? Writers here do it all…and lots of it. Traditional. Digital. Social. Integrated campaigns that combine all three. In addition to solid writing skills, we’re looking for ad-savvy generalists who can help us impress our clients with ideas and thoughtful recommendations on just about anything. In other words, you never just TAKE an assignment…you shake and bake it! You think critically about it, ask smart questions, Google around for inspiration, and then come up with clever, conceptual ways to make an impression. And you’re no shrinking violet, either. You love a good challenge, and aren’t afraid to ask tough questions.

This is a freelance-first opportunity. Selected candidates will work on-site, and on short-term assignments (usually a week or two). Depending on performance, fit, and client workload, this could end up becoming a long-term engagement – including the potential for full-time. At the very least, it’s an opportunity to network with some fun people in a fast-moving environment.

Senior Copywriter

FREELANCE (WITH FULL-TIME POTENTIAL)                                               Yes, we need a polished, big thinking copywriter…and fast! Is frenetic your idea of fun? Do you thrive on project diversity? Are you money in the clutch? This freelance-first opportunity may be right up your alley. We’re in need of a proven idea machine – someone with the critical thinking skills to analyze an assignment, extrapolate meaningful insights about an audience or product, and generate strategically sound concepts and copy – as well as platform-level, campaignable themes that are broadly extendible to body copy. As a writer here, you’ll be challenged to maintain our agency’s high standards for smart, efficient copy that reads easy and works hard. You’ll work closely with creative and account teams, as well as with clients, in producing and presenting your ideas – offering rationale for the thinking behind them. What would you be working on? Pretty much everything! Direct mail. Print. Websites. Big ideas. Bigger ideas. Collateral. Broadcast. Presentation decks. You name it. There’s also plenty of room for growth here, so if you can do more than write…the sky’s the limit. Our client roster includes both B2C and B2B companies, spanning multiple and varied product and service industries from automotive to financial to CPG. So don’t worry about getting assigned to the Sugar-Free Canned Peas Group where you’ll be expected to crank out variations on a theme for years at a time. We’re all over the map and we like it that way. This opportunity is for multiple-disciplinary generalists. No prima donnas who can’t handle long-copy. If you can pump out top-shelf copy (and have samples to back it up), we’d love to meet you. But before you hit that “apply” button, please carefully review our requirements. -       Conceptual writer capable of “big idea” thinking -       Minimum 5 years ad agency experience -       Local to Chicago metro -       Multi-talented generalist comfortable writing to any medium -       Versatile writer who can work with a number of established brand voices -       Resourceful writer who understands the importance of staying current on the latest and emerging trends in social media marketing, guerrilla marketing, mobile marketing, etc. -       Independent thinker who can “own” an assignment and write with little direction If you’re looking for a truly rewarding freelance-first opportunity in a fun, fast moving agency environment with full-time potential, send cover e-mail, current resume, and relevant samples (URL or PDF) to: QualifiedTalent@gmail.com (Regretfully, we may not be able to respond to each and every applicant. We will be in contact with those applicants whose work and experience reflect the level of thinking we are looking for.)

Web/Digital Production Intern