Jobs in PR/Advertising

[Vell]

Hello. I'm looking for anyone who could help with tips or contacts for jobs in PR, advertising or copy writing. I have just under 5 years of experience. I've been through the usual job sites, recruitment agencies and have also approached individual companies. I was wondering if there was any other way to do this.

Thanks!

[Manks]

Hi Vell

You are doing all thhe right things but I can tel, you that you're up against some stiff competition over here. I was applying for everything for 6 months and getting nowhere. Although I say that, I had four phone/Skype interviews in total. I was extremely lucky to find a company who were looking for my particular experience level.

Now working in the country, I know that there are lots of people already here, good people with the same experience or more as you have, looking for jobs for a long time and there's very little out there or it's extremely competitive. In Welly, a large number of public sector communicators have lost their jobs so the market is quite saturated. And these are people already in country and have NZ experience.

I'm not saying all is lost but I'm trying to put it in perspective for you. You are doing all the right things but maybe you need to travel over on a recce to meet people. Kiwis like to see the whites of your eyes.

To give you an idea, I had 11 years of experience when I started looking for a job. I've got a MSc in Corporate Communications and the CIPR Diploma. Plus experience in corporate communications for a UK multinational.

When you're up to 5 posts feel free to pm me.

Manis

[Vell]

Hi Manis,

Thanks a lot for your inputs. I do know I'm up against stiff competition. I do have a Master's in Journalism, but just under 5 years of work experience (it'll be 5 years in December).

I guess the only solace I have is the fact that a lot of the replies I receive are not flat out no's, instead they ask me to get in touch with them once I get to NZ. So that gives me a little hope.

I do need to get to NZ before Jan to hold on to my visa so I definitely plan to get there soon and job search in person. I will definitely PM you once I get one more post.

Thanks again!

[Manks]

I guess the only solace I have is the fact that a lot of the replies I receive are not flat out no's, instead they ask me to get in touch with them once I get to NZ. So that gives me a little hope.

That doesn't surprise me. But I would also say there aren't that many job opportunities out there at the moment, and you'll be applying for those that are out there.

PR is very different in NZ to my experience in the UK. It's more generalist in that you'll be looking at Marketing Communications rather than straight up media relations. The media landscape is so much smaller over here and more locally focused.

What visa are you coming over on?

[Vell]

I'm coming over on the Silver Fern visa. So basically it gives me the right to work for any employer in any occupation for 9 months. However to be eligible to switch to the SF Practical Experience visa (extendable for two years), I need a full-time offer for a skilled job.

PR is one of my options since I have worked in that field before, but I am also looking at copy writing/editing and account management jobs. I guess I'd take whatever I get until I can find something better. I just don't want to branch out to something drastically different.

Oh, I'm up to 5 posts now. Will pm you

Edit: Hmmm, it's still disabled.. I'll pm you when it's up and running. Thanks for your help!

[JandM]

The automatic system sometimes takes a while (I've seen 25 minutes when someone was online and waiting) to give you full access. But I've just tried, and you're okay now.

[Vell]

Yep, thanks, it is working