Talent Fairy Talking Points
An inside perspective on the editorial and content marketing job market from the industry's matchmaker. #editorsmakethebesthires
★ The New “Media” Companies. Chick-Fil-A announced it’s launching a streaming platform. Northwell Health is going into the entertainment biz. They join consumer brands like Nike, Marriott, Netflix, Redbull, Chase, and L'Oréal who have invested in high-quality original storytelling by building their own in-house content studios. Yay! More opportunities for editors in our industry!
★ Wait, What Industry Are We In? Editors who left traditional media to work for brands have found themselves in an industry no-man’s land. On Linked In’s official list of industries, Content Marketing, Brand Publishing, and Branded Content are not options for your profile. (You have to settle for Online Media or Advertising & Marketing which IMO don’t capture it). Even the Census doesn’t know what to do with us, according to this fascinating WaPo post: “Even in our extremely online age, only about 1 in 20 editors and reporters work for what the government classifies as ‘online publishers.’” As the author acutely points out, that means that the other 19 work … somewhere else.
★ The Cruel Practice of Ghost Posting. A recent job market report says that the number of jobs posted by companies is far higher than the number of people actually being hired. What’s going on? For starters, many of those jobs are bogus. Up to 80% of recruiters admit to posting fake jobs. (I’m not one of them, promise!) Bloomberg’s Big Take learned these companies ghost-post so they can see what the candidate pool is like for when they are ready to hire … later. Not cool.
3 Skills for Riding Out a Tough Job Market
Some economists say we are in a white collar recession. Some blame AI for filling in for roles once held by humans. Others believe that companies aren’t hiring because they’re waiting until after the election to see how the market responds. Whatever the reasons, many talented editors are out of work, especially at the senior and executive level. And many content leaders in full-time roles (within media and outside) are losing the resources to hire talent or invest in the high-quality content they were brought on to create.
Of course, the media (and marketing) industry has never been a stable one. And I’m willing to bet it never will be. To survive, you have to be a surfer willing to ride the waves, get pummeled, and get back up! This is the nature of our business and the price we pay for being in a creative, dynamic industry. If you feel like you or your business is facing a crashing wave, keep these things in mind.
Storytelling — good storytelling — is a skill that has been in demand since our ancestors told tales around the fire, and it will always be needed in society and in business. Don’t believe me? Listen to Scott Galloway.
Communication, the grandparent of storytelling, is absolutely crucial in today’s marketplace. Linked In listed it as the #1 skill of 2024 and one of the six most crucial skills in the age of AI.
Adaptability is the key to longevity. I found this article by Josh Bersin as scary (he says we’re looking at long-term labor shortages) as it is hopeful. His advice: “If you — as a professional, a manager, or a leader — really know how to ‘drive and execute change,’ these economic cycles are just ‘blips’ in your career.”
If you embody the above three traits, foster them in your team, and prioritize them in the talent you hire, you will ride out this storm, too. Hang tough, my friends.
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