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Topic: B2B Jobs, good option?
| Author | Message |
| le mot juste | Posted – 1/11/2008 2:56:40 PM | show profile | email poster Hello, I'm a recent college grad, and I'd love to work for a big glossy lifestyle mag. Would it be a dead end to take an editorial assistant position with a business-to-business publication? The subject matter is not of interest to me, but it is part of one of the biggest mag publishers. Is there opportunity to eventually move between pubs, or should I hold out for a better entry-level job? Thanks. |
| AWC | Posted – 1/11/2008 3:11:05 PM | show profile Everyone has to start somewhere, so since you're a recent grad, I would probably advise you to take the job. It may not be your dream job, but you will get some real world experience, and it could be a stepping stone to a better job in the future. |
| WritingEd | Posted – 1/12/2008 9:28:12 AM | show profile Yet -- if you do take the job, don't underestimate how hard it will be to go from the B2B to consumers. People get labeled pretty quickly in this industry. I would recommend taking the job (since first jobs ARE so hard to come by) and then busting your butt trying to freelance for consumer publications on the side. That way you've got both types of writing for your resume, clip file, etc.--and you won't get stale in learning to write a particular way for the trade. It would be much more ideal if the trade covered something that interested you, but first jobs are not always ideal, of course. If the magazine's editors are into quality publishing, though (and being with a big company they should be), you'll still learn a lot and may even grow to like the subject matter. Also if the magazine's tone is reader friendly perhaps your clips from there could cross over a bit (particularly if it's for an industry that has some consumer crossover...say, a retail industry mag). I've worked in both trade and consumer (but never a big glossy) and have always freelanced on the side. |
| WritingEd | Posted – 1/12/2008 9:28:37 AM | show profile Yet -- if you do take the job, don't underestimate how hard it will be to go from the B2B to consumers. People get labeled pretty quickly in this industry. I would recommend taking the job (since first jobs ARE so hard to come by) and then busting your butt trying to freelance for consumer publications on the side. That way you've got both types of writing for your resume, clip file, etc.--and you won't get stale in learning to write a particular way for the trade. It would be much more ideal if the trade covered something that interested you, but first jobs are not always ideal, of course. If the magazine's editors are into quality publishing, though (and being with a big company they should be), you'll still learn a lot and may even grow to like the subject matter. Also if the magazine's tone is reader friendly perhaps your clips from there could cross over a bit (particularly if it's for an industry that has some consumer crossover...say, a retail industry mag). I've worked in both trade and consumer (but never a big glossy) and have always freelanced on the side. |
| dribbledrive1 | Posted – 1/12/2008 4:13:31 PM | show profile It is not necessarily easier to move from a B2B pub to a consumer magazine owned by its own publisher than to land a job at the consumer magazine from the outside. But there isn't any right answer. On one hand, if you wait for a better entry-level job, you might be waiting a year or two. Getting editorial experience at a trade is better than selling coffee at Starbucks. On the other hand (don't you love those other hands), many people who get into the trade magazine world end up getting stuck there. No matter what you do you won't know if the road not taken would have been better or worst. So got with your gut and logic. |
| chicagowriter22 | Posted – 1/13/2008 2:45:08 AM | show profile I'm a recent grad, and I took a web job with a B2B magazine. I feel like I'm getting some good experience, and I think it will transfer to web jobs for other types of publications. I've set a limit of how long I want to stay though because I have no interest in getting stuck. Six to 12 months is my limit. A lot of the higher level editors have been in trades for a long time and when they leave, it seems they move onto other trade mag companies. That's definitely not where I want to be. But you have to start somewhere. |
| pleiades | Posted – 1/14/2008 12:52:01 AM | show profile I started out at a trade and am now at a consumer (not a big NYC glossy, but a national, well-respected consumer mag nonetheless). One plus about starting out at a trade was the quality of my clips. In a matter of months I was writing feature-length cover stories and I'm not sure I would have had that experience starting out as an assistant editor at a big-name glossy. I stayed at the trade for five months then moved to the consumer side. |
| elleemby | Posted – 1/14/2008 11:02:15 AM | show profile I agree it is a bit tough to transition from trade/B2B to consumer, BUT I think as long as you use it to your advantage and don't let yourself get stuck there, you'll can definitely make the switch. Just make sure you move on in a year or so. That's long enough to get great experience, but not long enough to be totally trapped and labeled. In fact, you should keep on looking for a consumer-mag job even if you take this job. Regardless, just make sure you don't stay there too long ... In my experience, trade mags offer a pretty comfy work environment in regards to good hours and fairly decent pay, so it's easy to get stuck there, and the longer you're there, the harder it will be to switch. |
