Average job growth is projected, but keen competition is expected for these highly coveted jobs.

Employment change. Employment of advertising, marketing, promotions, public relations, and sales managers is expected to increase by 12 percent through 2016—about as fast as the average for all occupations. Job growth will be spurred by intense domestic and global competition in products and services offered to consumers and increasing activity in television, radio, and outdoor advertising.

Projected employment growth varies by industry. For example, employment is projected to grow much faster than average in scientific, professional, and related services—such as computer systems design and related services, and advertising and related services—as businesses increasingly hire contractors for these services instead of additional full-time staff. By contrast, a decline in employment is expected in many manufacturing industries.

Job prospects. Advertising, marketing, promotions, public relations, and sales manager jobs are highly coveted and will be sought by other managers or highly experienced professionals, resulting in keen competition. College graduates with related experience, a high level of creativity, and strong communication skills should have the best job opportunities. In particular, employers will seek those who have the computer skills to conduct advertising, marketing, promotions, public relations, and sales activities on the Internet.

Advertising, marketing, promotions, public relations, and sales managers held about 583,000 jobs in 2006. The following tabulation shows the distribution of jobs by occupational specialty:

These managers were found in virtually every industry. Sales managers held more than half of the jobs; most were employed in wholesale trade, retail trade, manufacturing, and finance and insurance industries. Marketing managers held more than a fourth of the jobs; the professional, scientific, and technical services, and the finance and insurance industries employed almost one-third of marketing managers. About one-fourth of advertising and promotions managers worked in the professional, scientific, and technical services industries and the wholesale trade. Most public relations managers were employed in service-providing industries, such as professional, scientific, and technical services; educational services, public and private; finance and insurance; and health care and social assistance.

For information about careers in advertising management, contact:

• American Association of Advertising Agencies, 405 Lexington Ave., New York, NY 10174-1801. Internet: http://www.aaaa.org

Information about careers and professional certification in public relations management is available from:

• Public Relations Society of America, 33 Maiden Lane, New York, NY 10038-5150. Internet: http://www.prsa.org