Crafting the perfect pitch as a creative artist begins with having a thorough and detailed understanding of exactly who you are pitching to. The larger the business—and job titles have become more elaborate over time—the more challenging it can be to understand what each creative agency’s roles and responsibilities are and who reports to whom.

As a creative artist, you’ll likely work alongside professionals with an array of different position titles throughout your career. In this article, we’ll break down the common creative agency roles, so you’ll know exactly how to pitch to and work with each of the following professionals.

Managing Director

The Managing Director is in charge of all of the following creative agency titles. They oversee the entire agency, including the creative and marketing processes. Specifically, in the creative industry, Managing Directors will be focused on the business goals such as growth, successful output, and profits. They also tend to any legal or financial guidelines that may change.

Marketing Manager

The Marketing Manager oversees the generation and implementation of marketing plans for the agency and may also assist in developing the marketing strategy for client projects. Their main goal is to develop new business leads and analyze marketing and sales data to determine upcoming industry trends.

Creative Director

The Creative Director leads all creative teams, including graphic designers, copywriters, art directors, etc. Their main priority is to provide guidance on the creative direction of the agency as a whole. While an individual in the Managing Director role may not have extensive agency experience, the Creative Director typically has years under their belt in the creative industry on multiple levels.

Design Director

The Design Director supervises all branding and design for the agency’s clients. This includes advertising, product or service promotions, and the overall feel of the client’s brand. The Design Director has the final say before presenting a new branding concept package to clients.

Art Director

The Art Director is responsible for the visual styling of each project. Typically reporting directly to the Creative Director, the Art Director will assist in overseeing all creative work. They tend to be the individual on the team that is most in tune with trends, fashions, and new artistic styles.

Project Manager

The Project Manager manages all creatives and keeps them to their deadlines. It is their goal to manage every moving piece of each project and ensure that, step-by-step, the project runs according to plan. Project managers can work on one single team or project or can be used throughout the entire agency on multiple teams and projects.

Graphic Designer

The Graphic Designer is the individual that physically creates the visual communications for each project, either by hand or with the assistance of software applications. This creation process includes the use of color, font type, imagery, layout, and formatting to bring the design idea into a cohesive piece across print or digital outlets.

Copywriter

The Copywriter is the individual that creates the written communications for each project and assists with the development of advertising and marketing ideas through the use of copy. This can include website copy, print advertisements, email marketing, sales materials, and more. Through the use of colorful words or phrases, their goal is to entice people to feel a certain way about the client’s product or service.

Brand Director

The Brand Director works specifically with product development and sales to determine the best approach for their client’s branding needs. They are in charge of setting appropriate brand standards and goals to increase the client’s product awareness or profitability.

Art Producer

The Art Producer collaborates with the creative teams and freelancers to deliver a final product that meets the branding and creative needs of the client. They are in charge of finding and connecting artistic solutions, such as photographers or writers, to a project that fits a certain style or brand.

Creative Assistant

The Creative Assistant provides support for creative or marketing teams, in which it can be helpful to be a jack of all (creative) trades. They may help organize certain aspects of the project one day and assist in the design and creation or promotional or marketing materials the next. The Creative Assistant role is one of the more entry-level creative agency titles.

Production Manager

The Production Manager supervises the entire production process and confirms that there are enough resources at hand for each project. They’ll most likely be the ones to create production schedules, determine overall production budgets, and keep the production on track for the timeline established.

Print Producer

The Print Producer collaborates with the creatives needed to ensure the highest quality of any print project. They’ll work directly with graphic designers and art directors to make decisions on what colors, printing techniques, types of paper finishing, retouching, and whatever else is needed to successfully complete a print project.

TV Producer

The TV Producer works with roles such as graphic designers, videographers, photographers, and talent to successfully produce a television spot, such as a commercial. They’ll manage the budget necessary to bring in the resources for such a project and will serve as the contact between the agency and any other production team that may be brought on for the project.

Conclusion

Understanding the more common creative agency roles can help you determine who may be the best to reach out to or the most suited to make the decisions regarding your work. Each of the 100,000 contacts in the Agency Access Creative Directory has their title listed, so you can easily research who you’ll want to contact first to take on your brand or business. Want to perfect your pitch even more and win clients? Stay up to date with Agency Access’ email newsletter to learn more.