12 Tips for Future Miami Ad School Account Planning Boot Camp Students

I felt I was fairly well prepared for Miami Ad School's Account Planning Boot Camp but there were definitely some things I wish I had learned, done or read beforehand and during the program. Hindsight is 20/20 right? The program is fairly fast paced, so I recommend doing whatever needs to be done beforehand to prepare.1. At the very least, read [amazon_link id="0471189626" target="_blank" ]Truth, Lies and Advertising: The Art of Account Planning, by Jon Steel[/amazon_link], essentially the closest thing to an account planning textbook.

2. If you finish Truth, Lies and Advertising, read [amazon_link id="0471789763" target="_blank" ]Jon Steel's The Perfect Pitch[/amazon_link]. Developing compelling presentations and knowing how to sell the work is half the battle because in this program, winning is (almost) everything.

3. Immerse yourself in the world of advertising. What are agencies doing? Which ones are hot? Who's winning awards? What's going on in pop culture? The world of advertising moves at lightening speed and you won't have time to catch up while your knee deep in school, so it's best to get an understanding of who the players are before the program starts.

4. Have a vague idea of who you want to work for and where when you graduate, then find a Miami Ad School grad via LinkedIn. You're at a well recognized school within the planning community and now it's time to start a conversation with the places you want to work for. Timing is everything, so start getting to know them now. Hopefully when there's an opening, you'll be the first person they call.

5. Don't just learn PowerPoint - master it. Finding human truths and suggesting an intelligent, unique strategy is par the course, but presenting your case in a pretty little package - that's icing on the cake.

6. Always get every single file related to your weekly assignment; PSD, InDesign, Jpg, or PPT. It's much easier to get this now when you're in the same room as your creatives than at the end of the quarter when everyone is pulling all nighters. And it's very likely that you'll revise the work at some point in the portfolio process.

7. Genuinely respect your creatives and include them in the strategy process. By involving them from the beginning, everyone will be on board with the strategy and less likely to change it the day of the presentation. Your creatives have been at Miami Ad School for a year, even taking strategy classes. It's likely they'll take your strategy to the next level and you'll learn from them.

8. Look at examples of previous portfolios midway through your program and find graduate portfolios online. Get a sense of what works and what doesn't and start formulating what your portfolio will look like. Because suddenly it will be the end of the program and you will only have 5 days to compile the first draft of one of your most important program outputs.

9. When finally creating your portfolio, ask your creatives for advice. Even their simple and quick suggestions regarding what font or colors work together can take the design of your portfolio in the right direction. Most are like human Google searches, able to name a font on sight.

10. Go to every single lecture, weekend workshop and class because, hey, you might learn something. Actually, don't just attend - be on your A Game. Avoid the temptation to cope with the pressure through excessive partying and remember that learning and excelling is why you put your life on hold, moved to another city and shelled out a decent amount of dough for, to do.

11. Don't be shy about contacting your weekend workshop teachers or even arranging coffee while they're teaching your class. You have their undivided attention now but all that may change when they go back to their day jobs - jobs that usually involve running an entire account planning department.

12. And finally... don't forget to find a balance between work and play. This is a very unique experience to meet intelligent, interesting people from all around the world. Everyone comes from a different background and has different strengths so listen to your classmates and learn from them. If you're an anti-social jerk who doesn't get to know your fellow classmates, works 24-7 and doesn't know how to have fun, you're not going to make the connections that could eventually lead to jobs. In fact, you're missing out on a huge part of what the school is about; the Miami Ad School network and the unique experience itself. So pop open a beer or pick up a ping pong paddle, enjoy the moment and make a connection!