Dear Rachel,
When is it a good time to move over from an agency to the client side? With more and more movement of accounts happening recently, it has crossed my mind many times. What are the pros and cons of each?-- Cautious to Cross

Dear Cautious,
It is important to understand how client media operations are staffed and the types of opportunities that exist before determining whether to make the switch.

One attraction of working on the client side is the greater sense of security and stability. You escape the turmoil of agency life, where you can find yourself out of work when a big account takes its business elsewhere or the agency gets bought and your department is merged.

Certainly, there's a greater sense of security in tougher times. Your employer may cut back on its media spending, but there will always be work to be done in media.  

Working on the client side is also great for those who enjoy corporate life. There's often a sense of order and procedure and the right way of doing things that you don't find working at most agencies.

Corporate life also tends to have better perks, like on-site childcare.

Lastly, the hours won't be so crazy, and likely not as long.

But there are downsides to the client side. Media departments tend to be a lot smaller, usually less than five people, and staffed by senior people who can step in and coordinate media campaigns.

There isn't much room for junior people. The departments simply don't have the manpower to train and bring a less experienced person up to speed. So someone wanting to go over to the client side needs to have at least seven or eight years of experience at a major agency or at another client shop.

And it's not just about the years. It's about the scope and depth of one's experience. The wider and deeper that experience, the better.

In a sense, you are a jack of all trades, dealing with issues involving all types of media: traditional, online, alternative. You need to know your media and you need to know how to pull it all together. The more diverse knowledge you can bring to the table, the better.

But as I note, the client side culture can be a major departure.

"Keep in mind that this is a very different environment than many agency people are accustomed to," one New York media veteran tells me.

"Generally, these positions are very corporate, with lots of policy and procedure to follow. You are often not involved with the key decision-making but rather act as an adviser, implementer and or bookkeeper (keeping track of all those GRPs).

“So the job can be far less than glamorous. Many people want to go from the agency side to the client side without realizing the level of independence and creativity they will be giving up."

Another thought to keep in mind is that the pay scale on the client side tops out below what your counterparts at agencies will be making. 

This makes sense when you realize that for a major corporation media is a support service, not the principal product, and it's the principal product that gets all the attention. At a widget factory, the folks who make the widgets make the money, less so the people who place the ads for the widgets.

At an ad agency, media is a far more important part of the package, and it's what's sold to the client. So the people who plan and buy the media for the client, and do it better than the competition, are going to make the dollars.

So while the client side perks may be better, you may find yourself making less.

There's also less chance of promotion. After all, where can you go in a three- or four-person department?

And as you think about it, do you want to give up the loosey-goosey work style of so many agencies? You got into media because it's creative.

So think long and hard before you make the switch. As with all these things, what matters in the end is not what a job pays but whether it's the right job for you.