For the next visit we went to a Brighton agency called Liquid Light. They gave us a good idea of the general working environment and the hiring practices of businesses, as well as how to prepare for an interview. Below are my notes from the presentation:
Always research companies before an interview and find out some of their clients.
Freelance can be much more exciting but there is much more security and defined career path.
Make sure that there is plenty of self motivated and outside work in your portfolio rather than just stuff done for uni.
The more you work in the field the more skill you be able to develop (make sure you’re always doing something).
When working as a designer most of the time you’ll be managing time and clients rather that actually designing.
Hiring freelancers into agency roles can be a good thing because they have experience in client facing work and making sure a project is on time and on budget.
Being self sustaining and thinking about other perspectives is a good thing.
There are plenty of stepping stones from design work into SEO roles, producing, strategy and project management.
Things are being tested before going live much more than before through extensive user testing.
Place more emphasis on actual quality of work rather then client profile.
Showing process in a portfolio can be useful, not just the final product.
Active engagement with social media, conferences and the digital world is also important.