Average Direct-Marketing Job Search Lasts 28 Weeks

September 29, 2009

This article is included in these additional categories:

Agency Business | Analytics, Automated & MarTech | Trade Shows & Events

More than one-fourth of unemployed direct marketers in the US have been looking for work for 10 months or more, and the average duration of direct marketing? job searches far exceeds the national average for all American workers, according to a survey from Bernhart Associates Executive Search, LLC.

The study, conducted specifically among unemployed direct marketers seeking to return to full-time work, represents the industry”s first attempt at quantifying how how long it is taking to find new jobs, as well as how how direct marketing as a profession stacks up against national figures on unemployment.

Key findings from the survey:

  • 20% of survey respondents say they have been actively looking for a full-time direct marketing job for between 1 and 3 months.

bernhart-executive-search-length-fime-direct-marketers-look-for-work-september-2009.jpg

  • 30% say their search has lasted 4-6 months.
  • 24% say they’ve been looking for work 7-9 months.
  • 26% have been trying to land a direct marketing job for more than 10 months.

While conventional wisdom might suggest that more senior level direct marketers have been looking for work longer than lower-level job seekers, survey results show that’s not necessarily the case, according to Jerry Berhnart, principal of Bernhart Associates.

For example, in the $50K – $100K annual pay range, the category with the most responses is 7-9 months, while in the $100K – $150K bracket, the category with the most responses is 4-6 months. Bernhart noted, however, that once duration of unemployment exceeds 9 or 10 months, more senior-level job seekers quickly outnumber their junior counterparts.

In the $200K+ salary range, 36% of respondents report that they have been looking for 10+ months. Comparable figures for those who expect to earn between $50K and $100K,? and those who expect $100K – $150,000 are 22%, and 29%, respectively.

Direct Marketers’ Job Search Duration Exceeds National Average

Bernhart said the? survey revealed that direct marketers have been looking for work longer than the overall national labor force.

For August 2009, the US Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that the median duration of unemployment, not seasonally adjusted, was 15.5 weeks.? Bernhart’s survey clocks a median of 6.52 months, which translates into about 28 weeks.

Bernhart noted that these figures seem plausible, especially since his firm’s quarterly surveys have shown that the direct marketing has been in the grips of a deteriorating labor market for two years. On a more positive note, results from Bernhart Associates’ Q3 2009 survey? found that unemployment in direct marketing may be bottoming, with companies planning more hires and fewer layoffs in coming months,? compared with the first half of the year.

About the survey: The survey focused on respondents who said they are currently unemployed and are actively looking for a full-time direct marketing position. This excludes those who are looking for only part-time work, the currently employed, and those who are unemployed but only passively looking. The random survey was emailed the first week of September 2009 to 8,500 direct marketers from agencies, service providers and online/offline direct marketing companies. A total of 412 individuals responded. The research and analysis was conducted with the assistance of DATACo, LLC, which also provides support for the Bernhart’s quarterly employment survey. Bernhart expects to repeat the job search duration survey in about six months to track any changes.

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