“Absolutely critical grounding for anyone starting in Advertising”
Kick-start your career in advertising with this award-winning internationally recognized qualification. With over 17,000 graduates in over 70 countries, the IPA Foundation Certificate is the world’s number one professional advertising qualification.
A definitive 35 hours flexible learning programme that provides an essential overview of all key areas of advertising and brand process that, without it, could take several years to acquire.
This qualification is considered a ‘rite of passage ‘in the Malaysian and UK advertising industry. The teaching content is written for the industry by the industry. Authors are top practitioners. Your team members regardless of discipline will be able to hit the ground running with their newfound knowledge.
Who is this qualification for?
All individuals with less than 3 years of experience in our industry from recent graduates in their first year to people entering the industry from another profession. This includes brand marketers, corporate communications, media specialist agencies and lecturers teaching advertising/marketing communications.
What are the benefits?
- Gain an essential overview of all areas of advertising, no matter where you currently work.
- The impact of the industry specific and commercial landscape contexts on advertising.
- Get familiar with the key stakeholders and their roles in effective, creative communications solutions.
- Be aware of essential communications theories which will help your work including understanding consumers, their motivations and how to influence decisions through the science of choice.
- Get confident in the fundamentals of media planning.
- Understand the link between creativity and business effectiveness.
- Consider how we can all be creative in our roles.
- Earn the confidence to perform your role with confidence and expertise.
“Absolutely critical grounding for anyone starting in Advertising”
Kick-start your career in advertising with this award-winning internationally recognized qualification. With over 17,000 graduates in over 70 countries, the IPA Foundation Certificate is the world’s number one professional advertising qualification.
A definitive 35 hours flexible learning programme that provides an essential overview of all key areas of advertising and brand process that, without it, could take several years to acquire.
This qualification is considered a ‘rite of passage ‘in the Malaysian and UK advertising industry. The teaching content is written for the industry by the industry. Authors are top practitioners. Your team members regardless of discipline will be able to hit the ground running with their newfound knowledge.
Who is this qualification for?
All individuals with less than 3 years of experience in our industry from recent graduates in their first year to people entering the industry from another profession. This includes brand marketers, corporate communications, media specialist agencies and lecturers teaching advertising/marketing communications.
What are the benefits?
- Gain an essential overview of all areas of advertising, no matter where you currently work.
- The impact of the industry specific and commercial landscape contexts on advertising.
- Get familiar with the key stakeholders and their roles in effective, creative communications solutions.
- Be aware of essential communications theories which will help your work including understanding consumers, their motivations and how to influence decisions through the science of choice.
- Get confident in the fundamentals of media planning.
- Understand the link between creativity and business effectiveness.
- Consider how we can all be creative in our roles.
- Earn the confidence to perform your role with confidence and expertise.
Module 1: The business of creativity
The opening module is intended to remind us about the inspiring creative industry that we all work in – including references to its glorious past, dynamic present and exciting future. The module helps to outline and celebrate the role of creativity in both communications and the wider business community. It includes:
- understanding Creativity and its commercial value
- creativity in Advertising and how it works
Module 2: The context in which creative communications operates
This module looks at the context in which creative communication operates – specifically to our industry but also within the wider commercial context in which we all operate. It includes:
- the speed and rate of change of our industry
- agency type and landscape
- highlighting specific key industry issues, from talent retention to viewability to profitability
- the impact of Covid on the workplace
responding to issues we all care about such as inclusivity and sustainability
Module 3: The key stakeholders and their role in delivering effective communication solutions
This module helps us understand the various stakeholder roles involved in delivering an effective and creative communications solution and give some top tips of how we can collaborate and work better together. It includes:
- why clients employ agencies
- the role and relationship between client and agency
- understanding the Marketing Director’s role – what they do and what they need
- overview of agency functions and roles and how they are paid for creative solutions
- top tips for effective working relationships
Module 4: Essential communication tools and theories
This fourth module starts with looking at the brief – interrogating it to understand what is really needed and also how a brief can support creativity. It includes:
- looking at some of the key marketing theories you should be familiar with
- the role of data
- understanding people: insight and getting under the skin of your audience
- sharing some commonly used communications terms and models
Module 5: Media planning fundamentals
This module demonstrates media’s invaluable role as source, inspiration and enhancement of creativity and the creative process. It is approached from a media-neutral standpoint and includes relevant theories, inspiring examples and helpful facts to illustrate media’s changing profile. It Includes:
- clarifying the difference between comms planning and media planning
- going deeper on media planning
- exploring some of the key considerations when media planning
the media landscape - the future of media
Module 6: The creative content development
In this module, we focus on the creative content development. We start by outlining why thismodule is important especially if you don’t work in a creative agency. It includes:
- what makes a good creative brief and how you can bring the brief to life
how content is conceived and created - the creative communications development process
- judging creative Ideas and giving creative feedback
- tools and techniques that anyone can use to be more creative
Module 7: Evaluating effectiveness – basic principles
This final module outlines the basic principles of evaluating effectiveness. It illustrates some of the ways in which the IPA has been at the vanguard of this drive – as the home of the globally renowned Effectiveness Awards and Eff Works and through the development ofmany landmark works and theories such as those from Les Binet and Peter Field. It includes:
- what is effectiveness and why it is important?
- setting clear objectives to ensure good evaluation
- embedding effectiveness: from objectives to measurement to impact
- how approaches to effectiveness are evolving
- learn by example with best-in-class IPA Effectiveness Awards
Tutor
Foundation Certificate delegates have access to a qualification tutor, who is available to help with the subject matter.
IPA Effectiveness Awards case studies
To help bring the learning to life we feature examples of IPA Effectiveness Award(s) winning papers throughout the learning and have included an additional selection of winning IPA Effectiveness Awards case studies that delegates can download and keep. Delegates are expected to study one of these case studies for the final exam.
Recommended resources
We have also provided a list of recommended resources for each module, ranging from blogs to books, that we encourage delegates to explore as wider reading on the subject matter.
Exam
To gain the official qualification delegates must complete a formal 3-hour online examination. A certificate of completion is awarded to all delegates who successfully pass the exam.
