Searching for media jobs in sales can be a difficult intention in itself, but trying to do so throughout an economic recession is a different tale. Newspapers especially have struggled during the recent depression, with slashed income and industry-wide cutbacks the outcomes of a slow market. Some may be forgiven for thoughts the media sales planet is, like Springsteen’s line, ‘jammed with broken heroes on a last chance power drive’. Certainly then, there are a small number of jobs now worth finding currently in this marketplace, correct?

Wrong. Conventional and in particular digital sales now encompass multiple platforms, while the growth of social media has made advertising space - well-located, primary, coveted ad space - more in-demand than ever before. Social media, in easy conditions, has knocked down barriers among companies and consumers. But how do you get those open-eyed customers to dispense with their hard-earned money? Media sales are an important go-between when it comes to finalising the transaction.

So the jobs are there, in some form or another, but what sort of person do you need to be to get one? Like most sales jobs, media sales require its proponents to be practical, positive, sociable and to have the sort of firebrand charm that’ll leave hard-shelled clients as putty in your hands. Selling advertising space is, after all, the objective; you will be judged on the sum of income you take in. Naturally this some will be greater if it is media jobs in London which you are applying for.

Sales candidates in media could also be expected to cold-call possible clients, cutting throughout the bureaucratic and labyrinthine processes of organisations to source the decision-makers and money-men able of buying up major advertising real estate. As well as sweet-talking such figures, you’ll be expected to pander to customers - ensuring their requirements are met and their queries addressed.

Classic sales intelligence is also necessary, such as negotiating price, and recounting the pay off of your service (in this case, advertising space) by means of stats and usage data. Interpersonal and communicative skills, meanwhile, are essential to the field.

For graduates there are many diverse media sales programmes available. Those who spend their hard work into searching a media sales job can be salaried handsomely. While the classic pay for such roles is between £15k and £18k, you can rise rapidly, depending on the size of the business. Good commission packages also have a tendency to press on your income up, incentivising employees to go the additional mile.

Whether or not your media career is going to be profitable is actually up to you. Media sales isn’t for everyone, but if it’s for you, the probability is you’ll already know it.

Barry Magennis blogs on media sales, graduate media jobs and sales manager jobs.