How to Get Hired by an Agency or Marketing Team: From Portfolio to Your First 90 Days

Agencies and marketing teams receive many applications that look the same: a list of software, a few nice visuals and the phrase "creative team player". What gets people hired is different. Hiring managers look for evidence that you can think, deliver on time and work well with clients and colleagues.

Here is how to prepare for each stage, and how to make the first 90 days count once you get the offer.

1. Build a portfolio that shows your thinking

Whether you are a designer, copywriter, SMM specialist or account manager, your portfolio should answer three questions for each piece of work: what was the task, what did you do and why, and what happened next.

• Choose five to eight strong pieces rather than thirty average ones.
• For each piece, write a short case: context, your role, the idea, the result. Be honest about your role in team projects.
• If you have no client work yet, create self-initiated projects: redesign the social media presence of a local brand, write a campaign for a real product, build a content plan for a cultural event. Label them clearly as personal projects.
• Only share results you can stand behind. Don't invent numbers, and check that you are allowed to show client work.

For non-creative roles such as account management, project management or performance marketing, a portfolio can be a few one-page case descriptions, a sample media plan or a sample report with anonymised data.

2. Write a CV for the role, not for your whole life

• One or two pages, most recent experience first.
• Under each job, list achievements and responsibilities, not just duties: what you launched, improved, managed or learned.
• Mention tools briefly. They are expected, not distinctive.
• Include languages. In our region, being able to work in Azerbaijani, Russian, English or Turkish is often a real advantage, so state your level honestly.
• Add a link to your portfolio, and keep your public profiles (LinkedIn, Behance or a profile on the platform) consistent with your CV.

Adapt the CV for each application. Read the vacancy carefully, use its wording where it truly describes you and move the most relevant experience to the top.

3. Apply like a professional

A short, personal cover message works better than a generic letter. Say why this agency or team interests you, such as a campaign you liked or a client category you know, and what you can bring. Three or four sentences are enough.

Use referrals where you can. In smaller markets relationships matter: attend industry events, join professional communities, help others with their questions. But a referral only opens the door; your work still has to carry you through it.

4. Treat the test task as a client project

Many agencies give candidates a test task. Approach it as you would a real brief:

1. Clarify the task if anything is unclear. Asking good questions is part of the test.
2. Respect the deadline and the scope. If the task asks for three posts, deliver three excellent posts, not ten average ones.
3. Show your reasoning: a short note on the insight, the audience and why you chose this direction.
4. Present it neatly. Presentation is part of agency work.

If a test task looks like unpaid work for a live client, it is reasonable to ask how the material will be used, or to suggest a smaller version.

5. Prepare for the interview

Expect three kinds of questions: about your work ("walk me through this project"), about how you work ("how do you handle a client who changes the brief?") and about fit ("why us, why now?").

• Prepare two or three stories in a simple structure: situation, task, action, result.
• Study the agency: its clients, its recent work and the kind of projects you would join.
• Ask your own questions: how the team is organised, how work is reviewed, what success in this role looks like after six months.
• Be honest about what you don't know yet. Agencies value people who learn fast more than people who pretend.

6. Make the first 90 days count

Getting the job is only the start. The first three months shape how the team sees you.

• Days 1–30: learn. Understand the clients, processes, tools and who decides what. Ask questions, take notes and deliver small tasks reliably.
• Days 31–60: contribute. Take ownership of a defined area. Meet deadlines without reminders. Propose one improvement you have noticed.
• Days 61–90: show impact. Deliver something visible, ask your manager for structured feedback and agree on goals for the next period.

Reliability is the fastest way to earn trust in an agency. Being on time, warning people early when something goes wrong and keeping track of your own tasks matter as much as talent.

The takeaway

Show your thinking, not just your output. Build a focused portfolio with real explanations, tailor your CV to each role, treat the test task as a client brief and plan your first 90 days before day one. That combination is rarer than it should be, and hiring managers notice it.