Overview

So you think you want to work in media sales?  Jolly good!  But how do you go about it?  Our guide to getting your first job will help you every step of the way and if that's not enough, email Uncle Stanley for any personal advice you need.

Whatever your desired career, the attention to detail you need to pay to each part of the process of securing a job can't be underestimated, but for sales specifically, your skill at presenting yourself on paper and in person is quite literally being judged - can you sell yourself?

Before writing that specific application or preparing for the interview, here's some other things you should be thinking about...

Get a haircut

Sounds silly but have you really looked in the mirror recently?  3 years at uni followed by a summer in the sun at festivals, you're pulling every surf-dude in a 10 mile radius...

You reckon you're looking good but would you be credible to the marketing director at Coca Cola?  Or the MD of a dot com?  Yes, the reality now is that whilst you don't need to completely lose sight of your personal style, aim to impress the equivalent of your Dad and you'll be more on track.

Even if you've secured an interview at the edgiest, trendiest mag or website, you'll often find that people working on the commercial side of the business dress more smartly and more conservatively than their colleagues in other departments - they literally can't afford not to!

It might be a good idea to spend some of that graduate loan on smartening yourself up, or beg your parents for some cash.  A good interview suit will go on to serve you well for meeting clients so invest wisely - you can pay Mum back out of your commission cheque.

Make your Facebook pages private!

There's nothing wrong with tearing it up at the weekend but it's probably best if your boss never sees your bum.  If you like a good moon after a few pints, best make sure that you've set your Facebook profile to friends only.

Not all employers check you out using such stealth methods (and not all employers disapprove of bottom exposure per se) but it's best to be on the safe side...

As for whether you invite your new boss to be a friend on Facebook when you've got the job, that minefield is up to you to navigate but we suggest you steer well clear unless you really believe your relationship and job performance is strong enough to overcome any shocks about your extra-curricular behaviour.

Get a new email address

Does your email address look like any of these: angryfatboy55@yahoo.co.uk, bangingtrancemonkey@hotmail.com or pissedandbruised@googlemail.com?

As your email address will feature prominently in your job search, from communications with recruitment consultants and employers to appearing on your CV, we suggest you create a new email address using your real name.  Not only will you appear more professional but you will be more searchable in people's inboxes, removing any little irritation associated with you.

It's also good to have an email inbox that only contains your job seeking correspondance, reducing the risk that anything gets lost in amongst all of those Facebook invites and spam emails.

Get an early night

As regular employers of graduates, we're well aware of "the wall" that new graduate employees often hit a few weeks into the job - caused simply by a lack of sleep / inability to adjust to regularly getting up early in the morning - you might deny it but we were young once too.

It's not easy to function to the best of your abilities if you get up at 7am having only gone to bed at 1am after a marathon session of Sex in the City DVDs or Grand Theft Auto.

It's not the end of life as you know it, you will get used to the early mornings but for the time being, do yourself a favour and get used to going to bed at a reasonable time and getting up early, you'll feel loads better and be able to make the most of this once-in-a-lifetime moment: the start of your career.