20-Year Prospect

20-Year Prospect

Are you a big fan of The Sound of Music? Then why don't you sing us a rendition of "So Long, Farewell," because the career of advertising sales representative is on its way out.

It's not that newspapers have stopped selling ad space in the morning edition and television stations have ceased airing corny commercials for local car dealerships. Rather, media companies recognize that the future is digital—there's money in running advertisements on computers, cell phones, and tablets.

You'd think this would be great news for advertising sales reps. After all, digital advertising revenues in the United States jumped by better than six billion dollars between 2012 and 2013. However, the thing about digital advertising is that it doesn't require human sales agents: Everything can be done online or via a piece of software.

So, folks, you'd best take your "Edelweiss" and avoid this job like it's a recalcitrant but musically-gifted novice nun, because advertising sales representatives aren't going to be around for much longer.