Pros
A good place to learn how the e-commerce industry works. Depending on the team you are assigned to, you will be exposed to many different kinds of works, ranging from no-brainer web banners to challenging and complex web creative development.
Cons
1. Designers are being treated as second-class citizens For an online business who relies heavily on Designers for creative visuals and to a certain extent web programming, there exist a complete lack of respect and understanding for the Designer role. Designers are often deemed not smart enough to attend relevant project meetings. Instead, this is entirely up to the Managers and Marketers to discuss and decide on the creative direction. They would then in turn advise the Designer on how a banner or page should look like. Also, very often you will find that the Company chooses to hire Designers as part-timers for a flat rate of $7 per hour. Bottom line: Are Designers that cheap and expendable? Advice to the Management: Be open and listen to the opinions of your employees. Everybody has different skills and talents to offer. Understand the importance of Designers and their contributions to the Company. Also, hire the right people for the job! Are you looking to hire a Web Designer, Illustrator or just someone whose all intents and purposes are simply to make something look pretty? 2. Your hard work and contributions do not count for anything Imagine working non-stop for over 10 hours a day, creating web banners, designing a newspaper advertisement, writing HTML and preparing eDMs for a very important campaign. On top of all that, going through all your work to make sure that everything is in order. Once, I worked tirelessly on a Friday and Saturday for a total of 24 hours. I was very thankful for a part-timer who worked alongside me during that fateful period. Nonetheless, when an event is successful, Designers are sidelined and the real credit goes to the Marketers and Sales Managers. Advice to the Management: Be more appreciative towards Designers. Award promotions fairly across the Company. Designers are as equally important as Marketers and Sales Managers. Assess and promote a Designer accordingly based on his or her age, level of experience and overall contributions. After all, a promotion only encourages your staff to do even better, right? 3. Lack of manpower to fulfill those last-minute requests Work distribution is uneven throughout the Company. Your knock-off time is heavily dependent on the team you are assigned to. Work requests for Designers may come in as late as 6pm or later. Advice to the Management: Plan for important events weeks ahead. Share the marketing plan with Designers in advance. Allow ample time for the Designers to work their magic during normal working hours.