More on Layout
The department that creates "live ads", or the final, typeset ads that will appear in next week's or even tomorrow's paper is usually called the production department, although I've heard it called the ad make-up department, and one paper I know actually called it the manufacturing department.

These production people are told to follow whatever instructions you give them to the letter, with as little creative input as possible. The thinking is that if the ad that you send through to production represents what the customer wants, then even the slightest change in design or content might result in the customer not paying for the ad.

Now although many times production will be willing to give you a copy of the finished ad for you to bring out to the customer to sign off on before the ad actually appears in the paper (this is called a proof, by the way), to avoid headaches and to assure that you remain friends with your advertiser and your production people (which is a really good idea--you never know when you'll need a favor) you should make sure you describe, on paper, exactly what you want your customer's ad to look like.

Because too many times the production department is blamed after an ad runs in the newspaper incorrectly, many won't accept any verbal communication of any kind. This is to make sure that if a problem later arises and an advertiser wants a full or partial credit, there's no finger pointing--every one knows exactly who was at fault and how to avoid the problem in the future. This is why most newspapers have a fairly strict approach to communicating with production about how you want your advertiser's ad to look.

Although many production departments know the time constraints an ad salesperson is under and will sometimes accept alternative ways of describing what you want in the ad, if you follow these simple guidelines, you'll rarely see an error appear in your advertiser's published ads, and when an error does appear, it probably won't be your fault. Also, if you follow these guidelines, you'll be production's favorite sales rep, which, you'll find, won't be the worst position for you to be in.