UWW Alumni YouTube Video commentary

For a PR Tactics class I am in we were asked to view a series of YouTube videos done on UW-Whitewater Alumni. I found all of the videos to be very insightful and informational and I definitely am glad to have gotten some advice from people in similar interests as I have. In particular, three of the videos really stood out for me and grabbed my attention. The first YouTube video that I really enjoyed was that of Lynnette Hulgan. The reason I liked her interview so much is because her job is event planning and that is something I am very interested in pursuing in my future career path. It was also very encouraging to hear that she like many other people started at the very bottom, just washing dishes and now owns her own company doing what she loves. I found it to be very insightful how she talked about the fact that in the event planning field you must treat every client like they are your one and only. It’s always important to make people feel special and give them the best experience possible. Ms. Hogan’s interview can be found at http://www.youtube.com/all_comments?v=ax1agT4OOHc. The next video that I found to be very good was Jenna Darling’s. Ms. Darling is a recent graduate of UW-Whitewater so she was very easy to relate to. It was also encouraging to hear from her since she was just recently in our position of approaching the end of college years and heading into the real world. I also thought it was really cool how she talked about how she uses all the stuff she learned in PR Tactics in her current job. Sometimes assignments just seem like busy work so it’s definitely good to know that the stuff we are doing in our PR classroom will be beneficial in future jobs. Her Alumni video can be watched at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Yh2JwEuvn8. Last but not least I thought Anna Janusz’s video sited at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Efux5MmLWQM was very interesting. She has explored so many different jobs and got a lot of valuable experience from them in the process. Through all of these experiences she said that communication skills were always the foundation which I found to be very encouraging. Her story in particular was inspiring for me because she worked in a career in Advertising and that is what my major is. She seems to really be enjoying what she does and I hope to find a job that I can be just as interested in.

Social Media in the PR world

The trend of social media is something that I find to be very interesting. One can find many companies on facebook, twitter, as well as LinkedIn. Social media makes everything a lot more accessible in the world and is a great resource for finding valuable information. A lot of times companies have websites that are accessible to the public but they tend to be very formal, where social media sites show more of the personality of the company or organization. For instance, the non-profit organization that I was fortunate enough to get an internship with for the upcoming summer is on facebook. They are the Media Research Center in Washington D.C. and I really like being able to see all the different posts they make. It allows me to keep up on current events with them as well as get a better feel for what they are like. Their facebook can be located at http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/mediaresearchcenter. It is amazing to think how far we have come as a society in relation to technology and the fact that we're only progressing even further. While doing some research online I came across the blog of Stephanie Schwab, who works for a digital marketing agency. Her blog http://www.socialmediaexplorer.com/social-media-marketing/five-social-media-trends-for-2011/ predicts the social media trends for 2011. In relation specifically to public relations, social media is an amazing tool for communicating with clients as well as promoting a brand. Some good information about how social media is being used in the public relations field can be found at http://mashable.com/2010/03/16/public-relations-social-media-results/.

BMA Lightning Round Interview Event

I was very nervous at first to attend the speed interviewing event hosted by BMA Milwaukee, but after going through the experience I am so glad that I went! Not only did I get to talk with real life professionals, but they also gave me great advice and feedback that I will never forget. I am very comfortable talking with people for the most part, but I definitely do get nervous when it comes to interviews. I think after going to this event I will be less nervous and able to handle different scenarios and questions I may come across in a better fashion. One specific professional that I received a lot of great advice from was Ms. Shari Stark from Fullhouse. She had lots of great tips to give me and was extremely friendly and easy to talk to. If anyone would like more information about the company she works for just go to www.fullhouseinteractive.com I really enjoyed the resume reviewing session, because it was nice to be able to get a range of opinions from different people who have all different perspectives. I can now take the advice I received, especially when it was said from more than one person, and revise my resume to the best of my abilities.

Some other great websites to look at are http://www.bma-milwaukee.org/ or http://www.facebook.com/pages/BMA-Milwaukee/143605512066 - both of these are great tools to show upcoming events that you can participate in. You can also follow BMA on twitter BMA_Milwaukee@twitter.com for more updates!

Overall the BMA Lightning Round Interview Event was a great experience for me and I would recommend it to anyone who is interested in bettering themselves for future interviews!

The PR Student

I am currently a junior at the University of Wisconsin Whitewater, with a major in Advertising and a minor in Marketing. I transferred here from the University of Wisconsin Milwaukee after my freshman year and am very glad I made the switch. I have gained real life experience and have been able to get involved with things such as the Whitewater Advertising Association here on campus. I am also very interested in the Public Relations field and what it has to offer. Currently, I work at MillerCoors as a guest server and am in the process of finding an internship for the summer of 2011. I am seeking out a few different companies for internships in the Washington D.C. area as well as Madison. All of which I would gain tremendous experience from. As for future career aspirations, I could go many different ways. I lean more towards the creative side of things, and mainly putting the final product together. Event planning is also something that really interests me. I come from a very supportive and driven family who has always pushed me to be the best that I can be and to always take as much as possible from every situation that I’m in. So, for now I am just trying to get as much experience as possible to help me on my journey to find out where I want to end up in life.