IMC Hawks Blog

Category: Social Capital

  • Navigating your career without fear: Tips from the professionals to help secure a job!

    This time of year is particularly hectic in the business world as resumes from soon-to-be college graduates flood HR departments across the country. On Wednesday, April 14th, Capstrat held their 4th Annual Networking Night in Raleigh, NC.  The theme of the night was “Networking GPS:  How to Navigate Your Career”.  There were three sessions of panel discussions, each with their own topic and tips.  Among the panelist were Jennifer Anderson, Social Media Strategist for Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina, Melody Hunter-Pillion, Media Relations Manager for Rex Healthcare, and Erin Lane, Director of Marketing Communications for Scandinavian Child.  In total, there were 13 panelists who shared their valuable insights.

    The first session focused on career development and the importance of networking.  All of the panelists agreed that networking is about building relationships. Keep in mind, one should never burn bridges because you never know how important that connection could become.  Also, while networking, the word “job” is taboo.  No one wants to be bombarded with a resume. You must first establish a connection.  In addition, go above and beyond the job description. Your first job will not be your last, so use it to propel your career.

    The second session focused on emerging job trends. Contrary to popular belief, according to these professionals, it is acceptable to stay at a company for one to two years and then move on. Businesses understand that the “millennials,” people born from 1980 onward, are in positions to learn skills, and gain experience. Another key insight during this session was to bring something extra to the table. Since many public relations firms are relatively small, a person with an expertise in addition to their PR knowledge will have a great advantage.  Develop skills that aren’t necessarily for your job but that are applicable, such as web page design, social media, etc.

    The final session was on building your personal brand and social media.  LinkedIn is a great tool to use, as well as Twitter.  Follow people on Twitter in your industry of interest.  You never know who is reading your tweets, so make them interesting, appropriate and something people want to read.  While looking for a job, maximize your potential. Create a Web site with your own domain name, post your e-portfolio and demonstrate your capabilities.  Personal branding and social media aid people in developing an online presence and help mold how they want to be viewed.

    Keep all of this in the back of your mind while exploring career options and make yourself standout among the rest!

    Danielle Murray, Writer

    Rachel Kaylor, Editor

  • Networking in Wilmington, NC

    As young professionals we focus on what career we want to have and what company we want to land a job with, but rarely do we focus on how we get there. We’ve all heard the phrase; getting the job you want is all about “knowing people.” This may be truer than we think. The act of networking is a very important practice that all business men and women must try and accomplish.

    Networking can be thought of as a sharing of common interests or ideas. The business world is constantly evolving and therefore businesses need to be always be connected to new ideas and thoughts. Through networking people are able to share their opinions and even more importantly meet people that their business could benefit from.

    Wilmington has a plethora of businesses that rely on networking. A great website that helps professionals within our area is WilmingtonNetworkingEvents.com. This webpage creates a calendar of all the networking events that are happening throughout the month. There are even different categories of networking from young professionals to meet and greets. For example, every Wednesday there is an event held called “strictly business.” The event is held at a local bar where a more casual atmosphere allows sales executives, business owners, and managers to meet new clients and contacts. Another example is the Brunswick County Young Professionals meetings, where men and women that are up and coming into the business world are able to talk about their next step, how to get there, who to talk to, what’s the best way to go about things.

    Everyone benefits from networking, because its smart, easy, and as we see from this website, fun! Networking can be seen as a challenge because it is not effective if you’re not willing to put yourself out there. Check out the webpage for more information on opportunities where you can network and get your name out there. It is never too early to start networking.

    Alissa Lockwood

  • Finding social capital in Wilmington, NC

    We have been discussing social capital and how it contributes to the building of community for several weeks, and now we want to look at examples of businesses and organizations in Wilmington that foster social capital. We hope that by providing examples like this, the concept of social capital will become more concrete.
    For over a year and a half, I worked at a small, locally-owned coffee shop on Wrightsville Avenue called the Smudged Pot. It is no longer in business, but it had been there for over 15 years before the owner finally sold it. The Smudged Pot was small and located in an old building with a rundown-looking parking lot and worn out floors.
    It wasn’t much to look at, but it had the most loyal clientele I have ever known. The same people came in every day, same time of day, same drinks, same stories and jokes. Friendships were built, families were formed and contacts were established – all while getting your morning (or afternoon) cup of coffee.
    Saturday mornings in the Smudged Pot were an experience not to be forgotten. Families with young kids, a few people with their well-known and much-adored dogs, several residents from nearby neighborhoods, a retired man who knew everyone in Wilmington along with their life story, and a couple baristas serving the coffee was the familiar Saturday morning scene.
    Strangers became friends, friends became family, and sometimes they became employers. In a town that can sometimes feel bigger than it is, places like this are essential to building positive social capital.

    Nicole Doherty

  • Networking opportunities galore!

    The Communication Studies department offers a wide variety of events for students to connect with professionals in the field including internships (which was discussed in a previous blog post this week), Project Protégé and the alumni panels on Communication Studies Day. The Communication Studies Society sponsors Project Protégé where students are paired with professionals in the Wilmington area. Students must apply for placement in the program. It offers students a valuable opportunity to network and gain insight to their respective fields.

    Tomorrow, Friday, March 26, 2010, is Communication Studies day, which is sponsored by the Communication Studies department. Communication Studies Day is an annual celebration of our discipline that allows students the opportunity to network with alumni who work in communication related industries.

    Tune in tomorrow for our exciting live blog where our class will update information on who is speaking on the panels, what the panelists experiences have been in the field, the panelists advice to students and what to wear/what not to wear to interviews via the Dress for Success fashion show. We hope you join us on Communication Studies Day! Below is the schedule:

    10:00-11:00 Panel presentation by alumni (Leutze Hall 125) (LIVE BLOG)

    11:00-11:30 Networking session with panelists (Leutze Lobby)

    12:15-1:15 Dress for Success Fashion Show presented by Communication Studies Society (Warwick Center Ballroom) (LIVE BLOG)

    2:00-3:00 Panel presentation by alumni (Leutze Hall 125) (LIVE BLOG)

    3:00-3:30 Networking session with panelists (Leutze Lobby)

    4:00 Social at Wrightsville Grille

    -Rachel Kaylor

  • Google AdWords

    Our favorite search engine Google has put on a competition for AdWords.  Most likely when you go to search something on the Internet you are going to go to the search engine Google, right? The fast and simple webpage seems to be most accurate and effective for what we are looking for. Imagine how many people search using Google, and imagine how much response you would get if your ad for your business were to show up on Google?

    To sum this up simply, Google AdWords is putting on a global competition for anyone to create their own ads to stick up on Google. Each team chooses a business to focus on and to create an ad for. Each team must have permission from the business in which they choose. For our case, we have recently been involved in a renaming project within our Professional Education branch for Communication Studies at UNCW. Using the information we gather from our pre-competition strategy paper and from our company we create AdWords that we believe encompass the purpose of the company and we place those into Google AdWords. Whoever receives the most response from their business AdWords wins the competition.

    Many things are important to do this job effectively. We had to learn much of the brand personality that our company is trying to portray to their public. Our challenge will be choosing words that work as a summary for the business, but also choosing appealing words that people will choose to search on Google. Our professor is challenging us to not only simulate real job projects, but placing us into situations where our group is team that relies on each other to “get the job done”. We are gaining true knowledge in what it is like to be within the IMC job market.

    Alissa Lockwood

  • IMC… Why does is matter?

    Now that our class has been blogging about various aspects of IMC and social media for several weeks, we would like to take a step back and tell you a little bit about who we are and why we are here. Our class, like we’ve mentioned before, is Advanced Integrated Marketing Communications at UNCW. The idea of IMC is to integrate all marketing, public relations, advertising, promotional, community relations, event planning and more within an organization. The purpose of combining the different aspects of an organization’s efforts is to formulate a single strategic message that is delivered to each public, specifically focusing on the customer.

    Our class has also spent a considerable amount of time discussing the concept of social capital. As explained in Robert Putnam’s book Bowling Alone, social capital is a good produced by communities that are socially and civically engaged. It is a good that he argues has been declining in recent years, blaming a variety of distractions that keep people from truly engaging each other. Putnam believes, “The touchstone of social capital is the principle of generalized reciprocity.” Basically, social capital depends on the level of trust among members of a community and the number of good deeds done without the expectation of anything in return, except the basic understanding that it will come back to them.

    So, how does this blog relate to IMC and social capital? The purpose of this blog is to discuss the different aspects of IMC that we see every day through advertising, social media, promotions and more. The blog is run by a class of 15 juniors and seniors with certain guidelines set forth by our amazing professor, Dr. Jeanne Persuit. We have to communicate daily to meet these guidelines, and we have to trust each other to follow through and not let the others down.

    There you have it – a blog that is both furthering the study and exploration of IMC while also fostering social capital.

    -Nicole Doherty

  • Tired of Bowling Alone?

    Have you ever felt like you were bowling alone? Don’t worry, this isn’t a how-to article on making friends in a bowling league…it’s a brief look at Robert Putnam’s book Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community. Putnam, a professor of public policy at Harvard University, claims Americans are experiencing a decline in reciprocity. Through mounds and mounds of empirical evidence (yes, charts and graphs!), Putnam identifies what he believes are reasons for the decline and offers his opinion on how we can improve our social capital in the future.

    First off, it is relatively hard to understand this book if you don’t know what social capital is. Now, I know when you all read this, you’re going to have an “aha” moment and realize you actually encounter social capital everyday. The term has gone through numerous phases and definition, but Putnam defines social capital as “connections among individuals—social networks and the norms of reciprocity and trustworthiness that arise from them” (Pg. 19). Putnam’s main argument in the book is that America has experienced a decline in reciprocity.

    I would definitely recommend this book to others, because I do think Putnam presents an interesting argument that is stimulating. I believe Putnam’s work needs to be updated and re-evaluated for the current age, considering this book was released in 2000.  Many could, and do argue that we are simply engaged in social capital in new ways, which is actually a question Putnam poses in his work.

    Social capital plays an interesting role in the study of IMC. We can maximize positive social capital through IMC, and yes, there is negative social capital. With the recent focus on social networking in the marketing world, a whole new bowling alley has opened up for social capital. We have shifted from a mass media public to a more specialized media, and IMC plays a large role in identifying target audiences, and building social capital through these networks. Perhaps we must refer back to the question, are we engaged in social capital in new ways? Putnam emphasizes that the Internet has contributed to the decline in social capital, but many feel their social networks have grown because of these platforms.

    We have referenced Putnam many times in our blog, and I encourage you to read back on the previous subjects discussed. His overall argument is generally convincing and resonates with many people. It is certainly a thought provoking read and makes you think about your own personal social capital and reciprocity.

    Some of our other blog posts that discuss social capital:

    Integrating Social Capital, The Court, and Beyond

    Is “Doing For” a Form of Social Capital After All?

    – Rachel Kaylor