IMC Hawks Blog

Category: Wilmington NC

  • 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

  • The Last Song to be the Last Chance?

    Wilmington is commonly known as “Hollywood East” because it is home to EUE Screen Gems Studios, the largest TV and movie production facility outside of California. Movies filmed here include, A Walk to Remember, Weekend at Bernie’s, and Nights in Rodanthe, just to name a few. The television series shot in Wilmington, Matlock, Dawson’s Creek, and most recently, One Tree Hill have been very successful.
    So when Disney contacted Nicholas Sparks about working their magic on his book, The Last Song, there was no doubt that the film would be shot in Wilmington and Wrightsville Beach, where the book is plotted. Wilmingtonians were gearing up for the new movie and practicing their Hoedown Throwdown to welcome Miley Cyrus with bells on, when Sparks agreed to have the movie filmed in Tybee, GA. Sparks says it fit the book better because it was less commercial than the Wrightsville Beach he wrote about 20 years ago. Members of the cast agree and enjoyed working in Georgia.
    Home state fans of Sparks remained loyal when the movie premiered in Wilmington last night at 7:30. Dry eyes and the disappointed were few and far between. Hopefully The Last Song was not Wilmington’s last movie moment opportunity, or we may be seeing less dry eyes and fewer celebrity encounters in this town.

  • The Personality of Mayfaire

    Shopping, for some, is a means of buying the necessities for living.  For others shopping is a type of therapy to liberate unwanted stresses filling one’s life.  Both types of shoppers range from the highly uninterested penny pincher to the overindulgent impulse buyer.  Often times the uninterested prefer to shop quickly or online because of the shopping location and/or amount of people congregating under one rooftop.  No matter your preference, even if you dislike the ordinary retail atmosphere, almost anyone would be impressed with the type of leisure shopping available at Mayfaire Town Center simply for the feeling aroused when walking around.

    Located near Wrightsville Beach, NC, on Military Cutoff and Eastwood Roads, Mayfaire Town Center, better known as Mayfaire to locals, is a 400-acre PUD community filled with various retail shops, restaurants, and apartments/condos/hotels/homes packed with entertainment for many in the surrounding neighborhood.  Mayfaire is unlike any other shopping center in the area.  The town center offers a combination of specialty boutiques, recognizable shops, delicious cafes, casual and fine dining, and entertainment venues to meet anyone’s taste while maintaining the coastal atmosphere the Cape Fear residents love.   With its outdoor, old-fashioned downtown feel, shoppers can park close in proximity to their store’s location and walk among the numerous places to shop, dine and relax while enjoying the weather all the while.

    At first glance Mayfaire resembles a petite city within the small-town life of Wilmington.  Driving down the main drag excites new and old customers as they see the variety of shops and eateries sitting underneath inviting condos, all beautifully connected with matching bricks and attractive awnings.   While most indoor malls generate a hurried, confined space for customers to spend their money, Mayfaire is the exact opposite with a chicly laidback, upscale feel.  The personality Mayfaire creates is very inviting and comforting, allowing customers to stroll through stores, grab a bite to eat, and top their day trip off with an afternoon at the movies or listening to an outdoor concert and sipping southern sweet tea.  Customers can easily get lost in the vibe Mayfaire offers and forget they are merely shopping and feel they are experiencing an escape from typical retail to a higher quality of shopping.

    With over fifty assorted shops to choose from, Mayfaire offers just what every shopper wants and needs all in one place.  Mayfaire was specifically built to separate itself from other traditional strip and indoor malls and offer the community a finer place of shopping.  As the Marketing Director Paige McKenzie says, “Whether you spend one hour or one day indulging in the shopping choices at Mayfaire, you’ll see what I mean when we say we’re ‘anything but ordinary.’”

    -Allyson Corbin

  • Marketing On Our Own Turf

    Many things come to mind when you think of Wilmington: Beach, Seahawks, History, and Marketing? Yes, Wilmington, North Carolina is a top competitor in the field of Marketing, Promotions and Public Relations in the Southeast and quickly working its way up the charts for the United States. Over the last couple of decades many marketing companies have been established in Wilmington and have evolved to become lead marketers for many types of outlets. Three of these top marketing companies are Colonial Marketing, Sage Island, and Talk.

    Colonial Marketing is an organization focused on consulting with their clients to create a message that will establish their image and help to grow their business. The Colonial Marketing group prides itself on being a team of creative workers who can take on any product or goal of a client and use their combined skills to individualize and successfully market the client. Their website states that “We make the door swing and the phone ring,” which highlights their role in the advertising process for the clients and how they make sure every dollar spent on marketing is well worth it. Some of Colonial Marketing Groups clients include: Safeway Chevrolet, Airlie Gardens, and Ace Cash Express.

    Sage Island is an integrated marketing agency that focuses on marketing and brand strategies, website development, search engine optimization, PPC management, social media marketing, graphic design. They also offer hosting services and speaking engagements to provide both online and offline services. The chief executive officer Mike Duncan, who is also the co-founder is a developed entrepreneur with two other companies under his belt. He is backed by eighteen other well established employees whose roles range from marketing specialists, to web programmer, to staff accountant. They have four focused areas in which they work with clients to either establish or recreate their companies’ identity and brand, which include their web presence, print designs, brand identity, and tradeshow and environmental graphics. Some of Sage Island’s clients include Surfing America, World Media, Greenpath and Century 21 agents.

    Talk is a strategic marketing and communications company that originated in Boston, MA in 1990, but relocated to Wilmington, NC in 1990. Talk emphasizes their role in helping companies tell their story while promoting growth. Talk also works with their clients to create an identity both online and offline through their four-step process of language mapping. The first step is discovery, and then translate, followed by storytelling and finally measurement. This process is Talk’s fundamental system to use in order to incorporate their creativity with the language of their clients. Some of Talk’s clients include Cape Fear Academy, Wilmington Downtown, and Butterball.

    These top three companies are working with other regional companies to break Wilmington, NC into the extensive integrated marketing and communications field of study and of work. IMC is an ever-growing and changing field and with these prestigious companies at the four-front, Wilmington NC will soon become a keystone for marketing locations.

    -Shannon Meadows

  • 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

  • Com Studies Graduates Share Their Experiences

    Today, I had the opportunity to see a panel of five recent (graduating between 2004 and 2009) UNCW Communication Studies graduates. After giving a brief introduction of where they each studied at UNCW and what their current job positions involve, the floor was opened up to questions. I would like to share some of the panelists’ responses that struck me the most.

    A common theme shared among the panelists: make the most of your time in school. Panelists especially urged seniors to challenge themselves by taking as many 400 level courses as they can, because those classes will provide the best experience and preparation for post-graduation life. Similarly, panelists talked about how internships played immensely important roles in their development and transition to entry-level positions. Continuing the thought, when asked about the importance of GPA’s and transcripts in the interview process, panelists unanimously expressed that little concern was given to GPA’s and transcripts, and that employers were much more interested in extracurricular activities and work experience.

    Here are a few other comments that I found particularly useful:

    Regarding the need for strong written communication skills, Chris Duke stressed the importance of writing “clear and concise.”

    When asked about bringing new ideas to an organization, Laura Smith suggested spending time learning everyone’s preferences, because unlike teachers’ seemingly endless enthusiasm for participation, professionals may not always be so receptive.

    And lastly, my personal favorite insight of the night came from Chris Duke. Paraphrasing, Chris said, “Use the opportunity during the interview to ask questions that give you a feel for the organization and the culture.”

    Wrapping up both Business Week and Com Studies Day, we hope everyone was able to use the myriad networking opportunities. If you feel you may not have done enough networking, or perhaps you’ve got “the networking bug” now, be aware that there are plenty of networking opportunities in Wilmington regularly. Visit WilmingtonNetworkingEvents.com for a calendar with each month’s events.

    For a full transcript of our Com Studies Day live-blogging, click here.

    – Terry Hayes

  • Com Studies Day

    Today is UNCW’s Com Studies day. Through out the day we have events happening, such as a fashion show, an alumni panel, and a reception which our class will cover through live blog. You can keep up with us through out the day by clicking here