Looking Back

Some of my Friends and I at Networking Night 

As this semester is coming to a busy, crazy but exciting end, I thought I would reflect back at my time in the Sheridan Advertising Account Management program. I was unsure of what to expect when I started this program for a variety of reasons. One, I didn't know much about advertising, it was an interest of mine but I felt slightly unprepared about what I was getting myself into. Two, I didn't know what college itself was going to be like and obviously I wanted to make friends ( which I did by the way). So looking back, I can honestly say that this program was one of the busiest but also most rewarding years of my life. I remember starting back in September and I was getting very overwhelmed by all the information and assignments that we had to do, but I took it step by step day by day and the semester flew by.  Semester one was all about the learning the basics and getting familiar with the advertising industry and the various departments and components. Which paved the way for semester two, where we hit the ground running week one, diving into co-op and a major integrated marketing campaign for Purina ONE. So yes, there has been long nights and days where the work never seemed to end, but the thrill of pulling off a strong ad campaign or killing that presentation you were nervous for was worth it for sure. Not to mention, I've gotten to work with a great group of students and helpful, knowledgeable and fun professors. So if you are afraid of long nights and hard work, then maybe this program is not right for you. However, if you are willing to put in the time and do the work you will have a lot of fun along the way and the end will be so rewarding. 

Purina ONE

One of my favourite parts about the Sheridan Account Management program has definitely been the assignments that we have gotten to do. I love college because you actually get to work with real products, not just theories about products or brands. Last semester my group and I did work for brands like NIKON, Dove and Somersby Blackberry Cider. For me as soon as I am given  a real product to work with, I instantly enjoy the project more. This semester there has been one big ad campaign that we have been working on, for Purina ONE dog food. Although it has been a lot of work, it really has been fun and a great learning experience. It is a great opportunity to get a taste of what it might be like to work on a real campaign for a client like Purina. We have parts of this project in almost every class we are taking this semester. So we do the media for the campaign in one class, the creative in  one and the research and idea generation in another just for an example. It has opened my eyes to how complicated it can be sometimes to co-ordinate between different departments and people within an agency. Every professor has a slightly different idea of what the campaign should be like, which aspect is more important (ie. Creative vs. Media) and what the ads should look like. The deadline for the big presentation is slowly creeping up on us, but I'm actually looking forward to sharing all of our ideas and findings with everyone. I feel like this project is a huge advantage for this program because it really does test you and give you a glimpse into the process and co-ordination that goes into a client's campaign and the skills needed to work in an ad agency.  So if hands on real life projects are what you are looking for, this program is for you.

Infographic

Infographics are fun, visual representations of concepts, ideas or information. I thought it would be helpful  to post a view that help explain digital advertising. Enjoy!

Job Searching

The Sheridan College Post-grad Advertising Account Management program comes with an optional co-op term! So essentially, its recommended that you take the opportunity but it is not required for

receiving your certificate. So if you find yourself wondering whether you want to do co-op in the future let me give you some insight from what I've learned so far. Job searching is a daunting task.. even in co-op and it can be stressful, yes even in co-op. However, without co-op I feel like job searching would seem impossible, its hard to know where to start, who to contact etc. For the first 6 weeks of semester 2 we had a co-op class, that helped us prepare our resumes, cover letters and brush up on our interview skills. Honestly, this was very helpful. I am still nervous about the real world and working for a potentially big company downtown Toronto. However, this co-op process is slowly giving me the confidence that I really need to go out there and get a career started. I had my doubts, mainly due to fear if I wanted to go through with co-op , but even though I have no secured a job quite yet, I know there is one out there for me and I will find it. Sheridan also has a group of great ladies in the co-op department that are very helpful, and are willing to talk to you whenever you need. So in conclusion, if you ever have the opportunity to do a co-op program do it!

https://www.sheridancollege.ca/life-at-sheridan/student-services/co-op.aspx

#AdFail

In our Strategic Digital Planning class today we talked about companies who suffered from some very serious Ad Fails when using social media.  Social media is a great tool for companies to utilize to connect with consumers, engage with them and promote their products. However, as we discovered some companies have not quite figures out how to use it properly or effectively… here are some examples.

#1. Look at what a Hashtag means .. ( this one was about domestic Violence)

 

 

#2. Try and determine the general public opinion of your brand before reaching out like this….

 

#3 Not all sentences translate into good hashtags ….