Tag Archives: marketing

Establishing Your LinkedIn Profile:

Whether you are or are not aware of the importance of building a strong LinkedIn professional network, with busy schedules and stressing about the future, sometimes we dismiss our social media. LinkedIn, however, is one type of social media network that should never be dismissed!

Establishing a strong LinkedIn profile and network will propel your chances of finding more opportunities by making YOU stand out of your sea of competitors and makes it easier for your prospective employees to review your knowledge, skills, abilities, and personality traits. Here are a few tips that really helped me build my profile:

1. Have a professional photo

LinkedIn isn’t Tumblr, there is no excuse for not having a professional head shot. Look clean, friendly, and approachable! Remember, first impressions count…even virtually!

2. Have a strong headline and summary

LinkedIn creates your headline with your job title and current company…but you can create your own! Consider making it your specialty and speaking to your audience directly. For example, mine is “Public Relations Student at FIT”, even though I currently have other positions.

Use bullets for your actual summary or make it a power sentence. LinkedIn also allows you to add media, so if you’re creative, even make an introduction video!

3. Fill out everything

Skills, abilities, volunteer work and associations, education, previous positions, etc. This is all the important stuff that prospective employers are looking forward to seeing, make sure it’s concise and displays YOU.

4. Keep your profile up-to-date

You don’t need to list every. single. thing. you’ve done. But consider maintaining your profile with current career goals and positions that are relevant and timely to your position seeking and network building opportunities.

Go on and make your LinkedIn profiles great!

Mariano

Surviving Your Last Month at FIT

Although I’m not graduating this year, we are all preparing for the last few weeks at FIT! If you are graduating this year, here are some tips to survive the countdown to a new chapter in life!

1. Have fun!

The last semester in NYC can be stressful. Everyone is freaking out about what they are going to do after graduation, sending out job applications or preparing for one they have secured. It is important that you remember that you only have a few weeks left to be a college kid, so you need to make time to have some well-deserved fun. You have your entire life to sit at a desk working from 9-5 and only a few months left to stay out until 4 a.m. with all of your best friends—take advantage of this. Don’t waste the last month of your college career so stressed out about the future that you are unable to enjoy the moment. Live in the now, because you will regret it if you don’t later.

2. Keep up with the work.

That being said, it is also important to keep up with your schoolwork. Senioritis is STILL a very real thing, but make sure that it doesn’t get so out of control that you are scrambling at the end of the semester to pass all of your classes. I am not suggesting that you slave in the Feldman Center computer lab or the Gladys Marcus Library, but going to class and keeping up with your assignments will make your life so much easier come finals week. Why screw up what you have worked so hard for the last four years at FIT in your final semester? Have fun, but don’t completely neglect your school work.

3. It’s okay to not be okay.

This is a major key to surviving the beginning of the end. Yes, technically you are an adult now that you are graduating, but you are also only twenty-_______ years old (or older!). If you still aren’t 100 percent certain what you want to do with your life, the good news is that you are still allowed to change your mind. Try not to get too caught up in who has a job and who doesn’t. Have faith in yourself. You made it through four years at one of the most competitive school in the creative world. You are more than capable of landing a job, so, have a little faith and patience. It will all work out.

4. Snapshot your life.

Take as many pictures of you and your friends as you can. These will be nice to look back on after graduation when you are missing your friends and the place that you have made your home for the last four years – NEW YORK CITY. Document it all thoroughly, because grown up you will thank college you for it later.

5. Finish off your bucket list.

Remember all of those things you and your friends have talked about doing for the last four years, but never did? Now is the time for you to cross the remaining items off of your bucket list. You only have a few months left to do it, so live it up. In a few months you won’t be here anymore, so who cares if a couple of the items are embarrassing, it will be worth the Snapchat/Instagram story.

6. Spend quality time with your friends.

This is the most important way for anyone to survive their final semester of their collegiate career. The friends you make in college become your family. They are there for you every step of the way through some of the best/worst years of your life. They have seen you at your best and seen you at your lowest, but have loved you anyways. College would have been nothing without them, so make sure you are spending as much quality time with them as you possibly can these last couple of weeks. Soon you will be scattered across the country working your new jobs living in your very first apartment, and you will miss the days when they were just a room away. Don’t take these last few weekss together for granted.

7. Get Excited!

Graduating from FIT is bitter sweet. You are sad to leave the friends and life you have made for yourself the past four years behind, but you are also excited to see what the future holds. College might be over, but the rest of your life is about to begin. Make sure that you are excited about all of the amazing things that your future holds for you! There are so many places for you to go and things for you to see. Try not to focus solely on the things that you will be leaving behind. You are about to set off on an entirely new adventure.

A New Internship!

I wanted to write a quick blog post to you all to share some exciting news! I recently accepted an internship with SPI Marketing!!

What is SPI Marketing you ask? Well, SPI Marketing is a leading gay consumer / LGBT marketing firm located here in New York. SPI knows the urban and gay consumer better than anyone else. Companies seek out SPI to introduce them to the gay and lesbian market, or to reenergize their presence in this advantageous market! Some of their clients include ABSOLUT Vodka, Diet Pepsi, American Airlines, LOGO, Aquafina, IBM and many others.

Being an Advertising and Marketing Communications major, working with this company is right up my ally. When I was interviewing, we were discussing so many topics, and processes that I’ve studied in my major related classes! It’s so cool to see how it comes to life in the real world – definitely helps me learn.

You may be asking how I got the internship. Well, thankfully I maintained a great relationship with the man I interned for last year, Daniel Vosovic. Long story short, he sent my resume to some friends, they sent my resume to their friends, and voila! It shows the power of networking here in the city. Once you make a strong relationship with someone in the industry, it definitely benefits you later when looking for internships or jobs!

Don’t forget – most of all of our professors here at FIT have or are currently working in the industry! They are the perfect people to talk to about different opportunities.

I’ve only been in the SPI office one day so far, and it’s a very fun and relaxed environment! That makes me more comfortable as an intern to ask questions and actually learn! I’m so excited and grateful for this opportunity and I will definitely keep you all posted! 🙂

xx,

Brendan

Fashion Evolution: Consumer Power

This was an amazing event I got to attend last Thursday at the Scandinavia House. (the best part, it was completely FREE!) After the host of the event(Yoko Sekiguchi, President of Ampleen) came as a guest speaker to my Import and Export Class, she cordially invited some students to join the event. I for one am really interested in Corporate Social Responsibility (we all take, especially corporations, it’s about time to give back) so I raised my hand immediately to get on the list.

My classmates, I’m the one with the colors (Caribbean Girl)

While waiting for the event I did my research about the different companies and guest speakers that were going to conform the panel (ALWAYS do research, like your life depends on it). When I got there we were greeted and then I left my coat at the coat check.

YUM

The event was being held at a beautiful yet simple room on the second floor with an array of treats. In each seat there was a gift bag sponsored by FACE Stockholm in which we got two nail polishes, a discount coupon and a magazine. Everything was delicious the wrap bites, the sliders, cupcakes (Note to self: must return to this place to check out their restaurant on the first floor).

To me the most inspiring person (with the most shocking facts on her power point) was the keynote speaker Amy Hall, Director of Social Consciousness at Eileen Fisher. (their company commitment is completely impressive, check out their program). The panel was composed of incredible women, each doing their part within the fashion industry for a better world, including Prof. Nancy Gross from FIT. (If you are interested in Sustainable Fashion be sure to sign up for FM326) The conversation was about how we consumers can change the face of fashion and their practices with our demand for transparency and higher standards. Each of them gave their perspectives as to how we could improve the supply chain, wages, working conditions, CO2 emissions, and so much more. Once we were done with Q&A and I was soaked with inspiration, there was a networking hour where I got to meet personally all the speakers. (and of course ask for their business cards.) To be honest, I can see CSR growing and evolving within the Fashion Industry and the more I attend events, listen to guest speakers and research the initiatives out there, the more I’m sure that this is my path. (A way to help the world with what I know, fashion)

Just remember while you are at FIT, attend to as many events on and off-campus as you can. Sometimes, knowing people is as crucial as what you know. Dare to be blown away by topics you had no idea existed, and while you are it learn, network and expand your horizons. After all you don’t know where life will take you.

I walked out to this beauty

Carpe Diem,

Sadie