Friday, October 29, 2010:
Just a few projects remaining and this semester is done! I can hardly believe it. I have at least one more agency visit coming up (Slingshot) for Media Directed Studies, plus research for a white paper on Social Media ROI (Return on Investment) in collaboration with Dr. Steve Edwards and Babar Bhatti, founder of Mutual Mind (a social media analysis platform). I also have a Communication Audit paper to complete with a partner for our Responsibility and Social Entrepreneurship class. We've selected Compassion International as our focus, which I'm familiar with and passionate about since I sponsor a child in India through the organization. And finally, a paid Facebook advertising campaign to run on the Gina Cooper Worship Project and one last presentation re: our social media work for that project to end Creating and Managing Interactive Content class. Everything will be completed by the first week of December, so only 5 five weeks and counting to complete all the projects and papers. Thankfully, no final exams this time around.
Tomorrow we'll be carving pumpkins with the kids. Sunday we'll be trick-or-treating as a family of pirates for Halloween. Just going around our neighborhood this year, no party to attend. Should be fun, I know the kids are amped up for it. Definitely will post some pics of us in our costumes!
Till then,
Alexandra Watson
Follow me on Twitter @abcwatson, or find me on Facebook at www.facebook.com/alexandra.watson or on LinkedIn at www.linkedin.com/4alexandrawatson
Friday, October 29, 2010
Thursday, October 28, 2010
One-to-one networking musings from SMU ExxonMobil Lecture on Advertising & Social Responsibility
Thursday October 28, 2010
I've just returned home from SMU, where I attended a series of events this evening on Advertising & Social Responsibility. Kudos to Dr. Patty Alvey, her assistant Lisa Langford, and the others in the Temerlin Advertising Institute and Meadows School of the Arts at SMU for such a classy and seamless event! And I'm not just saying that because I go to school there (okay, and work in the office). I had the pleasure & privilege of attending a private dinner in the Meadows museum, followed by a cocktail reception in the Owen Fine Arts Center, then a Lecture panel on the evening's topic, and finally a dessert reception in the OFAC lobby. The panel discussion featured Peggy Conlon of The Ad Council, Jim Datri of the AAF, and Nancy Hill of the AAAA. It's was wonderful to listen to these representatives of key advertising organizations speak about the importance of socially responsible advertising and cause marketing. My favorite quote of the evening was from Jim Datri, who said "it's okay to make money and do good". Yep, our economy depends on advertising to bridge the gap between supply and demand. Profit with a purpose is, in my opinion, a great thing. After all, who doesn't want to make a difference in this world and live for a purpose larger than themselves? If we can combine that with work, with commerce, that I think is a winning combination for all.
From another angle, I had a couple great conversations with industry people at the event. That was exciting, and also a relief. I'm definitely NOT an extrovert at heart, so mingling and "networking" at these sorts of events is not in my comfort zone. But, I went into it with a few things in mind tonight: 1) I'm required to attend, so best to make the most of it, 2) I'm not the host or the guest of honor, so I'm not expected to "work the room", and 3) I'm studying non-traditional media anyway, so in that context a few one-to-one great conversations are more valuable than a mass of shorter, lower-quality ones. Interactive advertising is all about ENGAGEMENT and ONE-TO-ONE messaging, right? So, it's much more appropriate (not to mention socially and politically correct) for me to connect in authentic conversation with one or two people than to stand on the cocktail table and shout out my resume to the room! So with those things in mind, I relaxed and had an enjoyable and productive time. Wonderful talks with Jim from Slingshot and Jon & Cale from Canonball.
Can't believe I'll be graduating in just over 6 months! Looking forward to joining the advertising workforce here in Dallas (and doing socially responsible work of course).
I've just returned home from SMU, where I attended a series of events this evening on Advertising & Social Responsibility. Kudos to Dr. Patty Alvey, her assistant Lisa Langford, and the others in the Temerlin Advertising Institute and Meadows School of the Arts at SMU for such a classy and seamless event! And I'm not just saying that because I go to school there (okay, and work in the office). I had the pleasure & privilege of attending a private dinner in the Meadows museum, followed by a cocktail reception in the Owen Fine Arts Center, then a Lecture panel on the evening's topic, and finally a dessert reception in the OFAC lobby. The panel discussion featured Peggy Conlon of The Ad Council, Jim Datri of the AAF, and Nancy Hill of the AAAA. It's was wonderful to listen to these representatives of key advertising organizations speak about the importance of socially responsible advertising and cause marketing. My favorite quote of the evening was from Jim Datri, who said "it's okay to make money and do good". Yep, our economy depends on advertising to bridge the gap between supply and demand. Profit with a purpose is, in my opinion, a great thing. After all, who doesn't want to make a difference in this world and live for a purpose larger than themselves? If we can combine that with work, with commerce, that I think is a winning combination for all.
From another angle, I had a couple great conversations with industry people at the event. That was exciting, and also a relief. I'm definitely NOT an extrovert at heart, so mingling and "networking" at these sorts of events is not in my comfort zone. But, I went into it with a few things in mind tonight: 1) I'm required to attend, so best to make the most of it, 2) I'm not the host or the guest of honor, so I'm not expected to "work the room", and 3) I'm studying non-traditional media anyway, so in that context a few one-to-one great conversations are more valuable than a mass of shorter, lower-quality ones. Interactive advertising is all about ENGAGEMENT and ONE-TO-ONE messaging, right? So, it's much more appropriate (not to mention socially and politically correct) for me to connect in authentic conversation with one or two people than to stand on the cocktail table and shout out my resume to the room! So with those things in mind, I relaxed and had an enjoyable and productive time. Wonderful talks with Jim from Slingshot and Jon & Cale from Canonball.
Can't believe I'll be graduating in just over 6 months! Looking forward to joining the advertising workforce here in Dallas (and doing socially responsible work of course).
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)