In this week’s meeting, we had guest speaker Shaylee Burke talk to AMA members about email marketing and interview tips! Shaylee graduated from the University of Pittsburgh in December 2020 and explained her journey from graduation to now. She emphasized how important taking thoughtful steps towards your goal is, and to not be discouraged as everyone’s path is different. After working a few jobs post-graduation, Shaylee finally found a job that was right for her - an email and mobile marketing coordinator. Her role is to drive traffic towards American Eagle, as well as work with cross-functional business partners to identify priorities in driving traffic. Email marketing not only involves inserting links into the emails, but also tracking clicks from the emails to the actual website. Shaylee went on to say it can be more tedious than one might expect; things as small as an emoji need to be reviewed multiple times and approved!
​
Before working at American Eagle, Shaylee worked as a recruiter, so she had lots of advice for us about succeeding in interviews. She advised to do research on the company beforehand, as well as be prepared with questions for the interviewer. In addition, Shaylee explained that having key stories and examples ready to use and adapt when answering questions can be very beneficial. Her last piece of advice was to be confident! Even if you have to rehearse your answers or fake it until you make it, confidence is key and will help you a lot during an interview. Altogether, Shaylee offered lots of valuable advice and information, and it was a pleasure to have her at our meeting this week!
Member of the month is officially back! For October, we have the AMAzing Jia Jung, a freshman majoring in Global Management and Marketing with a minor in Economics. Having attended all of Marketing Week and every general body meeting, Jia is one of the most dedicated members of the semester! Additionally, Jia is heavily involved in the Sales Committee where she actively participates by adding to every conversation she is part of. She has practiced weekly at Sales Committee meetings to prepare for upcoming in-person Sales Competitions! One of Jia’s favorite parts of Pitt AMA is the kind and welcoming community we have, as well as the involvement we have around campus.
Outside of Pitt AMA, Jia is a member of the Daehwa Conversation Club, in which members learn about Korean culture and how to speak Korean. Something fun Jia has gotten to work on in the past is related to the fashion industry! She got to work with a fabric company assisting with client preferences to ensure they are satisfied with the variation of fabrics and patterns. Her biggest takeaway from that experience is that getting involved with the client as a loyal friend instead of just a business partner is super important, especially in the world of marketing!
In this week’s meeting, we had guest speakers Dennis and Sammie Guy from First Sip Studios talk to AMA members about their experiences as entrepreneurs! Dennis and Sammie first started their business as a craft beer media company, called First Sip Brew Box, that provided monthly subscription and gift boxes for craft beer enthusiasts. They first started their direct to consumer company working with countries all over the world out of their home. First Sip Brew Box’s initial focus was on storytelling through artists, branding, and unique items. They worked with small brands and breweries all over the world for beer and different products, such as beer candles and even beer shampoo. While they struggled with money in the beginning, they were able to build their company up, and everything was going well until COVID-19 hit. Dennis and Sammie had two years planned out for their company, but many businesses had to back out due to the pandemic. They weren’t sure what was next for their company, but soon, businesses started reaching out to Dennis and Sammie for help with their social media content. This is when they decided to launch First Sip Studios; a company who made a business’ digital aspects look as good as the business did on the outside in the community. Dennis and Sammie have since gone on to consult small businesses with various things like social media, photography, and video editing.
​
Altogether, Dennis emphasized the importance that it is okay to pivot in your career path. He explained that they never thought they would be where they were today, especially with facing so many hardships throughout their journey. However, with hard work and perseverance it is possible to accomplish your goals. Dennis also explained the importance of “following the breadcrumbs” with all of the interactions that you have. You never know where interactions or conversations will take you, so it is important to stay connected to the people you meet. Overall, Dennis and Sammie offered valuable advice through their story as small business owners. It was a pleasure to have them speak at our meeting this week!
In the midst of March, Pitt AMA went on Spring Break, had our first maskless meeting in 2 years, and so much more! One member who has been there every step of the way is Jordan Carrier, our March Member of the Month! As a freshman majoring in Marketing and Finance with a concentration in psychology, Jordan has become a huge part of Key Creations, Pitt AMA’s consulting committee. Without the help of Pitt AMA’s Co-VPs of Consulting, Jordan took charge of the partnership between Wings Over and Pitt AMA. Her biggest achievement so far is the coordination of a Wings Over gift card giveaway with Abby from @foodismysavior_pgh on Instagram!
Pitt AMA has provided Jordan with a variety of opportunities, such as the Regional Conference this past February at which she learned a lot in a hands-on setting. Another favorite part of Pitt AMA are the AMAzing ads we start each and every general body meeting with, along with the members!
In addition to all the AMAzing work Jordan has done with Pitt AMA, she is also an active member in Women in Business, Panther Equity, the Undergraduate Finance Club, Phi Eta Sigma Honors Society, and Chabad/Hillel - talk about a full schedule!
Being super involved in all these extracurriculars goes to show Jordan is a student we should listen to for advice. View some of her top tips for an incoming student at Pitt Business below:
-
Have an open mind
-
Network as often as possible
-
Get to know your professors by attending office hours
-
Dabble in a little bit of everything to find what you are passionate about
-
Take courses you are interested in since it’s common to change your majors and minors
-
Prioritize yourself!
Although Jordan’s first official internship will not be until this summer in Israel, she has volunteered to help with social media marketing for a struggling bakery in Philadelphia during quarantine. She has also held outreach roles, such as assistant outreach director for Philadelphia's student newspaper in high school and the Director of Outreach for the Undergraduate Finance Club! What Jordan has taken away from her volunteer and leadership experiences is to take initiative, even if the instructions provided are vague or confusing; this is your chance to be creative!
​
Outside of Jordan’s business life, she loves to lift, play basketball, read, listen to music, and eat! Find her at our next AMA meeting on Tuesday and on LinkedIn below!
2022 has already been a crazy year full of ups and downs that nobody could have seen coming. The same can be said for the entirety of Pitt AMA’s Regional Conference planning. While the event took place on February 12th, 2022, the planning began six months earlier. An entire newspaper article could have been written about the process - but how would the story end?
Writing the Story
We started our planning the same way any good article begins: a brainstorming session! Our committee gathered in late September to throw around ideas about themes and companies that would encapsulate our goals. Creativity is always a struggle, but our committee made it feel like a breeze.
Even with tons of ideas, we had to narrow everything down, especially the theme. We originally wanted our theme to revolve around sports, but we soon shifted to a news theme since it was more expansive with a greater range. But then what should the tagline be? “Breaking news” with promotions imitating a news broadcast? Something like a magazine? We landed on “The AMA Times”: a black and white newspaper-themed event. Marketing is a story, and the aim of Regional Conference is to tell it.
Our next task was to launch our campaigns aimed at attracting professionals and students. In terms of professionals, LinkedIn became our best friend. Day in and day out for months, we were connecting with individuals in the marketing industry and inviting them to attend. For the student aspect, we had to figure out how to create effective marketing strategies that would gain the interest of our target students.
With the pandemic still raging on, one question was at the forefront of everyone’s minds: would the conference be in-person or virtual? We pondered this question for months. The decision seemed clear early in the year as we quickly decided to have it in person after last year’s virtual session.
All of us were eager to get back to in person events and we thought this would be a great way to jump back into them. However, with the Omicron variant and location conflicts, we quickly realized this would be no easy feat and started to second guess ourselves. Nevertheless, we persisted and were able to secure the perfect location: Alumni Hall on Pitt’s campus that features a massive ballroom and two other breakout spaces.
As the day of the conference neared, all focus shifted to minute details. Who would have thought that so much time would be spent picking out the food to cater or balloons to make the venue have a great atmosphere? The story was reaching a climax as nerves and excitement built for everyone involved.
Printing the Paper
​The day of the conference was finally here! Executive board and committee members began to show up to Alumni Hall as early as 8 AM to set up everything from a photo backdrop to the check-in station. Around 10 AM, both students and professionals began to trickle in, each with an eager smile on their face.
By 10:30, the plot points of the story began to commence. Our Co-VPs of Regional Conference, Lauren Gallagher and Alex Falzone, took the podium alongside Pitt AMA’s president, Alison Smith, to give an introduction and overview of the day. Attendees were then sent off to the races and were given the choice to attend one of two panels.
The professionals who spoke on the panels provided fantastic insights. To name a few, Jeff Swartz of Ethic Advertising discussed overcoming creative blocks, Ashley Foster of Billco Manufacturing talked about how supply chain issues have affected her company’s marketing team, and Audra Joseph of Publicis Groupe touched on why digital marketing is so prevalent.
The next plot point was lunch in the ballroom with catered wraps and pastas that were absolutely delicious and provided for a great break in the day. During the lunch, professionals and students sat together and mingled, which led to a seamless transition into our networking session. Everyone was free to move around and have intriguing conversations about marketing with each other, providing a lot of insight for everyone involved.
To conclude the day, students had their choice of two workshops in each of the two sessions. Session 1 featured Cody Baxter of Starkist who demonstrated a machine-learning model that he presented to the CEO of his company. The second option for session 1 was hosted by Nolan Carney, Carley Hess, and Allie Dowdell all of Beacon Hill Staffing Group and they provided students with the dos and don’ts when it comes to the job hunt process.
The first workshop option in session 2 was hosted by Dennis Guy of First Sip Brew Box. Guy gave an overview of what his company teaches to other small businesses, which is how to share your story. The final option was led by Ashton Salopek of 84 Lumber and surrounded the topic of social media in marketing with an emphasis on Tik Tok’s role in that.
The AMA Times is Published
As we write this blog post in the week following our 9th annual Regional Conference, we cannot help but to acknowledge what a success it was. This year, we hosted 16 professionals from 13 different companies and 68 students. We received astounding feedback from everyone who attended and it was such a fulfilling feeling to know that all the effort we had put in for months was finally worth it. Through all of the hurdles we faced and especially with the fact that we are still in the pandemic, it is amazing to see what has been accomplished.
We cannot wait to see how this event continues to grow in future years!
New year, new member of the month! Pitt AMA may have been on winter break, but we never stopped thinking about our AMAzing December Member of the Month, John Gillespie! John is a sophomore majoring in Marketing with a certificate in Public and Professional Writing. The intersection of marketing and writing has led John to be greatly involved with our Consulting Committee!
As part of Key Creations, John started an internship with Storybee Creative, in which he has worked extensively with clients to develop policies and training materials through useful, technical writing. Storybee Creative is “so grateful for all of his hard work - he is truly propelling the project forward!” Not only is Storybee Creative thankful for John, but he is also excited to gain more experience in SEO and blog writing. He looks forward to continuing to work with the amazing people at Storybee Creative!
Besides being part of Key Creations, John’s favorite parts of AMA are the connections and the people! Already, AMA has helped him figure out his professional goals, as well as provided him the tools needed to make them a reality.
As an active member of Pitt AMA and Pitt Business, John’s advice is to take full advantage of the opportunities Pitt Business provides. Sometimes, the opportunities can be a bit overwhelming, but the important thing is to focus on your interests. “Internships are learning experiences and nobody expects you to know everything. Just try your best and be open to learning!”
Despite the great work he has done professionally, John is much more than just business. He loves to run, hike, and read! Going along with John’s passions for reading and writing, he has written two novels. Outside of those hobbies, John can do a perfect Kermit impression and loves pineapple on pizza.
​
Feel free to connect with him on LinkedIn below!