Brand Session

Today, I got to live out the reason I’ve chosen to look into the marketing industry. When I learned about marketing in my classes, it interested me immediately. I had this vision of sitting on couches (now I envision an orange couch for some reason…) throwing around ideas and getting to use my creativity in a totally different way. Once I started at Bailey Gardiner, I immediately realized that there was WAY more to it than that, but today I found out that it is truly a huge part of this industry. I was invited to attend a Brand Session today for a new client on Friday evening and could hardly contain my excitement over the weekend. I told anyone and everyone who asked about anything relating to work and had my outfit ironed and ready to go by Sunday afternoon. At this point, I wasn’t entirely sure what a Brand Session was (being from Texas, I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t a little worried…hot metal, anyone?), but I knew it would be an incredible learning experience.

So this morning, determined to be on time or slightly early (Jennifer had explained that we would be leaving promptly at 7:40), I arrived at the front door at 7:25. Problem. I learned the hard way that yes, it’s always good to be a little early, but don’t push it. Especially when you risk the chance of being the first person at the office. With no key. I stood at the door looking confused and lost to all the morning traffic on 6th Avenue. Luckily, Jennifer saved me 5 minutes later - during which time I took the opportunity to buy juice at the 76 on the corner. Essentials.

We left a few minutes later to head to the client’s office (I’m sworn to secrecy at this point, sorry guys), where we were greeted by a lovely spread of Einstein’s bagels, coffee, juice and fruit. I felt like I had made it big time. After the introductions and perusing of the goods, the meeting started. This is when the learning began. Jennifer took charge right away and led thought provoking discussions and activities. From magazine cut-outs to price sensitivity – everything was covered. Not to mention – my new obsession. Super-sized sticky notes. Those of you that know me, know how much I love sticky notes and making lists. Trouble. What I enjoyed the most was the balance between the BG presentation and client interaction. Neither side seemed to be overwhelmed and was able to share their point of view in order to give the Bailey Gardiner team enough information to create a brand that encompasses all of the important details while still being elusive enough that consumers will want to find out more information on their own. A pretty tough task, if you ask me. But this is what they do all day long and have obviously been extremely successful. I’m not worried. I can't wait to see what they come up with.

To sum up, I’m excited to see if anything can top what I was able to experience today during my next 2 months or so of interning. If anything, this just gives me that much more motivation and understanding of what I want to pursue when I finish school in May. I know I won’t always have days like this, but it’s a refreshing change of pace and a huge building block to add to my foundation in this industry.

Halloween Dilemma

Cute or sexy? This is a dilemma that every girl faces when trying to come up with the perfect Halloween costume. There are the tried and true options for those of us that aren’t up for showing off our assets – fairy, witch, vampire, clown, angel, devil, storybook characters…the list is endless. These all seem harmless enough, right? Wrong. Pretty much every idea you can think of also comes in a “sexy” version - with plenty of leg to spare. Even Belle from Beauty and the Beast comes complete with white thigh highs. Not exactly what I remember from my favorite childhood movie. Alice in Wonderland? Try “Miss Wonderland” with the description, “Play the cards any way you want, you sassy heartbreaker!” I don’t think White Rabbit or Cheshire Cat would approve.

I get it. People use Halloween as an excuse to wear whatever they want and not have to explain their morals. But when did it become so extreme? Celebrities definitely take advantage of this holiday. Anything from Naughty Nurse to Captivating Captain (including Louboutin heels…so not fair)

to Red Hot Flirty Firefighter is fair game. I’m reminded of a scene from Mean Girls when Lindsay Lohan dresses up as an “Ex-wife” and everyone is thrown for a loop. Definitely not what she chose for her real life costume…

And you would think guys’ costumes are free and clear. Again, wrong. A few options to choose from: Firefighter with Big Hose, Breathalyzer, and Catch of the Day Big Fish. I won’t go into descriptions for any of these, but you get the picture.

So what’s a girl to do? Being in my last year of college, I want to take advantage of my last chance to make a big deal out of Halloween. However, now that we’re in a world where social websites reign supreme, I have to keep in mind that any pictures that are taken could and probably will land on Facebook. Dun dun dun. Not so sure I want my current or future employer (let alone my mom) to see pictures of me as a Lucky Ladybug or Shipmate Cutie. My worry is that are other college students aren’t taking this precaution when picking out their Halloween costumes. I know, you have your Facebook page locked down and no one can see your pictures, right? I’m pretty sure there are ways around any of that. I know I’m not banking on that fact. I’m sure most wouldn’t take the time to override anything, but you never know. Trust me, I won’t be showing up anywhere in a floor length gown, but I will be taking these things into account when putting together my costume. Right now, my options are: Flapper Girl (I’m taking my inspiration from Lauren Conrad, which seems pretty reasonable)

or Katy Perry (I know, super conservative). But I’m pretty sure I can make either of them work without being too over the top. 

I just wish the middle ground wasn’t so hard to find. Any suggestions? 

Tweeting with Justin Timberlake

I wish. So I’m new to the Twitter phenomenon - 28 tweets total as of now. At first, I tried to take the casual approach, “Ehh, I just want to see what celebrities are up to and find out where good sales are. No big.” THEN I started my internship here at Bailey Gardiner. This is when I came to realize that Twitter is way more than that. I had only considered the reasons why I would want to be on Twitter, not why those stores with crazy sales or new products were tweeting like crazy. It really has become a whole new way to advertise (I know, haven’t heard that one before, huh?). Whether users realize it or not, places that you follow are constantly advertising. Even celebrities are advertising. Whether it be a new movie, show or other venture they are working on or a magazine they want you to pick up to see their 5-page spread – they’re advertising, promoting, whatever you want to call it. THEN I started to see that some of these celebrities and places were tweeting back. Needless to say, I have a new task. I’m tweeting like crazy to anyone and everyone who might give me some props. Sadly, I haven’t had any hits yet. As of now, I have tweets out to:

 

Justin Timberlake - I asked for free tickets to his show in Vegas for my boyfriend’s 21st, which I thought was plausible since I also said he could hang out with us.

 

Rachel Zoe – Telling her I couldn’t wait for her show. Even included a countdown. Pretty sure I said “I DIE” and “BANANAS” a couple times for good measure.

 

Brad Goreski (from Rachel Zoe) – Told him that his bow ties were the highlight of my week.

 

Burger Lounge - I joined their following one day too late and missed the FREE burgers.

 

Rob Dyrdek - My boyfriend and I are convinced that he would want to be our best friend if he let us come hang out at the Fantasy Factory. Dream big.

 

And my latest one was to my boyfriend - If nothing else, at least I’ll get one pity reply. Hopefully.

So my question is…What gives? Am I just aiming too high or are there tricks of the trade that I don’t know about? I figured I’d start at the top and see what happened. I thought I’d get lucky with at least one, but no - Notta. Zip. Nein. I realize that being a 21-year-old college student/intern isn’t that appealing but c’mon people, have a heart. Of course, this doesn’t mean I won’t keep trying. I will continue to get excited/nervous every time my TweetDeck has a notification. I refuse to let this dream die. I will tweet with Justin Timberlake.