What I Wish I Knew...

As I started to think about things that I wish I knew when I was just starting my life as PR major that I know now, I realized that everything I've learned so far has been so much greater than I initially thought it would be. To be honest, I chose the PR concentration because it seemed like it would be the easiest thing for me to do. As I have gone through the program, I couldn't be happier that I chose Mass Communication and more specifically Public Relations.

When I first entered the major, I thought PR was mainly just handling the press for the company one works for. So I thought I would be learning how to be a press mediator and disseminator of news releases. And I thought if I got really lucky, I would get a job working for a celebrity or something so I would be dealing with high profile people. This is pretty much the realm that I placed PR in.

As I've gone through the classes, I've learned there is SO much more to PR. First of all, and I think my favorite aspect, is event planning. This is a huge segment. We spent a whole semester planning the Athletic Auction...for a class! To me, this was the best class I could ever take. I did learn that there is so much more to planning an event than I ever imagined, I learned that I love this side of PR. I like being involved behind the scenes, so I hada blast. Aside from event planning, there is also the tourism and hospitality industries which are also very different and really exciting. There are also many opportunities for design. I think the main thing I have learned is the the PR field is extremely wide and the options are almost limitless.

I would recommend keeping an open mind while thinking about jobs after graduation. And don't feel like you are going to get lost in a world of writing press releases. Although I actually do enjoy writing them, there is much more to do for everyone else. Get excited about all the PR field has to offer!

You will know what I did last summer...

This past summer, I spent most of my time as an intern with the Eatonton-Putnam Chamber of Commerce. I started the internship in May and worked full time until the end of July. I did so much while I was in Eatonton it is hard to remember it all! A large part of my job was to create and design various rack cards and brochures. A lot of the design work I did was for The Taste Of Eatonton, which is the Chamber's largest fundraiser. I designed a postcard, a rack card and wrote several news releases and a feature story for Southern Distinction Magazine.

Outside of the Taste of Eatonton, the Chamber is also involved in the tourism industry in Georgia. Chamber is involved in many state tourism programs such as The Antebellum Trail, Georgia’s Historic Heartland, Treasures Along I-20 and Georgia’s Lake Country to name a few. I was able to attend at least one meeting for all of these associations and it gave me a great behind the scenes look to see how much these small towns are doing to promote their region. A lot more work and money goes into the tourism industry than I would have thought. Event planning was a big part of it and I was able to assist in getting a few events pulled together. I also made a promotional slide show for Treasures Along I-20 which features the seven communities involved.

The rack cards I produced will be distributed state-wide and the the brochures for joining the Chamber and starting one's own business will be a useful guide to Eatonton's and surrounding city's residents.

Aside from these projects I created various flyers and inserts that were needed as well as helped the staff out in any way that I could. I interacted with Chamber members and attended some of their networking meetings. I learned how a successful Chamber of Commerce is run and what exactly it does. I met many people from the town and neighboring communities who were always willing to offer advice and assistance in any way they could. I found the community to be charming and I will look at the city of Eatonton in a different way now.

I learned so much in the past summer. Just being a part of the day to day life of a company really lets you see how things are actually done. I was thankful they trusted me enough with their projects to let me handle some of them. I think this experience will always be something I will refer back to when I am planning my own events and marketing to different audiences.