Narrowing the Search and Getting Down to Business

This week I've spent a lot of time sending off emails to several independent digital marketing companies, and really doing some research into their client history and event portfolios. Narrowing my target agencies down to Firebelly, Momentum, Gas, Romley Davies, and ThinkJam. I've contacted all of the agencies using the email addresses indicated online, explaining my relevant skills and attaching my CV. Having some experience with these things, I know that blind emails are rarely taken seriously and may not garner a response, but it is best to start with this avenue and then follow up in a few days. This way, I can call each agency 3-4 days after sending the emails to follow up and hopefully get a specific contact number or email for someone in the Human Resources department.

It's interesting to note that these independent agencies who are not linked to larger creative industry conglomerates (such as TimeWarner, Viacom, etc) rarely post specific internship opportunities on their websites. I would expect that is because most interns are referred by word of mouth and networking within the business.

Refining the GROW Model

Having done research on the new media and online marketing community, I've taken some time this week to refine my goals and specify my GROW model, outlined below.

G - Goals

After graduating from the MA CCI program, I will enter into a project manager role at a small, independent online marketing company, focusing on digital media and social networking. I will apply the knowledge and skills obtained from my MA and from my dissertation to have a successful career in the new media sphere.

R - Reality

The following factors will help to make this goal attainable and realistic:

-My experience from working as a publicist in the music industry.

-My CV and Cover Letter which I've revised and looked over with the HR director of a large Creative Corporation.

-My internship during my MA CCI program.

-Knowledge gained from my MA dissertation.

O - Options

There are many, many positions within new media and online marketing companies. At the moment, I believe I would like to focus on social networking for brands in entertainment. As I intern and learn more, I may move more towards marketing for corporate brands, or I may move more towards solid digital marketing instead of social network campaigning. It's important that I keep my options open and take everything into account.

W - Way Forward

I've already begun to implement my strategy by researching the companies which are listed in my last post. I now have a working list of organizations on which to focus. By the end of the first term, I will have contacted each firm to inquire about internship opportunities. I plan to interview for internships at the end of this term as well as the beginning of next.

SMART Goals: The First Step to Identifying Direction

Coming from a background of Public Relations at major US record labels, I've been fortunate enough to obtain 5 years worth of 'insider knowledge' about the Cultural and Creative Industries. At this point, I may not know exactly what I want to do, but I know what I DON'T want to do, which is sometimes half the battle. I know that I enjoy PR and possess the skills necessary to carry out a position in the field - I am very good at building contacts and maintaining relationships with writers, tv bookers, clients, etc. and have honed in on my ability to persuade those around me. I also consider myself to be creative in terms of branding strategies and long term projects. However, I am increasingly interested in new media as it relates to marketing, specifically online marketing and social networking. I feel that I can apply those skills I have already built and refined to this more forward-thinking sector of the marketing and PR worlds, specifically in the Entertainment Industry.

If you think about PR and Online Marketing departments at Universal Music Group, for example, the same skill sets apply - a person in the former would spend time pitching writers/tv bookers and coming up with print media campaigns while a person in the latter would spend time pitching bloggers and creating viral marketing and social networking platforms. I believe, however, that print media will no longer exist in 10-15 years, at least not in the same way it does now. Publicists will be left with red carpet photos and event planning, which could easily fall to the event companies that are already highly skilled in these areas. My main point of this argument is that technology is the future. It is a cliche, but is nevertheless very true and very real, especially when considering the CCIs. Thus, my ultimate SMART Goal (the first in our series of the GROW model) is to obtain an internship at an online marketing/new media company that carries out innovative and fresh campaigns for a variety of clients. The variety here is key, as I don't wish to work at a niche music company or film company. I believe there is significant value in being able to carry out campaigns across the board, whether in fashion, TV, film or fine art.

Below is a list of companies that I've researched and will contact over the next month. This is only a start, but these are the sorts of companies in which I'm interested:

Substance

Thinkjam

Greenroom (aka Momentum)

Firebelly

Gas

Grapevine

Ultraviolet

Romley Davis

Otm (part of Target media group, mostly design-based rather than publicity)

Candyspace (mostly mobile)

Spinnaker

Fixate

GRDD Systems

20:20

It's important to note also that all of these companies are independent marketing shops. They are not parts of huge corporations, and that is a conscious decision on my part. We were asked this week to consider a recent media story such as the budget cuts in reference to our internship search. I think it's interesting that while some of the larger companies will be greatly affected by the cuts, several of these smaller upstarts may be able to garner more business. For example, when there are budget cuts in a large record label, layoffs usually follow. With less manpower in each department, it becomes necessary to outsource help on specific projects, since outsourcing is usually cheaper than hiring a new employee. The list of companies above are exactly the types that the big corporations would call in this case.

There can be arguments for and against 'big business' and eventually any business that is small, becomes bigger if it is successful. But I believe now is the time to jump on the bandwagon of indie online marketing companies, and I don't intend to miss out!!