Informational Interview
During the summer my parents had a
party and invited my neighbour from down the street. My Dad and neighbor started talking about
what she does for a living. Previously in her career she was an account
director, and knew a lot about the industry. She said whenever I want to
discuss the business I can come by any time. At first I was intimidated to talk
to her, not only because I was nervous about talking, but also because I had a
bad childhood experience with her. When
I was 15 my friend and I went dirt biking in my back yard, which is a Christmas
tree farm, We went off track and ended up on her property. She heard us and
came out, but only to throw my friend off of his dirt bike and start cursing at
us. Julia owns a horse farm, and there was a colt that had just been born. We
immediately left but the bad reputation had already been thrust upon me accidentally.
I faced my fear and called her to ask if
I could possibly conduct an information interview with her. She happily agreed,
and it was scheduled for the Sunday that I had been home. We discussed what kind of atmosphere the
agencies are usually like, and told me about the long hours, and social life
being consumed by work, but also explained how fast paced it is and what an
adrenaline rush it is to be working there. She went on to say that it is a lot
more desirable to be working in a small firm compared to a large firm because
decisions don’t need to be verified by three other people in higher power. I talked to her about what she sees in the
future of advertising. We talked about the significance of social media and Julia believes that twitter is not useful for any means
of advertising, and thinks is merely a tool for narcissists to reflect their opinions
on random occurrences. I explained that even though it can be abused, it also
can be used to keep in the loop with business views, and valuable marketing
advice.
Julia began the industry from a
referral from her sister. She went from answering phones, and jumped right into
the marketing side of it with no direct experience in advertising. She was
working here during the day, and at lunch she was finishing her UFT class. She climbed
the ladder and ended up an account director. I asked her about her salary and
she said she was starting at about 40k a year, then moved quickly to 65
thousand, and then 80 within 5 years.
I really liked the sound of everything
she was saying except one thing. She explained how after a while of working
there you get burned out, and cannot perform to the expectations they require.
She said it becomes too much to handle if you want to have a family and raise
kids. “ when you have to leave early to pick up your child from daycare, you
become a tough employee” this is really what deterred me from advertising in a
way, but also opened my mind to how the real world works which will help me to
plan ways to avoid in my upcoming years.
The most important information out of
everything she said is that it is crucial to build your own brand, and develop
a name for yourself online. When hearing
that from a marketing professional, as well as my teachers, it really helps me realize the importance of
it. She said if there was one thing she wishes she would have done, it would
have been to get an education that would have built her brand and better prepared herself
for the career choice she was in.
I really learned a lot about the field
I am choosing, and how to work to my potential in the conditions I am in. It is good to know that I can always get a
second opinion or advice from someone just down the road from me. It not only
grew my understanding for the career, but also built a much better relationship
with her for my future experiences.
