Week in Review

This week I did some research for a client on e-marketing (SEO and SEM) versus traditional direct mail. This client has been hesitant to enter the digital world, so it was my job to find research and statistics that could show them that e-marketing is really important, even though they've been doing just fine without it. Another example of how "leaving well enough alone" can cause you to miss out.

I compiled all my findings and typed them up into a succinct report, which I passed on to Laura. She said I did a good job—that a lot of my work would be included in the agency's formal recommendation to the client. For me, it's exciting to get any kind of feedback... I like to know how I'm doing. But it is, of course, nice when the feedback is positive.

This project was also exciting for me, because it was "real" work for a "real" client. Even though it was pretty basic, I could see the importance of my task, and it was exciting that they trusted me, at least a little, to perform it.

On Thursday, students from the Marquette Ad Club came to visit Laughlin, and I sat in the dome with them. To take pictures for the HR Dept's Facebook page, and also for my own information. We heard from a few people (who I hadn't met yet) from different areas in the agency, and they talked about their jobs. This helped me get a better understanding of how the different people and teams work together—how all the pieces of the agency fit together. I'm really understanding what Steve Laughlin means when he says that we can't work as isolated departments—if everyone doesn't work in symphony, nothing will happen. (Goal 2)

On Friday, Amanda and I finished up the final details of planning for our United Way giving campaign within Laughlin. We sent out an e-mail to the agency overviewing the events for the next two weeks. We have a lot going on: a 50/50 raffle, a balloon burst (people buy $5 balloons, some contain prizes) and the "L/C Penguin" (everyone can cast $1 votes and the "winner" in the creative department "gets" to wear a tux for a day).

Behind the scenes, we have so much going on... drafting reminder e-mails, coordinating with higher-ups in the agency, keeping track of progress in our programs, collecting pledge forms... It's not overwhelming, though, because we have all the duties properly delegated and scheduled (Goal 1). Together there are four of us who did all this planning (and are doing the execution), but it's been a little hard staying in contact and keeping everyone accountable for what they're supposed to be doing. Just another challenge of teamwork.

I also finally met Dave Hanneken, the creative director, and we talked for a while. He's great. It was exciting to finally get in touch with him (they say he's the busiest guy at Laughlin). Anyway, he offered to review any portfolio pieces I had and said I could come by and pick his brain whenever I wanted. This is a great step for my future, since I'm still most interested in Creative (Goal 14).

One more thing: I mentioned before that Paul encourages me to sit in with him while he's talking on speakerphone with clients, or talking to his colleagues about whatever project. I don't always understand what they're talking about, because their conversations are often highly technical and obviously assume a certain degree of background knowledge. Even so, they're valuable for me because I can see how Paul deals with clients (Goal 4). I've seen two keys in doing this:

1. Relish small talk. I used to think small talk was a waste of time—in my communications, I'd get to the point right away, often forgoing the "How are you?" and ignoring their "What's goin' on?" I realize, though, that small talk is vital to creating an amiable relationship with a client. To make everyone feel personable and comfortable.

2. Recap. Business people are busy. Things are constantly running through their heads and, in conversation, they're often only halfway paying attention. It's important to recap periodically during a conversation. Repeat key points, reemphasize who's doing what as the next step. It's like that old saying, "Tell 'em what you're gonna tell 'em, then tell 'em, then tell 'em what you told 'em." But a little more suavely.