Marketing Director

It seems like eternity since I have written a blog post. A lot of amazing and wonderful things have been transpiring in my life. One of the biggest changes is starting my new job as a Marketing Director! I have been in this position for a month now, and I am happy to say I absolutely love it!

My job responsibilities include managing thirty advertising campaigns, developing content for our website and social media, networking with businesses and marketing reps, and creating scripts for radio and tv! Needless to say, dull moments are not included.

The first couple of weeks, I went through the training process with the organization that allowed me to see every aspect of the business. From the call center to the production of what it looks like to install our products. I am incredibly grateful for the wonderful training that they provided me, so now I can appreciate everyone in our growing organization.

So now that I am actually standing on firm ground and have my job settled into a routine, more exciting blog posts are to come!

You only get one shot.

I love the old game show, The Dating Game, where one person has to pick their potential suitor by only hearing their answers to questions. They couldn't see who they were going on a date with until after they picked them! 

What if you could only read a one page note about a person before determining if you wanted to date them?

Well, that is your resume. It is the one page summary about your skills, abilities and education, that an employer uses to determine if you get to go on a date interview with them.

I am assuming if you are looking for a job (and found some using my previous tips),  and that you know the basics of how to put together your resume. Therefore the information below will help bring your resume and application, to the next level and I used these to help me secure my marketing job.

1. Appeal /// If you truly are one of a kind, why would you ever use a template? Gather general ideas from multiple sources but ultimately make yours unique. How are you going to stand out using Times New Roman or Ariel? You simply are not! Download a free font from somewhere like dafont and use something unique. However, if you download a font to use always export as a PDF that way the font won't change on someone else's computer.

2. Highlight /// Bold, underline and italics can be your best friend or the annoying person who nobody wants to be around. Think very carefully about what you want to highlight and what areas you want the reader to direct their eyes to first, just like a well thought out advertisement.

3. Relevance /// The fact that you researched the Chinese-British 18th century conflict and wrote a 21-page paper on the topic, is not the bullet point that you should put when applying to a job as an assistant. However, you do have some good information in that nugget, which is that you have strong research and writing abilities which is relevant. Make sure that all of the items on your resume are important and have merit to the job that you are trying to obtain.

4. Personal Touch /// If you ever have the opportunity to write a personal note, cover letter or given a space to explain why you want the job it is vital that you do it! And like your resume, each of these additional items needs to be personalize to the position and even to the person. Doing a little research on the company before you apply is super helpful, and one of the reasons why is because you can find out who is doing the hiring. On LinkedIn jobs, you can see who posted the job, so it is important to customize your letter to them. 

5. Next Steps /// One of the downfalls of any good sales person, and the job seeker is not following back up. It is important to state in your cover letter or email that you will be following back up to see if they have received all of the materials and to answer any questions. Then, you have to call them back!!! When you call back two things will happen, one you will know more about where they are in the hiring process and two your resume will move to the top of the stack because they pulled it up to see who you were when you called.

Speaking of the next steps, the next part of the journey requires a suit and some hard questions, the interviewing process!

Where oh where did all of the good jobs go?

Obviously numerous reasons arise of why you are job searching, layoffs, boredom, higher pay, better benefits,  or moving to a new city, the possibilities are endless and believe it or not so are the locations and resources to find a job.

1. Mega Websites /// Alright so we all know them, the big boys of the industry that pull in candidates by the hundreds, even thousands. Most of the organizations that publish job listings on these websites are looking for a big pool of candidates and are large companies themselves. 

So how do you navigate around these big websites? Well for starters, look in a different area. What I mean is search for suburbs around the major city where you want to work. For example, I put in my resume for organizations in Marietta, Roswell, Woodstock which are suburbs of Atlanta. These jobs are less searched and therefore less applied for which increases your odds of getting seen.

Amazingly enough my new job actually came from a resume that I submitted on careerbuilder in Marietta.  However, that being said, my new employer still scanned through about 50 resumes that were submitted in the course of a single week. (Just imagine how many an organization in downtown Atlanta scans through!) Another big thing to make you stand out, always, I mean always write a personal cover letter. It is super important to let the person know who is sifting through the resumes, that you are a real person who is really interested.

(Side Note: The nationally known businesses like Lowe's, Chick-fil-a, Verizon and the like who post on these websites actually have filters build into their software to sift through the resumes. If your resume doesn't have enough of the key words found in the job's description, no actual person will ever see your resume at all.)

2. Staffing Agencies /// To be honest my knowledge on staffing agencies is limited. They do exist and my cousin works for one, but they are not all that they are cracked up to be. Most staffing agencies are seeking out potential clients on their own, so coming to them is not always the best option. That being said, I did not use them on my job hunting journey.

3. Built In Network /// If you are job searching and you do not have a profile on LinkedIn, run not walk and get one now. And while you are at it and if you can, pay the $30 a month charge for a job seekers account. Why is that important? For one, your profile shows up a different color. The different color indicates you are a job seeker and staffing agencies can find you, as well as you have more access to job searching specifics. Now having a different color won't get you a job, but reaching out to your connections that you have, will. I reached out to several people who were currently employed at organizations that had job openings that I found interesting. Once I messaged them on LinkedIn, I connected with them on the phone to ask them about the working environment and how they liked their job. Subsequently, they sent my resume on to Human Resources for me, instead of me applying directly online. This is huge, it always helps to have someone from inside the organization already vouching for you then some unknown person on the internet.

4. Local Chamber /// I spent one long, unpaid summer working at my local chamber of commerce as a communications intern. I learned a whole lot, but none of that really matters to you except most local county chamber of commerces have a job listings page. It isn't always easy to find, I mean like eight clicks into their website sometimes, but almost all chambers have them. I actually turned down a position that I found on my local chambers job board that wanted me.

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5. Circles of Influence /// Everybody and their mom needs to know you are searching for a job (on the DL if you currently have one and don't want to get fired). It is super important that everybody knows that you are search, because in turn while you are searching they are searching too.

True stories: A friend of a friend emailed me with a job at her company, because my friend had told her that I was searching for a job. Another friend's husband submitted my resume to his organization for an open position. A family friend called my mom to say that she found a great job for me. A former boss became my cheerleader to the hiring manager (who she previously worked with) to get me in at a particular job.

All that being said, good people have your back. So tell them that you are actively looking and jobs that are not posted out to the world could be coming just to you.

The items listed above are ideas that I have thought through and actions that I have taken on my own personal job search. I hope that they might help you expand your search a little more and get you one step closer to your dream career. However, it does no good to apply if you resume is lacking, so that will be the next topic up for discussion!

Say my name, say my name...

Besides getting my Destiny's Child grove on, boy oh boy have I been saying my name a heck of a whole lot lately! One thing about applying to numerous jobs, and when I say numerous I mean over fifty in the past month or two is that you get pretty good at repeating your information.

It hasn't been to no avail though. After all of the applications, phone interviews and in person call backs I am thankful to say it has all paid off. I am pumped up to take on an exciting new role as a Marketing Manger where I get to do what I love for a respectable organization! I can't wait to jump in and get my feet wet!

In my next couple of posts, I am going to take you through the whole job searching process and talk about some strategies and struggles. I hope you enjoy going on this journey with me.

Sometimes You Fall Down

I picked up my life in a comforting little town to move to the big city of Atlanta. I sold my house, left my job, and went to work for a friend to help her with her growing photography business.

Guess what?

It didn't work out as planned. The stars didn't align magically and I didn't live happily ever after working at a job I loved.

I took a gamble that didn't pay out, and now I am currently unemployed for the first time in my life since high school.  The beautiful thing about this world we live in and the expectations we have, is that we do not have all of the answers, we do not know the plan for our lives.

However, I do know some things, and these are the things that I know to be true and am thankful for:

1. I am valuable, and have a strong résumé backing me up. 

2. My mom raised me right and I have enough money saved that I can look for a career that I love.

3. I have not burned bridge in my life, so I have a strong network of supporters.

4. Atlanta is still where I am meant to be therefore I do not have any regrets.

5. I am just can't help but see this situation in a positive light! I am just super excited about the future!

Breeze of Opportunity

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Hot air balloons are tricky to time just right. In order to take off the ground, the conditions for the day, hour and minute have to be perfect. It takes several people to fill this massive structure with enough air and then you have to wait until just the right moment. Sometimes, it won't even work on the day that you plan and you have to go back another time and try again.

However, when you get the chance, when you get the opportunity to ride high into the sky, boy oh boy what an adventure. The thrill of seeing the landscape below and the clouds becoming ever so closer. It is exhilarating.

While you are up on your flight, you are being tracked by a crew on the ground as to the direction the balloon is heading. Part of the fun is that your ultimate landing spot is left to be discovered.

Opportunities in this life are constantly brushing against us. They are the trade winds of this world. Not every breeze is the right one to jump on and sail away, the timing must be right, the conditions must be right. However, once we experience the leap off of the ground and start floating on our journey it is exciting, it is breathtaking. Even though our ultimate destination is unknown we try and predict to the best of our abilities, but ultimately we don't know.

Be thankful for a constant breeze, be ready to sail away and be excited for an unknown destination.

Beauty: Makeup Fades

Part of my new career is working with 5-10th grade girls and lifting them up! Tessa and I are focusing in on a new direction of photography called Five Ten Girls. We are empowering young women to step in front of the camera without makeup, and not Photoshopping the photos at all. I love seeing their personalities grow right in front of my eyes!

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I live to inspire and motivate others towards greatness, so this initiative speaks right into my heart.

Featured on Tessa Marie Weddings

A part of this new season of my life, and the main reason I switched up cities was to take a new job!

This career move, has been the best thing since well, brie on rosemary bread.

Tessa (the boss lady/amazing friend) has welcomed me to her world, by writing this lovely blog post, so I thought I would share.

Check it out here!

Holiday Networking

It is that time of year where you are thrusted into meeting new people; the always faithful holiday gatherings filled with small talk. But this year is different, you are going to be well equipped by learning how to effectively network instead of being bored and staring into your coffee.

How do you successfully navigate holiday parties, 

getting the most out of an event through networking?

The table setting at a wonderful networking lunch meeting this afternoon.

1. First know your audience/contacts before the meeting if at all possible. Find out a common interest. (At the event that I attended this afternoon, we were all alumni from the same college. )

2. Have a prepared a one minute talk about your past experiences/life, but make it personal to the audience by adding in something about the common interest you discovered about the group.

3. At the event do not wait to be greeted by others, it shows confidence in a crowd if you introduce yourself to a stranger instead of lingering in the back of a room. So seek out one person that you would like to talk to.

4. Once you have introduced yourself, jump into the one minute overview of you. But allow enough room for pauses for open conversation and questions.

5. Ask your new friend, more about themselves and what they are passionate about doing.

6. You will begin to feel comfortable with the one person that you have introduced yourself to, now do it again to the rest of the people in the room.

7. Give yourself a pat on the back when you discover you now have greeted everybody in the room or at least everybody you wanted to talk to.

8. If you find that you would like to talk to an individual more about a particular topic seek them out during the event, and since you have previously spoken them, you will already have a connection. This is when the real networking happens.

Enjoy the wonders of networking this holiday season and 

the wonderful new connections that you have the possibility of making.

I like small names, I can not lie.

This morning I have been diving into resume hardcore red pen discovery mode for my organization who is currently looking to hire a new employee.  Oh the things that I have seen today, pictures on resumes, sentences with out periods, so many typos (you live in Georgia not Georga), emails sent from their current employer email address, and my personal favorite:

Names that read like billboards in fantastic colors. That my friends is my all time favorite!

Quick Tip:

1/// If you are currently employed send your job application and resume after normal business hours, that way it doesn't look like you are sending in your resume while working.
2/// Always, I repeat always name the file of your resume something professional because they are going to read whatever you name the file, so General Job Resume is not a good choice.
3/// When emailing your resume to an organization, make sure that the body copy of the email itself contains your cover letter or other important information that you want them to read. An email stating simply that your resume is attached is not good enough.

Happy job hunting and happy Friday!

Career or Passion

What do you do for a living?
What is your career?
What kind of work do you do?

Those questions are probing to find out what job somebody is currently doing. Why is it that we tend to assume in America that the career that someone has defines them? Especially in today’s day and age, with the odds of a 20-something keeping the same job for their whole life is darn near impossible.

Instead, ask the stranger what they are passionate about.

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Ask them what consumes them and what passion they desire to do day in and day out. Then, take the leap and ask them what is stopping them from perusing their passion.

Furthermore, are you currently in a career that is your passion? If not, why? What is stopping you?

Drama-Free Workplace

A co-worker walks up to your office door and starts talking about an issue they have with someone else in the office. What do you do?

A. Take their open hand and accept the conversation.

B. Shove your hands in your pockets, giving an I don’t care attitude and just listen.

C. Slap their hand and say, I don’t think we should be talking about this 

maybe you should talk to the person you have an issue with directly.

How you handle the gossip being brought to your door will largely determine how much gossip is being brought to your door. The less you get involved with inter-office drama, the less likely people will be to keep on coming back, over and over to hand out juicy negativity.

So if C is your answer then you are correct. Gossip breeds more gossip, therefore getting the co-worker to address the person they have issues with directly is the best solution.

Chained Elephant

When we are trying to find a solution to a problem we often seek advice from others or comb over past solutions seeking the correct way to get things done. We sort through the thoughts and often dismiss those that we have tried before and failed. Or we call out others advice saying that just won’t work for me.

Consider this story about an elephant that is tied to a wall by a heavy chain when it is a baby. It is just too small to break the big chain. As the elephant grows up, its handlers replace the heavy chain with a lighter chain. Still, when the elephant tries to break free, it feels the chain tugging at the wall and gives up. Eventually, its handlers replace the chain with a wire. Finally, by the time the elephant is fully-grown, all it needs is a thin rope to tie it to the wall. Yes, the elephant could easily break the rope, but it no longer had the belief that breaking the rope would lead to freedom.

– The Power of Personal Accountability

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By challenging a solution that may not have worked in the past, you might find that it is in fact the perfect solution that leads you to freedom.

Stormy Battle

Nothing worth living for is easy. Determination, hard work, and pain bring forth greatness.

It is hard when you are living in the storm and pain to see the beauty that can come from sorrow, to envision light ever seeping through the deep cracks.

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Struggles and patience carry with them the most rewarding packages. However, once you get the package it doesn’t mean the war is over. Battles will continue to push against you, but strong relationships, love and grace will pick your beaten soul up.

Therefore, draw your sword to the sky and keep pursuing what is just, right and true, and keep fighting.

Do.

I try my best to surround myself with people who are smarter than I am, 

pursue their dreams harder than me and can in turn push me to the next level. 

I had the pleasure of spending most of my childhood 
down the street from a person that definitely is all of that and more.

Chris Small. 

I asked him to spotlight a topic that he is passionate about which is simply, do.

Do.

Brilliance is not as uncommon as most people believe. Chances are the girl sitting next to you at Starbucks has a great idea about something, is an expert in her field, an amazing musician etc... 

One of the key differences between those who are filled with great ideas and the actual leaders of industry, is action. Doing something.

The truth is that even the highest officials and leaders struggle with fear, doubt, and rejection. All of these things are commonly seen as weaknesses but are actually advantages in the pursuit of self-discovery and actualization (both of which are required of all who aim to be the best in anything).

I was talking to someone I respected as a player in the digital marketing field here in Nashville about my career and his advice to me was 'Don't make excuses. Don't stall out. Just get going.'

It might be daunting and your idea might require a level of sacrifice that you are not yet willing to undergo. But there is always something you can DO. Make a plan, have coffee with that contact, read the book that one guy at the smoky bar told you to read. No matter your vocation, idea, or industry it seems we live in an age where there exists a shrinking amount of prerequisite for success. 

Start small, think big, and just get going.

-CS

Thank you Chris, for your post and call to action! 

Check out Chris's blog called Hey.Create to find out more about 

his passion for marketing, music, and entrepreneurship.

Soapbox Poster

Why do you blog? Post on Facebook? Tweet?

Is it to get your point across? 

Is it a journal of your life?

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This post by Seth Godin made me think really hard 

about what I am posting, commenting and following.

The Soapbox and the City

Cities work because they create collisions between and among diverse individuals. Ideas go to cities to be born and to be spread, and the chaos that bubbles just under the surface feeds those ideas. The web, at its most effective, is a digital city, a place where access is equal and ideas race and connect and morph.

If you want to find creative work, go to a city. If you want to find inspiration, expose yourself to diversity, not a bubble. The city is chaotic, without much of a filter.

The soapbox, on the other hand, is the amplified voice of a single speaker. The soapbox is the newspaper with subscribers, the Twitter account with followers, the blog with readers. A soapbox cannot ever scale to be like the city, because given the chance, the mob, attracted by the attention that comes with the soapbox, will grab the microphone and create nothing but noise. Open mic night is an interesting concept, but it never sells out Madison Square Garden.

Everyone deserves their own soapbox. The web has handed everyone a microphone and said, "here, speak up." But everyone doesn't deserve their own audience. That's something that's earned. Once you're on your soapbox, by all means take inspiration from the city. Learn from the diverse voices you hear. But your soapbox is yours, and the people who listen to you came to hear you, not everyone.

Access isn't really the issue when it comes to soapboxes. The issue is whether cultural and social forces will further push those with something to say (which is every resident of the city, which is all of us) to patiently and clearly say it, to build the audience that they are able to.

Your soapbox might be the reputation you have in the comments section of a favorite blog, or your page on a social networking site. It might be those that listen to you in the conference room of your organization. But it's yours.

For the first time in the history of media, those that are able to consume the media are also able to create it. That's a powerful (and thus frightening) choice.

One day soon, it's possible that corporate interests will impose barriers on soapbox access, all in an effort to reclaim power for themselves. Until then, the race is on to build your tribe, to tirelessly connect and to earn an audience that wants to hear from you.

You should follow Seth. He speaks volumes to my marketing soul.

Run Unashamedly

Run, run as fast as you can. Don't look back, don't look down, just run. 

Don't let any other thoughts go through your head, just do it, just run. 

Run towards what you want. 

Set your destination and run wildly, unashamedly to it.

You are only stopping you. You are the one who causes you to stumble. 

You are your own biggest road block.

Don't be so worried with falling that you don't even began to start walking.

Don't let the obstacles get in the way of your goals. 

Always keep your eye on the goal and never look down.

Just keep pushing forward this week towards what you want. You can do it.

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Swim Through the Blues

Feeling blue? Climb out of the blueness by giving yourself a pep talk, clutching to your strengths, blazing through your goals, and delight in knowing that nobody is perfect.

Free Resume Review

I have a passion for business. I love creating relationships, concepts, marketing ideas and designing all aspects of a business. My undergraduate degree is in marketing and public relations, then I went on to get my MBA, but my drive doesn’t come from the degrees it comes from people. How people think and are motivated. When speaking with my friend Tessa about her photography business, and how to obtain more of a particular client, I simply eat up every minute of it. Something that I am naturally good at is consulting. Giving my opinion about anything has never been hard =) One of the best ways that I know how to help people is with giving them a career advice.

I worked for two years in a career center during my graduate school and most of the time was spent helping people obtain a job, internship, or entrance into graduate school. The very first thing that you have to have in order to get those is an amazing resume. I have learned the craft of creating the very best resume. I am also currently serving on the hiring team at my day job, so I know what it takes to land a job. I am not going to promise that I will help you land the career of your dreams, but heck I will try! So if you just want some feedback on how you could improve, I am here to help!

So here is the deal. The first ten people to comment on this post will get a free resume review. If you see you have made it in the top ten, send me an email at revelrey@gmail.com and we shall let the red pen bleeding begin, just kidding... kind of...

Almost There

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For my job, all of my accounts have to be turned in and completed by August 1st! So this is the last push in my busy season. To say that I am stressed would be, well an understatement. I simply must get a ton done by next Wednesday! So all of you out there in blog land, pray for me this next few days. Pray that I will have the strength to get through it and the patience to deal with everybody in the process :)