Over 30 FSU Ad Club members visit Boston agencies

The Ad Club at Florida State University (FSU) embarked on a 5-day excursion to Boston, Mass., from April 3 through 7. The group of 31 students visited a combined total of seven agencies responsible for creating marketing campaigns of many well-known clients. The larger companies visited were Digitas, Hill Holiday, Connelly Partners, Mullen, and Allen & Gerritson; as well as some smaller shops such as Small Army and Beam.

During their tours, the FSU visitors were engaged by presentations from diverse departmental representatives, including art/creative directors, marketing strategists, and media planners. Students were able to network with employees, learned about their success stories, and explored various work environments. The agencies welcomed them and shared helpful industry insights! Some highlights included their meeting with FSU alumni who now work at Mullen, and even company CEOs, like at the Small Army, were also available to answer their questions.

Reflecting on these Boston agency visits, James Dumais (sophomore, creative writing and English education major) mentioned, “This trip provided us with such unique perspectives into the advertising field! Visiting a few of the smaller agencies demonstrated how important it is to find a company that reflects your personality or “brand.” A perfect example was Small Army, whose employees showed an overwhelming amount of passion and pride for their work! In comparison at a larger firm, Connelly Partners, we learned from their presentation about a few research approaches that stray from the ordinary to better understand target market audiences. Overall, the experience was very beneficial and I am glad to have participated!”

Ad Club members who attended this trip felt very motivated towards achieving their goals! Sarah Westerfield (junior, advertising major) said, “It was amazing to actually meet the creative forces behind the ads produced at large agencies! The company visits really helped me see different agency cultures and the type of cool people I can look forward to working with in the future.”

The FSU Ad Club is a student organization within the College of Communication & Information (CCI). Yet members and those who attended this trip to Boston also study at other FSU colleges (i.e. Arts & Sciences, Business, and Visual Arts, Theatre & Dance). While many are studying advertising or another area at CCI, some of the top additional majors include English, creative writing, finance, economics, marketing, graphic design, and studio art. Ashley van der Laan (sophomore, finance and marketing double major) felt that, “Regardless of your academic year or major, these trips provide great experiences and networking opportunities with professionals!”

After two tireless days visiting agencies on Thursday and Friday, the group devoted Saturday to exploring the city of Boston. The FSU Ad Club Executive Board met for dinner and exchanged ideas with the student officers who are in charge of running Boston University’s Ad Club.

The FSU “Ad Clubbers” departed together back to Tallahassee on Sunday, April 7. Stacked with business cards and their creative juices flowing, members returned safely and inspired to continue pursuing their career dreams! On their trip, they successfully gained valuable knowledge, contacts with employees they met at the companies, and connected with fellow student members who share common interests. Here is a YouTube video collage with Boston trip memories created by a FSU Ad Club member, Leah Jarem.

As described by Jackie Schultz (senior, advertising major), “These trips make dreams seem like a reality!” After serving on the Ad Club executive board as Vice President, she recently accepted a full-time Account Management offer from a well-recognized ad agency, Saatchi & Saatchi in NYC. Schultz is just one excellent success story sample of the FSU Ad Club helping students to launch their careers and land ideal jobs!

The FSU Ad Club provides continuous professional development at their meetings, in addition to an annual trip every fall semester to the American Advertising Women of New York Conference in NYC. To find out more about this student organization, follow them on Twitter at @FSUAdClub and join their Facebook group called “FSU Ad Club.”