Alumni Seminar at George Brown

My class, #MARK4029, was pleased to attend Aadhar Mehta and Stephanie Lee 's seminar. The speakers were GBC alumni and provided great insights about Digital Marketing, the marketing industry of GTA and Networking.

4 Important Lessons and Key Takeaways

Aadhar Mehta shared his agency experience and discussed how he found his co-op in his first semester of the Digital Media program. He shared several tips for job search. The two takeaways from his seminar were –??

• Start Early – One of our biggest mistakes as students is not starting early. Aadhar Mehta mentioned this vital lesson because of job deadlines and the current competition. He said companies began looking for interns and co-op students very early and explained the fierce competition in the job market. In Ontario, several programs offer co-op, and several students seek co-op opportunities. It is essential to start early to be ahead of the competition and secure a good job.?
• Send Personalized LinkedIn Notes – One of the best lessons I learned from the seminar is sending personalized LinkedIn invitation notes. Before attending this seminar, I never used to send personalized messages. It is crucial that the person you are sending the invitation to may not remember you. A personalized note will help them remember you and create a huge difference. After this, I started sending personalized messages to everyone I was sending an invitation to.?

Our next speaker was Stephanie Lee , who also shared great tips, insights, trends in the marketing industry and how to kickstart your job search. Two critical takeaways I took from her seminar were –?

• Be open-minded in job search – A new entrant needs to be flexible and open-minded while doing the job search. As mentioned by Stephanie Lee , it is essential to be open-minded about the industry, job roles, and organization size. By opening ourselves, we can land a more prosperous and more diverse job and allow us to make a more informed decision.?
• Be a T-Shaped marketer – This was one of Stephanie Lee 's seminar's most important key takeaways. I feel it is essential to be a T-Shaped marketer as the industry is diverse. I studied Marketing Management before I started this course. In both classes, I have studied almost 20 different subjects combined. Both courses have grown me as a marketer and pushed me to learn more. Being a T-shaped marketer is something all expert marketers strive for as it allows them to do more as a marketer.

3 Actions that I will START/STOP in my job search??

• START sending customized resumes and cover letters, and STOP sending bulk resumes without any customization. I have already started doing this. During Aadhar Mehta 's seminar, he mentioned how important it is to personalize each resume rather than bulk sending them. One can pick up essential keywords from job descriptions and use them in our resume. This will create an impression that the candidate is putting effort before applying for the position.
• START sending personalized invitation notes on LinkedIn, and STOP sending spam requests for connection. After I heard about the importance of sending personalized messages, I immediately started the practice. The note includes a general greeting and where I met them. This creates a sense of trust, and people know you much better.
• STOP running behind job titles and START applying for roles that meet most of your criteria. I have stopped running behind titles; now, if I get to learn something new in the job and there are few things that match my requirements, I go for it and do not hesitate to apply. As Stephanie Lee said – "Ask yourself ", Will I regret letting this posting pass me by?" If so, apply to it!"

Question to the speaker

My Canadian studies matches with Aadhar Mehta 's, and that's where I got motivated after hearing about his journey. So I asked, "How is agency life different from a product-based company?"

I asked this question because I come from a product-based industry. In my home country, I have worked in two e-commerce companies that were product based. Even in Canada, my internship was in SharkNinja, a product-based company.

This is the reason I am afraid to apply to agencies. But Aadhar Mehta explained that agency work is no different from any other. Agencies always require content creators and writers. He explained that one should not be afraid to apply for any jobs. Always be open to all positions and adapt to all job roles.

Networking Tips

Both speakers emphasized how much networking is crucial. They both mentioned industry-related networking groups such as Content Marketing Institute, The Communicator Collective, Social Media Marketing Consulting and much more. Stephanie Lee also emphasized being open to volunteering to gain experience and network. Besides online networking, Stephanie also advised you to network offline and be connected to your classmates from B413 and professors.?

Lastly, I would thank my professor Wendy Greenwood for inviting our two tremendous and inspiring alums from B413, who inspired the whole class to network more and discover the industry.