I have devised the following zine as an autonomous, visual, and narrative addition of my learning and development throughout the AD6607 Fashion Business Module. It was important for me to have a form of documentation which highlighted my individual roles and responsibilities, diary chronicles, individual critical analysis, and personal reflections so it can be taken forward into industry. This zine will act as a representation of the entrepreneurial, team working and business planning skills I occupy and showcase the achievements of working cohesively and professionally. This will accompany a group business plan gifted to you at the Dragon’s Den pitch.
At the beginning of the semester, I was designated a place within the ‘Communication Marketing of Brand STUDIO 204’ department, a team which was liable for the outwardly facing promotion of the new course FCM (Social Media).
Truthfully, I was surprised as perceive myself as a bit of a mix of marketing and communication! However, from conversing with CEO, Tracey Hall, she believed my storytelling techniques, extensive researching skills and unique visual communication formats would be beneficial to this team. As opposed to questioning my ability, I embraced the challenges this journey may contain and approached it with an open and determined mindset. This last year I have resolved to pushing my boundaries to the optimum so I can acquire as many skills and opportunities as possible- submerging myself into this category of the module allowed me to continue doing so.
I am excited to record my journey and how I have progressed working as a team player within the proceeding pages.
COPYWRITTEN BY ELEANOR HENDRY (MYSELF)
As the author Simon Sinek once said, “a leader’s legacy is only as strong as the foundations they leave behind” and as the Communications and Marketing Team working for Studio 204, it is our responsibility to fulfil this by establishing a robust platform which actively showcases the incredible talent and creativity of our current community of students. We wish for this to be passed on to the future creatives within our university field, so they can advance a continual, positive label for our brand.
Through effectively interacting as a team, as well as liaising with neighbouring groups too, we intend on exhibiting the new course of Fashion Communication Marketing (Social Media) through a fresh narrative- a lens which focuses on the course’s specialities and ahead of the curve thinking. This will be achieved through a synthesis of thorough research, interview processes and behind the scenes documentary, allowing a personal scope into the world behind Studio 204. By engaging in such tasks, it will enable the finalised outcomes to be underpinned meticulously, as well as successful in exhibiting the pioneering nature purposed for the FCM course. We propose to create a marketing film which envelops the originality and innovative style of the Social Media program as well as additional books, series, and videography to ultimately capture the entirety of what our department has to offer and be tailored towards a specific target audience too.
Studio 204 prides itself on professionalism, positivity, and employabilityall of which will be supremely demonstrated within our Communications developments. We pledge to market Fashion Communication Marketing to our utmost potential, remaining consistent in time management, knowledgeable of arising trends and employing an appropriate skill base which can be expanded to ultimately push us as creatives and accentuate a storytelling which can be told to generations to come.
“If you’re going to live, leave a legacy. Make a mark on the world that can’t be erased.”Hi, I’m Ellie, Journalist Manager and Communications Executive of Studio 204!
This title enables me to foresee and lead an array of promotional sectors to confidently market the University of Chester FCM (Social Media) course. My day-to-day roles include comprehensive research and analysis, pitching ideas to the team and CEO, contacting, and conducting interviews with industry representatives and alumni, and copywriting content. I also support my team members within their roles by attending visits, workshops, and editing in house created marketing films.
I have a keen eye for detail and a strong willingness to push myself and my capabilities, therefore this role continuously intrigues me as not one day is the same and I have the opportunity to progress my skill base. I have a strong can-do attitude and want the best for my team- I believe this is grounded both in the work which is produced and how I conduct myself through the process.
I was fortunate enough to be placed alongside two colleagues who shared the same ambitious and driven nature as myself. Chantel Williams and Milly Shimmin joined me in the Communications Team for the Studio 204 agency…
As Researcher and Developer, Chantel Williams was responsible for collecting relevant data to show how other universities market their course, creating questionnaires and feedback forms for the first years to engage with, retrieving data for the curation of a data film and establishing invitations for senior members of our faculty.
As Multimedia Executive, Milly Shimmin was responsible for editing and visualising content and media obtained from interview process ran by the Journalist Manager and Communications Executive, ensuring these remained cohesive with the new branding. She was also liable for creating the Studio 204 Marketing Film alongside a TikTok series for first year’s interviews conducted by the team.
Our first meeting with the CEO took place on 13th January 2023, where we discussed an overview of what was needed from our department and the roles and responsibilities to be later designated for each member. After the conversation finalised, we had a separate meeting to collaborate all our thoughts and ideas. This day we were all guns blazing!
The team were ambitious on establishing innovativeness and fresh content for the course, considering what marketing strategies were working well currently and how we could implement them on our behalf. As students we understand what prospective onlookers will be searching for upon choosing a university, since we have been in those shoes ourselves and are members of the Generation Z cohort too- our target market.! I wanted to home in on this and approach the marketing of the new course through our lens as opposed to “generic”.
As a strong group of communicators, I believe we have the expertise to produce something unlike no other, which really inhabits the talent and uniqueness of individuals on our course.
Some of the ideas thrown into the mix were a podcast channel, rebrand and TikTok. Going forth from this discussion, I suggested that we each do some research into all these areas so we can strongly pitch them to the CEO the following week.
My research for this can be found within a physical research file handed in to Tracey Hall.
The concept of a ‘rebrand’ was pitched to all students in the first week by Tracey Hall. Ideally, she desired a shakeup of the current marketing and a more simplistic outlook for the consumer eye. To settle confusion and to make a fair decision of layout and font types, it was agreed that each team was to present their suggestions in the upcoming week of the 20th January 2023 to the class.
I strongly believe this introduced us into teamwork and negotiation skills from the outset. As a class, we are very much ambitious and slightly stubborn natured, therefore the contrasting ideas and differing opinions had to be controlled and viewed from a wider perspective! For me, this task opened my eyes to what the approaching few months may consist of. I learned that not everything will be smooth sailing when working as a team, but to remain understanding and considerate of other people’s thoughts and how circumstances can be governed to produce work effectively.
Below is my ‘rebranding’ concept which I pitched to the teams and CEO.
I selected the colours red, black, and white as alternative options to the branding we had presently. For me, black and white are dominant shades which show professionalism and strength, one of Studio 204’s core values. I identify a lot of luxury brands as having these fonts and believe the simplistic nature creates a stronger narrative too. The red I assimilated with passion, as well as cohesive to the University of Chester logo. To succeed on a course like ours, there must be an inner enthusiasm and fondness for what you’re doing. As students we have an embedded passion, and I was driven to implement this within the face value of our marketing.
To fortify my choice, I engaged in some research into colour theories and brand communication which can be discovered in the physical file handed in.
Incorporating our negotiation skills, we decided as a group to present multiple designs to the neighbouring teams and CEO. We loved the concept of using Industry Mentor Tony Green’s work as inspiration as he has worked alongside our course and supported us as students to evoke our creative and eccentric senses! The Multimedia Executive Milly took all our ideas on board and created some mock logos which reciprocated the digital nature and current branding of Studio 204 simultaneously, as shown above.
My past experience of working in a Retail environment and as a Social Media Assistant accustomed me to the notion of operating within a team surrounding very well. Working towards a given brief or task was nothing new to me and having KPI’s to complete has been implemented in a day-to-day basis in these prior roles. I conducted a SWOT analysis on my personal skillset, which was utilised to support us, as a team, to assign the most suiting jobs to our needs and capacities.
• Strong creativity and visual communication skills
• Working to a given specification and ensuring it is executed correctly.
• Hard working and strives to succeed.
• Autonomous and collaborative worker
• Interpersonal communication skills
• Knowledge of the ADOBE suite including Photoshop, InDesign and Lightroom
• Copyrighting and strong narrative skills
• Avid storyteller
• Leadership and managerial
• Critical thinker and analyser
• Strong eye for detail
• Time Management (something I am progressively working on over the last year)
• Confidence
• Sometimes a people pleaser
• Stubborn
• Impatient
• Stress and anxiety
• Overthinker
• Self-critical and doubting of potential.
• Premiere Pro and After Effects
Within this module I will have the opportunity to:
• Build my confidence.
• Expand my skillset and delve into areas of exploration.
• Develop my team working skills.
• Understand other individual’s abilities and how these can be collaborated to cater to a brief.
• Prosper in an avenue of my choosing
• Turn my weaknesses into strengths!
• Re-evaluate aspects I am strong within and may need to improve on
• Allowing my self-doubt and confidence to override my potential.
• People pleasing too much could affect my personal outcomes.
• Handling stress effectively as to not bring the team down or make them apprehensive.
• Being bossy! Remembering this is individually assessed and based on my journey and development- what I produce reflects my progress and commitment.
Some of the roles of a Journalist Manager and Communications Executive embark the following:
• Research and analysis including articles and other universities.
• Establishing, communicating with, and maintaining contacts
• Interviewing sources
• Creating relevant and cohesive content
• Writing, editing, and proofreading.
• Attending locations
• Liaising with the team, CEO, and other groups
Personally, I believe my legacy is important and I want to make a lasting impression when it comes to graduating. I want to be acknowledged as the person who was willing to take risks, who made the most of her opportunities on the course and tried exceedingly hard in every aspect she was proposed with. Dedicating myself the role of Journalist Manager and Communications Executive allowed me to have a balance of building on my strengths, yet conquering my weaknesses.
As aforementioned, Journalism and copywriting are areas I wished to explore upon coming into university and I still believe it is a sector I want to commit to when graduating. By designating myself this role, I can enhance my knowledge and ability in this area so I can showcase it to industry optimistically.
Nonetheless, I believe there are areas within this role that will challenge me personally. Confidence and anxiety are something I have struggled with from a young age, and I’d much rather be in a room by myself than a room full of people! One of my main goals for this module is to lead the interview processes (this is expanded on in my KPIS’s section) an integral part which will be utilised within many marketing materials, yet encompasses a lot of communication, leadership and conversational skills! My journey on FMC has pushed me to become a more outgoing individual and I really want to demonstrate this through my role. I have an uncanny passion for pressuring myself so it will build me into a stronger and skilled person, I feel this role incorporates a lot of work and time management to ensure everything is produced on schedule and will challenge me as a person- hopefully compensating in the end!
Now I have negotiated my role as Journalist Manager and Communications Executive, it is imperative that I assign myself with Key Performance Indicator’s. I will use these KPI’s as objectives and stages of progression to keep track of my development and to ensure my role is accomplished successfully. KPI’s are pertinent for any business for providing metrics or goals and guaranteeing optimum performance from all workers. From working in retail, I understand the importance of achieving these and how they contribute to a business prosperity, therefore I will be continuously looking back towards them, in order to move forward triumphantly! KPI’s can often change throughout the duration of timeframe, therefore I will be critically reflecting upon these upon finalisation of my work to document any changes or additional actions implemented.
• Explore what makes a good interview? We want to stand by our ethos of professionalism and positivity; therefore, this is a good starting point to enable the achievement of this.
• Conduct thorough research into other pioneering universitiesconsider how they capture industry interviews both socially and physically. Are they doing voice overs/F2F? Do they have quotes alongside? How do we make ours unique and individual to Studio 204?
• Look into the questions proposed by these universities- what does the audience want to hear? What is enticing to them?
• Research into competing universities specialising in Fashion Marketing or Fashion Promotion- analyse what is good and what are the limitations, so I can communicate this via a pitch to my team, class, and CEO.
• Research into industry mentors and alumni before interviewingthis ensures I am highly knowledgeable of their backgrounds and allows a conversational flow as opposed to structured, within interview formatting.
• Delineate who we will be using for industry interviews by conversing with CEO- ensuring we have alternatives if necessary.
• Contact industry through a professional and clear message/emailexpressing how it would be a pleasure to invite them for a conversation about the FCM course and to highlight briefly of their backgrounds and why they wanted to work with Studio 204.
• Ensure they know what this interview entails and conclude if this will be undertaken F2F or virtually.
• Agree on dates for the industry interviews to take place and communicate these clearly with both team members, interviewees, and social media team.
• Plan and co-ordinate all interviews independently- team members will only be there for support. F2F interviews should be situated in a professional setting with microphones, lighting, and suitable background. Again, to ensure optimum quality is retrieved.
• Create consent forms. It is vital these are signed before any documentation or footage is uploaded.
• Follow up message to interviewees involved- this demonstrates professionalism, gratitude, and a good representation of Studio 204.
• Create mock up mood boards for how the F2F and virtual interviews could look like in film.
• Project these to the Multimedia Executive and discuss together.
• Listen to recorded interviews and edit out any pauses, blips, and unnecessary elements.
• Discover quotes within the interviews which can be highlighted within the marketing film and written on STUDIO 204 platforms.
• Attempt to expand skills and knowledge base of Premiere Pro to assist in the editing of videography if necessary.
• Send any footage or BTS to social media teams.
Personally, research allows me to embrace my problem-solving skills and approach my objectives in a strategic form. Interviews are nothing new on the scene, so it was important that our production of these is excelled in a contemporary lens and are unique from what else is out there! By conducting a competitor analysis of reputable universities and their approaches to storytelling through interviews and film, I aimed to retrieve the strengths and weaknesses of their processes, so I could delineate a USP or ‘gap in the market’ for my team to draw in on. I studied the likes of Central Saint Martins, Ravensbourne, Parsons and Antwerp’s Instagram feeds and websites, paying close attention to their audience engagement and how often they posted. Interview-wise, I analysed their question types, audio tracks and where these were situated (for example in university, in corridors etc).
To the left is one of the Central Saint Martin’s videos I reviewed. This was an interview with members of the Fashion Promotion course, relaying their experience and why it has been beneficial to them. I was surprised by the strategy of this video as it was very basic, with little to no interactive motion, and very unlike the creative reputability they are recognised for.
I was pleasantly surprised by my findings in that many of the university’s films were very generic, incorporating a typical business soundtrack and repetitive questions. Thus, they didn’t receive credible engagement and lacked innovatively. Some of the CSM videos captured my attention for their immersive structures and unique imagery, which I noted within my critiques. Nonetheless, I felt we could drive a personal and far more playful response for our outcomes. I presented all my findings within presentations as shown below and to the left, containing an extensive analysis to project to my team and CEO.
I continued my competitor analysis into TikTok to observe if universities utilised this more efficiently for marketing their course and providing interviews. Here, I found that many competitors including Central Saint Martins received high followings and engagement in their content. I discerned that many universities didn’t have singular accounts for each of their subjects which is an area that we do, so I suggested that we home in on this and propel it further. Many of the videos were produced by students and involved trending audios and filters. Interviews were very informal, and often incorporated a student-with-student mini questionnaire of personalised questions. As a collective, we negotiated that a series of interviews on this platform would cater to our target market whilst showing a fun and personal side to FCM.
My KPI expnaded in these stages to industry and alumni, as well as the sharing of first years. We designated TikTok for the first-year content as I felt the alumni and industry interviews should maintain professionalism and be situated within Instagram and YouTube where they can be future proofed further and show a transition from one year to the next of our expanding community.
Above I have evidenced some of the fashion films I looked into as well! As a fond storyteller, these are my go-to for inspiration when I produce my own videography and I felt sharing them with the team and CEO would boost ideas for what we could inhabit in our own. Charles Jeffrey has brilliant storytelling and marketing techniques which involve cutting edge thinking and a humorous flair. I appreciate the balance in this because it shows light-hearted personality, whilst demonstrating strong creativity- I feel this is most suitable for our strategies of storytelling. Again, I produced these in a presentation to share with my colleagues, where we all agreed that the typewriting and screen within screen transitions looked highly effectual and will be areas taken forward for our productions
SHOWstudio is a platform I follow within my personal feeds as I admire their innovative strategies. I discovered this video on their YouTube account and instantly felt it was something we could reciprocate within our layouts. The soundtrack was a mix of traffic noise, ringtones and soundtrack but was effortlessly merged to create an immersive clip which incorporated zoom in and torn effects to create an abstract and appealing viewing at a suitable duration.
First point of contact is always important in my perspective as it sets a positive tone and builds a welcoming relationship between myself and the correspondent. I aspired to get as many participants on board as possible, and with having the additional role of conducting alumni interviews I felt this demeanour was highly appropriate to accomplish this successfully. Therefore, I ensured all my messages were enthusiastic and catered to the one person, and not a copied and pasted format. I believe little details like this demonstrate good reputation and a keen interest for their involvement.
Since we decided as a group to share the first year’s responsibility, we suggested it would be beneficial to jump on one of their study calls to introduce ourselves properly and to discuss what we needed from them upon visiting their sessions. Unfortunately, the remainder of my group forgot about the call, so I led this autonomously
Personally, I felt this was quite daunting, especially when put on the spot as I am not the most outgoing speaker! Nonetheless, the call went great! From being a first year myself, I could resonate with and prepared myself for the unresponsive nature and shyness. I was optimistic and engaging whilst remaining professional as our year are the year they look towards. I followed the call up with a ‘thank you’ message within their Facebook group as shown above.
In my opinion, a word document comes across half hearted and lifeless to the eye, therefore I felt not many participants would engage with it, if it was to be produced in this format. It was pivotal that interviewees read the questions in advance to ensure amendments could be made prior, and so they had preparation time to think of their responses too.
I put my marketing head into play and thought tactically! I recognised a word document was received as a file when sent on an email, whereas a JPG could be seen straight away, when opening the message. So, I supplemented myself an additional task to devise a marketing background, which was cohesive with our new Studio 204 branding and produced a collage of FCM (the course we are responsible for pushing) students best work. I created two assortments but opted for the one on the left as it was visually stronger and showcased key elements of the course which make it differential from neighbouring universities. I optimised my Photoshop skills in this task as you can discern from the screenshot above.
As stated previously, the smaller details are sometimes the most significant and I strongly believe by integrating this task, it brought the interview questions to life, making participants read them instantly, as well as demonstrating effort had been involved in the production process.
Alongside the marketing background, I established a debrief of the Fashion Communication Marketing course to provide a condensed explanation of its itinerary and key standpoints which push it out from competitors. I felt it was important for interviewees to grasp a strong understanding of its comparability to the original FMC course as a selection of my questions surrounded its promotion. Our brief is subjected to the commercialisation of FCM, and it was my upmost responsibility to ensure that this was done accurately. By allowing participants the opportunity to educate themselves beforehand, I stood a good chance that interview responses would be robust.
I expanded my copywriting skills greatly here, which benefits me for industry exposure.
Interview questions were personalised to each participant as I felt this created a greater flow to the conversation and alleviated any ‘genericness’. Scoping into an individual’s current role emphasises how our courses can propel you into a range of industry roles and provides the interviewee with the confidence to talk about an area they are knowledgeable of too. Interviews can be daunting for some and as someone who lacks confidence, I can comprehend this massively. Therefore, by incorporating fun questions amongst the more ‘promotional’, it optimises engagement and provides a breather for the participant.
As my role stretched to alumni interviews, I delved in on their past experiences and university studies to establish questions surrounding these. A great example of this is how I related Luke Owen’s FMP project to his new role and questioned if this inspired the career avenue he went down. My aim was to show how FCM can change your initial pathways and provide you with an opportunity to venture an array of areas to navigate your niche. Last year’s students were a massive contribution to the curation of the new course, so I ensured a variety of their questions were based upon this, as they were most affiliated with it.
Organisation is key, especially in a group environment. Utilising Microsoft Excel, I created a timetable of dates confirming when each interview was taking place which I shared amongst my team, so they were aware of when to come in and to prepare themselves for taking additional BTS imagery for alternative marketing purposes like the films and social media. Despite my interviews being a ‘one man job’ role, my team supported me massively to ensure they all ran smoothly and received the maximum content necessary. This task allowed me to expand my skillbase in Excel, a platform I had never used before!
In conversation with the CEO, we agreed that a consent form was to be devised which was an obligatory document to be signed by everyone involved in any footage we share among platforms. This was a task I took seriously because I didn’t want implications to harm our team role or course interface.
I researched meticulously into how these should be catalogued, worded them professionally and sent them to all interviewees alongside their interview questions and debrief. A copy of these can be found in the file I present to you at Dragons Den.
Despite this task not being as interactive, it demonstrated a serious and corporate side to the industry. The consent forms are something I followed up continuously to ensure they were all completed accurately, and most importantly signed!
1. What skills have you learnt so far in the 6 months of FCM?
2. Do you believe the fast-track option should be made more widely available, why?
3. Who do you aspire to be like in the industry? Who do you look up to as a role model?
4. Name one fashion item you cannot live without.
5. If you were a fashion brand, what would you be and why?
6. You have the opportunity to go to Tokyo with your course next year, what are you most excited for?
7. How is FCM (social media) different from the other university courses in the UK?
8. What are your aspirations outside university?
9. If you could pursue a dream career, what would it be and why?
10. What has many your most favourable moment on FCM so far?
11. What advice would you give to someone looking at coming on this course?
12. What advice would you give your younger self?
13. How did you find the FCM course?
14. What are you most looking forward to at your time in university?
15. If you were to wear anything to graduation, what would it be and why?
16. What does the future of fashion look like to you?
17. Do you have a favourite fashion movie?
18. What is your favourite fashion capitol?
19. Describe your style in one word?
20. What’s on the background of your phone?
21. Name one fashion collection which stands out to you the most?
22. Who is your fashion muse?
23. What past designer do you admire? 24. What is your favourite fashion publication?
Co-operating with the first years was a task we found a lot more difficult than we expected due to their shyness.
We initially proposed to make interviews which could be posted on TikTok, alike the research I documented prior. The questions to the left are some I established that we could use amongst these. Nonetheless, only two members felt confident to pursue this which was slightly disappointing. Due to this not going ahead as planned, my group attended an additional styling session where they were tutored by Tony Green. We believed that they may have been a little more interactive with us within this session, although unfortunately not.
To optimise our time, we took BTS imagery and videography of their sessions which could be used within marketing purposes instead. In industry you must prepare yourself for things not going the way you expect, I believe we dealt with this situation in a professional and can-do manner, so time wasn’t wasted, and we still received reasonable content to market their course.
Ellie was well informed of her questions and had answers prepared which suggested my JPG layout worked proficiently!
The first interview I successfully pocketed was with former student Ellie Lyon. Ellie works for Liverpudlian luxury reselling retailer, Luxe Collective, as a buyer. Luxe Collective have an incredible following on TikTok and are highly knowledgeable with a Gen Z audience, which is a perfect attribute for marketing our course too! Inviting Ellie for an interview seemed appropriately fitting as it detailed the potential of how far our students can go and how they can venture into roles further than marketing. Since Luxe Collective authenticate their products, we were fortunate enough to receive spare garments and footwear which didn’t pass their tests. I decided to utilise these within the background of Ellie’s interview, whilst ensuring we had a one colour backdrop which can further be digitally manipulated in editing to feature alternative backgrounds.
As Ellie was slightly apprehensive for the interview, we thought it was most feasible to have Milly alongside her and to publish it as an interactive version on TikTok and YouTube. This procedure demonstrated to me the importance of making on the spot decisions to cater around the comfort and happiness of participants involved. It shown how well we communicated as a team to resolve the issue in a professional conduct.
Whilst in the first year’s session, I approached Tony Green and kindly asked if he would consider doing an interview in his studio with us. As an industry mentor for FCM, it was vital to conduct Tony’s interview in a professional manner, and I believed his studio showcased his background as well as the creative essence he brings to our courses.
Alongside a member of the Zine team, our group attended his studio in Warrington on 17th March 2023, and conducted a range of activities (from interviews to in motion videos) to ultimately capture as much content as possible for marketing purposes. I employed great communication skills to ensure everyone was settled on a suitable date and time and we all incorporated good teamwork and negotiation skills to get the most of what we could from the trip.
For all interviews I ensured we were triple backed up (overthinker alert!). I carried my tripod which held a phone for video footage and sound, air pods for clear pronunciation, as well as a phone with a voice recorder too. Although this sounds like a lot, we only had one chance for perfecting these interviews, so I wanted every aspect securely monitored so we didn’t have any faults come postproduction.
Another face-to-face interview I performed was with last year’s graduates, Luke Owen, and Sophie Taylor. Again, I optimised our marketing content and conducted a joint interview alongside individual questions for them to engage with. As former students, both Luke and Sophie understood the importance of this module and provided the team with some excellent responses to my questions.
I believe doing a joint interview allowed the participants to bounce off one another’s answers and gained them the confidence for the individual proceeding interviews. It is massively important to incorporate former students as it demonstrates the progression, they have made post-graduation. Sophie and Luke have both received fabulous roles and I focused an element of my questions around these, as well as cooperating their opinions of the new course and its prevalence for the future of fashion education.
For a role like mine, it is easy to get fixated on performance, and just as easy to neglect how well you are doing! After each interview, I made it a priority to thank those involved, and it was most wholesome to receive such positive feedback from every participant in their responses. Interviewing is a role I have never done before and was, therefore, completely out of my comfort zone- a reason as to why I agreed to doing it in the first instance. Seeing the interviewees enjoying their time and willing to do extra, proved I was performing my job well and proliferated my confidence during the process.
As the industry encompasses a turn towards the digital world, I felt my interviews should too! Many of our industry and alumni connections don’t live in the surrounding areas which halted our numbers for face-to-face interviews significantly. However, I didn’t want this to hold us back from performing greatly so I offered all participants the opportunity to connect with us via Teams to complete their interview. Personally, I believe this allowed me to achieve the numbers I did. For those who couldn’t make it to Chester, I brought Studio 204 to them, and for the ones who felt a little less confident, they could do it in the comfort of their own offices or homes! As the new course surrounds the digital realm, it is important to show how we successfully utilise such platforms to converse with amazing mentors and alumni relations.
My first two online interviews involved former students, Millie Wright, and Leanne Piper, both of whom have secured fantastic positions post-graduation. At Studio 204 we have a massive community of successful alumni and I wanted to ensure different people had the spotlight to showcase their success.
Conducting interviews allowed me to expand on my listening skills as I occasionally supplemented questions related to their responses. My intentions were to make the interviews conversational flowing as opposed to structured, so all participants felt at ease. For one of these interviews, the participant asked me to adapt her questions last minute. I feel I approached this in a quick and professional manner so she felt comfortable with her part of the interview.
Securing an interview with Shannon was super difficult as she has a very busy schedule. However, I decided to do some interviews independently
from home and this allowed her to complete hers at a later time in the day which
I was ecstatic with! Sisters and Seekers is a trending brand currently and I was determined to get the interview with Shannon so she could share her journey to getting her role with us and prospective students.
Leading the interviews solely was nerve-racking as I had to set up all my ‘just in cases’ with no support or behind the scenes. But I feel I did a great job, nonetheless. I set up a tripod behind me which ascertained I had additional video and sound footage if Teams failed to record, and I ensured all meetings were set up in advance. I did incur some small hiccups, all of which are notified in my self-reflections towards the end of the book. I definitely agree that I enhanced my leadership and management skills further through the direction of these interviews!
I asked Eden Loweth if he would like to participate in the interview on a whim during a 1-1 call within the neighbouring module and I was thrilled to hear he agreed! I loved how in-depth he went in his responses- our interview lasted a good 40 minutes! As a leading industry mentor, Eden has experienced the goods and bad sides of the fashion domain, and it was interesting to hear his perspective of the new course, as well as some strong advice for new and current students. I noted some of these quotes down and devised additional posts for the social media team to use within their schedule.
As someone who stresses a lot, I prefer structure! And, if I needed to step in to support my colleague in editing the videography, I would feel a lot more comfortable knowing I had a storyboard to follow than free flowing it. Linking back to the research I completed at the beginning of this book and my appreciation for the ShowSTUDIO film presented to the CEO, I used this as guidance and created the following boards.
I was immensely happy with the number of interviews I attained, but this meant there was a lot of videos to complete for the Multimedia Executive! In conversation with the CEO, she requested for me to make storyboards of what the interviews could look like upon finalisation.
From devising two sets of storyboards on how face-to-face and virtual interviews could look, I then felt it was crucial to practice my editing skills. Many of my interviews lasted a considerable time length which meant it was difficult to send them over for my colleague to adjust. To mend this altercation, I operated the Capcut platform to edit questions, pauses, and mistakes out. This saved Milly significant time as the videos were ready to be imported into Premiere Pro and adapted to her liking and optimisation.
In conversation with the CEO, she mentioned that I might have to support the Multimedia Executive with further videography editing. Honestly, Premiere Pro is not my forte! It is an area which I feel the least confident in and would happily avoid by all means. However, I reminded myself that this journey was of continuous challenge and there is no harm in trying! I, thus, decided to take one of our prior interviews and self-teach myself from afresh.
In my opinion, this was one of my biggest hurdles within this module so far and was a platform I subjected as one of my ‘weaknesses’ in my SWOT analysis. However, with plenty of research and numerous YouTube tutorials, I accustomed myself with the basics of utilisation in order to complete a one-minute teaser video!
I believe accommodating myself with Premiere Pro in advance was a smart decision as I had the confidence to perform additional editing if and when I needed to. Despite my colleague, Milly, completing her role wholly, I am thoroughly happy that I stepped out of my comfort zone and took the time to learn a big skill which is appreciated in industry. I can now successfully add this to my expanded skill base!
Learning Premiere Pro proliferated my confidence and I wanted to push this further by making additional content for the social media team to publish as I understood they were struggling for quantities in posts. Since our branding has become very stripped back, I wanted my posts to adhere to this but comprise of digitalised elements which brought them to life. I, therefore, taught myself Adobe After Effects.
Although tough to gravitate around initially, I felt I learned this more comfortably due to it having similar components to Premiere Pro. I ensured the layout and manipulations were cohesive with the implementations the Multimedia Executive integrated into her productions and included inspirational quotes from the edits of industry mentors and alumni visitors. This markets both Studio 204 and FCM, in a way which demonstrates how broad our skill base can grow on our courses as well as pushing one of our USP’s of industry integration.
Upon revisiting my KPI’s I am extremely satisfied in knowing I have achieved them all, and to the best of my ability. It was fulfilling to have successfully completed additional tasks I assigned myself along the journey as well! Partaking in the added targets demonstrated that I could stick within a timeframe for completion, as well as giving myself more responsibility for extra activities. These heightened my co-operation and enhanced my skill base, whilst allowing me to work well under pressure. My KPI’s didn’t alter significantly, apart from the odd tweak, which have been documented throughout this book, and I feel I stuck to these, as well as the brief meticulously. Approaching this role with an open mindset and willingness to challenge myself was hugely beneficial as I have consumed copious skills and knowledge along my journey. My KPI’s have allowed me to receive a thorough understanding of a Journalistic role and supplied me with the expertise to take into industry confidently. I am happy that I have supported my team avidly through the completion of these KPI’s and that my roles and responsibilities have made a considerable difference to shining our 204 community and the new course FCM in a contemporary and narrative lens.
R e s e a r c h a n d d e v e l o p m e n t : ( I n c u s e o f M i c r o s o f t W o r d , E x c e l , P o w e r P o i n t s e r v i c e s ) I n c l u d i n g : R e s e a r c h i n t o o t h e r u n i v e r s i t i e s w e b s i t e s / Y o u T u b e / T i k T o k / I n s t a g r a m R e e l s A l l p r e s e n t e d i n a n a n a l y s i s s t u d y f o r C E O R e s e a r c h i n t o A l u m n i a n d I n d u s t r y b a c k g r o u n d s a n d c u r r e n t e m p l o y m e n t t o c o n d u c t p e r s o n a l i n t e r v i e w q u e s t i o n s R e s e a r c h i n t o F a s h i o n C o m m u n i c a t i o n M a r k e t i n g ( S o c i a l M e d i a ) f o r c o m p r e h e n s i b l e u n d e r s t a n d i n g C r e a t i o n o f p e r s o n a l i s e d i n t e r v i e w q u e s t i o n s d e b r i e f o f n e w c o u r s e p e r s o n a l i s e d c o n s e n t f o r m s
t o - b a c k 2 4 / 7 c o n t a c t a n d s u p p o r t f o r A l u m n i a n d I n d u s t r y t o n e g o t i a t e t i m e s , v i s i t s , q u e s t i o n s , c o n s e n t f o r m s , a n d a p p r o v a l s , a l o n g s i d e a d d i t i o n a l q u e s t i o n s , a n d r e s p o n s e s v i a e m a i l a n d / o r m e s s a g i n g s e r v i c e s S e t t i n g u p , d i r e c t i n g a n d f i l m i n g i n t e r v i e w s ( I n c p u r c h a s e s o f n e w e q u i p m e n t ) I n c l u d i n g : S e t t i n g u p o f s t u d i o s , b e h i n d t h e s c e n e s c o n t e n t , n e w e q u i p m e n t p u r c h a s e d i n c t r i p o d s f o r a u d i o a n d f i l m o p t i m i s a t i o n , f i l m i n g c o n t e n t f o r a l l
I have established an invoice as a form of legal documentation for my services and role as Journalist Manager and Communications Executive. As this was something I had never completed before, I grouped all my services under a relatable category and researched the average costs of what this could result to. Along my journey I bought additional equipment out of my expenses, so I ensured such necessities were added to the overall value. I also considered fees for the software platforms I utilised including Microsoft and Adobe suites, as well as labour costs and margins of profit. I found this task valuable as I had never considered how much my work would be worth in a freelance format. Although not an avenue I have wanted to go down either, it was interesting to integrate my finance and mathematical skills to delineate how much such services would be in an industry environment.
The AD6607 Business Module has opened my eyes immeasurably and gifted me an honest experience of the more corporate sides to Fashion Marketing and Communication, as well as working in a team environment. I believe I was very naïve walking into this module as I expected it to be much simpler working in a team setting, however I value how much it has challenged and provided me with a robust awareness of the importance of cohesiveness, professionalism, and maturity. I took this as an opportunity to look at myself inwardly, to delineate my strengths, but to also expand on my weaknesses and present myself with possibilities to better my skillset. I appreciate how it demonstrated both the pros and limitations of working in a team- for me a fantastic representation of an industry setting. This self-reflection will mirror these findings, showing my part as a team player and how I successfully worked within a team structure, whilst engaging an honesty where I address small matters which I proficiently noticed yet effectually resolved in a professional manner, finalising in a positive conclusion and accomplishment for showcasing the outwardly facing narrative of Fashion Communication Marketing in a new light.
Being part of the Communications sector intrigued me, as I perceived myself as a mix between this and marketing! Nonetheless, I was equally as thrilled with the CEO’s decision as it allowed me to extend my knowledge of Journalism. Negotiating my role of Journalist Manager and Communications Executive positively impacted me to investigate a favourable career path of mine, as well as consider a part of the industry I am continuously advancing and devising my own niche in, which is communication! My role was important because it involved a considerable amount of the content needed for professionally showcasing FCM in an organic lens. Therefore, a synthesis of leadership, timekeeping and promotional skills were vital to accomplish this fruitfully and for ensuring I played a robust part in my team.
Having a brief to adhere to provided me with a preliminary plan and timeframe which I stuck to extensively. This is important because industry will require you to follow instructions meticulously. I addressed this role like an outside career position and strived to achieve the best for my agency by continuously building on my KPI’s to maximise my work ethic and skill.
This meant being punctual and attending sessions promptly to ensure I remained on track and in thorough communication with the team and CEO. I learned the importance of being present and remaining respectful when another member failed to do so in initial stages. However, I supported them in getting back on schedule, showing I was a professional team player.
Research and Development advanced my skill set in analytical judgment, research, and observational skills, particularly when looking at competitors and film. Competitor and market analysis are areas you would perform in an industry profession, and I thoroughly believe it presented me with a strong strategy for development stages. Expanding on the latter skills pursued me to communicate ahead of the curve thinking for what we could produce as outcomes. I admire how well I disseminated my findings effectively and incorporated understanding and listening skills to actively voice my opinion, whilst hearing others’ ideas too. Producing weekly presentations proliferated my confidence and organisation, whilst firmly demonstrating my engagement for wanting the team to do well, thus underscoring how strong I was as a team player.
My main responsibility surrounding the management of interviews, was incredibly rewarding, in that I got to familiarise myself with the talent our community possesses. I invested a lot of time in preparation, advancing on this skill to create the breeding ground for success of production. Thinking innovatively and adjusting to other people’s needs resulted to the accomplishment of 8 interviews and exhibited strong negotiation abilities. I believe I resolved challenges professionally by conducting tasks like moodboards for example, so online interviews produced a robust narrative in finalisation. I am thrilled that I got to advance my copywriting skills in tasks like the consent forms too, as this is a prime sector I am keen to venture. Since these were a legal requirement, I found reading up on such matters beneficial for industry exposure and I ensured all individuals who participated in my interviews were fully transparent to the requirements I asked of them. Devising the group statement so that it was a thorough representation of our ambitions and drive intensified my copywriting as well.
I am proud of how I came into this role optimistic and with an open mindset as it allowed me to defy comfort zones and confront challenges. Premiere Pro and After Effects were two examples of these, and I am grateful that I didn’t allow my self-doubt to dictate my creativity, because I can confidently say these are skills I can add to my CV now! There was a slight miscommunication in this circumstance where my colleague felt I was stepping on her toes by learning Premiere Pro, which was unfortunate as I had her best interests at heart and was approached by the CEO to complete this. Although I felt she could have handled this better, I approached the misunderstanding professionally by conversing with my colleague and receiving advice from the CEO who confirmed I managed this correctly. I learned here that everyone works at different paces and under stressful conditions, individuals can react discordantly, but to respond calmly and not allow it to affect my personal role.
I believe I worked highly efficiently in the agency, performing as an excellent team player and supportive colleague as well as working well autonomously. If I was to be proposed with a similar situation in the future, I would be more observant of my team and ensure we are all communicating consistently, as I feel this was our only flaw which altered the experience. Nonetheless, I am very proud of myself and my team. I value how this experience has gained me an array of skills from transferable to knowledge based and shown me a realistic perception to teamwork in a business environment. I believe my personal attributes have expanded positively so that I am going into industry with a wealth of knowledge, and I am thoroughly happy that I have conducted everything that was asked of me by the CEO and brief. Assigning myself additional tasks, which continued to support in promoting the new course of FCM (social media) showed that I have great time management skills and take leadership on my own accord.
