Insight from Katie Costello

I met with Katie Costello on April 15^th. I had previously heard her speak in Dr. Foster’s PR Principles and Practices class. Dr. Irwin helped to put me in touch with her. Katie has pursued a career in Integrated Marketing Communications and had a lot of helpful career advice.

Like me, Katie interned in the marketing department of The Buffalo News. It helped that we were able to share our experiences there. After she graduated, Katie worked at The Buffalo News as a Digital Audience specialist and is now currently working at the Amherst Chamber of Commerce as the Marketing and Communications manager. Katie and I talked a lot about social media and its growing effect. We talked about how new social medias, such as Snapchat, are increasing in popularity and the potential effect it will have on companies. Katie is very knowledgeable in social media marketing and it was very helpful to hear what she had to say about it.

I was curious to know what a typical day was like for Katie. She explained her day start to finish in detail. She told me that she always starts her day by looking at the news and seeing what is going on in not only Amherst, but also all around the world. She said it is important to read and understand the news because it helps her understand what content she might want to put on social media for that day. She explained to me how she uses HootSuite, a social media management dashboard, to help schedule her social media posts. Katie also explained that she always makes sure she “gets away” for lunch. She thinks that it is important to disconnect for part of the day. She always tries to read on her lunch break and makes it a goal to try and read a new book every month. I think that this is really important to do especially in this industry, we can get so overwhelmed with news, social media, projects, and meetings that it is important that we find a few minutes of the day to get away from it all.

After Katie and I finished talking I asked her to review my resume. She helped me rework the wording of a few sections. I think it is helpful and important to have someone in the industry you want to work in review your resume. Katie knows the proper terminology of the industry and what looks best on a resume. I enjoyed sitting down with Katie and found this experience to be very valuable.