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Experiential Learning at Elmira College, Part 1 of 4: Discovering the Advertising Industry

Elmira, NY (07/18/2019) — When you think of a college education in marketing, most people picture it happening in a classroom. But here at Elmira College, it also involves meeting first-hand with people who work in this industry, and hearing about their real careers and day-to-day challenges. So when students in Professor Alison Wolfe's course MKT3910, Strategic Advertising and Promotion Management, met with a group of professionals from local advertising and media firms, it gave them a perspective that many of them had never experienced before.

For this course, Wolfe organized a series of six educational meetings with local advertising agency Howell, Liberatore & Associates, Inc. (HLA), led by their President Eiron Smith and her team, as well as professionals from local television station WETM-TV and radio broadcasting group Community Broadcasting. These Friday meetings rotated between HLA's offices and the Elmira College campus, giving students an opportunity to discover what careers in advertising and media were really like.

For example, in one of the sessions, each member from HLA discussed his or her job function/role and workings with the agency. In another session, WETM-TV Vice-President and General Manager Marci Daniels and Community Broadcasters Director of Marketing and Sales Bruce Sermonis met with students to discuss the advantages, disadvantages and challenges of different advertising media, and the reasons for choosing one medium over another. And in another brown-bag lunch session Tom Brown, CEO of media consulting firm Media Barker, discussed the power of digital marketing to grow an organization.

Wolfe, who has devoted much of her teaching career and published research to the idea of creating experiential learning experiences for business and marketing students, designed these meeting to tie in with the course objectives of MKT3910. The HLA team and other presenters provided presentations, round-table discussions, Q&A, and case studies to help the students accomplish these course objectives. Including:

• Understanding the role of advertising in an integrated marketing communications (IMC) program, and its importance in helping reach marketing and organizational goals.

• Using the approaches and methods necessary to develop and implement effective advertising plans and advertising materials.

• Using research, talent, and creativity to integrate written and visual elements into persuasive messages.

• Learning to describe advertising medias' characteristics, advantages, disadvantages, and buying specifications, and the reasons for choosing one medium over another.

This was also an important opportunity for students to learn more about their own potential careers in advertising and marketing, which was very well received. Here is a sample of comments from these students:

"My experience working with Howell Liberatore & Associates was an amazing opportunity! I was able to see how businesses were able to get creative with clients while maintaining professionalism. This journey gave me tips that I will be carrying into my future career!" - Alexa Fields '21

"Having the opportunity to network with individuals from Howell Liberatore & Associates was a great way to connect classroom content with real world experiences. This opportunity allowed students to engage with the local community and gain greater insights into their intended career paths. Classroom experiences such as this partnership in Professor Wolfe's marketing courses are great examples of what makes the liberal arts education afforded to Elmira College students worthwhile." - Jeremy Boorum '19

"I got interested in working at advertising agencies when I visited there the first time, just because of how the nice workplace atmosphere is and what jobs they are doing for clients. All of this encouraged me to work at ad agencies in my future." - Rika Hayashi '19, International student from Japan

In addition to helping to bring more of the real world into the classroom, this was also a good experience for the industry professionals who took part in this. Sandi Fortune, HLA Creative Director stated,

"I enjoyed the opportunity to talk about my career path to becoming Creative Director at HL&A, the responsibilities of that position, and my role within the overall team at the agency. The students were all highly engaged and had great questions!"

As HLA President Smith put it,

"I thoroughly enjoyed bringing our real-world marketing and advertising experience into the classroom. Each week we would look to pair the curriculum with hands-on client work that was relatable. The students were really engaged, and it gave the HLA team a chance to educate, and get excited about what we do every day. I would like to thank Professor Wolfe and the EC students for the opportunity, and look forward to teaming up with the college on exciting course work like this in the future!"

(This is the first in a four-part series of articles on experiential learning for business and marketing students at Elmira College.)

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