While working as the Product Marketing Manager for Book Arts Collaborative, I also manned the retail sales/cash register for both the Collaborative, as well as our community partner, Tribune Showprint. I handled thousands of dollars in transactions, with little to no supervision. I worked with customers to ensure they received a product they were truly satisfied with, and gave them information about how their particular product was made. This boosted our sales, as many customers decided to make a purchase after hearing how their particular product was crafted, specifically when learning that their product was a one of a kind design.

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For more on my experiences at Book Arts Collaborative, click here.

One of the major responsibilities of being the Product Marketing Manager for Book Arts Collaborative was dealing with the retail businesses consigning our products. I met with each interested business to go over our products, and determine what products made the most sense for them. I also called businesses in the Indianapolis area to expand our product distribution, and set up meetings with two businesses there, who after hearing my pitch started selling our products as well.

At first I personally checked in with each business every week or two, and then after the initial few months, I handed that responsibility over to my team members. From that point on, I worked with my team members to ensure we were always providing each retailer with the best value, and handled any major issues that my team needed assistance with.

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For more about my experiences with Book Arts Collaborative, click here.

I have enjoyed public speaking since I was young, and gave the only speech at my high school graduation (200-250 attendees). I continued to give presentations throughout my college courses, my time as VP of College Mentors For Kids, and was even given the opportunity to present for a $15,000 grant that Book Arts Collaborative applied for. I excel at presenting a calm, confident exterior to my audience, regardless of any internal nervousness. I am confident in my ability to provide a professional presence, and while with the Collaborative I often met one-on-one with the owners of businesses to sell them on placing our products in their stores.

I spent the majority of my sophomore year (Fall 2014-Spring 2015) working for the Ball State University Alumni Center as a Cardinal Caller.

I spoke with hundreds of alumni, who had quite a varied view of their impression of Ball State. Many individuals loved the University and cherished the years they spent on campus, and it was easy to connect with them. They were much more open to giving a gift to the University, and even when they weren't interested, they were usually very polite.

I also interacted with a multitude of alums who felt differently. This group had a less positive view of the University, often due to not being able to utilize their degree in their current career, and were much less open to being asked for a gift/having a conversation at all.

Through thousands of calls, more often then not with the latter group, I maintained professionalism, understanding that even when I was being yelled at, that I represented Ball State University, and could possibly be the only person from the University they would interact with for months. I often empathized with those I was calling, and provided a more caring, human side of Ball State then many had encountered in a long time. More than once someone would apologize for yelling part way through the call, and thank me for being understanding.

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For more on my experiences as a Cardinal Caller, click here.