The marketing plan exercise for this chapter focuses on developing your own promotional strategy. You can think about this using the four conventional promotion-mix elements discussed in this chapter: advertising, sales promotion, personal selling, and public relations. And added to the mix is direct and digital marketing.

First, how are you advertising yourself? For example, what does your resume look like? What does it say about you? If your resume is the same basic template that looks just like everyone elses, how will you stand out from others competing for the same job? Also consider what your social media profile says about you. If a prospective employer were to look at your Facebook, LinkedIn, or Twitter profile, would they like what they saw? Would it reflect the image of a thoughtful, driven professional? Next, consider using a sales-promotion tool such as sampling. Unpaid internships give firms an opportunity to sample your work, increasing the likelihood that you could be hired there on a permanent and paid basis. Do the companies you want to work for offer unpaid internships? If so, how do you go about applying for them? How can you adjust your personal financial situation to take an unpaid internship if it helps to advance your career? Next, consider your ability to personally sell yourself. What will you say in an interview that will convince a prospective employer that he or she is better off with you than without you? The same strategies salespeople use to make a good first impression, such as appearance, grooming, professional dress, and a firm handshake, are all things you want to fine-tune as you get ready for the job market. Finally, public relations are essential as you start to develop your career. What do your colleagues think about you? Would your professors or classmates recommend you? Think about what you can do to improve or enhance others perceptions of you.

Your Task: Create an outline of the specific advertising, sales-promotion, personal-selling, and public relations strategies you plan to use as you begin your career. For each type of promotion, summarize how each can help you market yourself.