Background:
Natalie Butko is the Global Corporate Communications Associate at Ocean Spray. She graduated from Ohio University in the spring of 2019 with a BSJ in Strategic Communication and a Marketing minor. She was involved in PRSSA and a student-run PR firm called Successions. Before her current role, she interned at Kennywood Amusement Park and at Princess Cruises in Disneyland. Butko is originally from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Key Takeaways:
- Build on your experiences: no opportunity is wasted, and each role contributes to your growth.
- Focus on developing skills over job titles when job searching—roles vary by company structure and size.
- Cold applying can be successful; Butko applied for her position at Ocean Spray through Indeed.
- In corporate communications, engage audiences’ interests beyond the main product to strengthen brand perception.
- User-generated content can play a major role in brand visibility, such as the viral “Dog Face” video featuring Ocean Spray cranberry juice.
- Building a career is about more than just the job itself. Think about company culture, values and the impact you want to have.
- Key skills to have: writing, strategic thinking, basic design, time management and technical skills like email marketing, LinkedIn or operating content management systems.
- Practical advice: build good credit early, research before asking for help and enjoy the journey.
Connect with Natalie Butko on LinkedIn here.
Henry Gorsuch is a Journalism Strategic Communications major with a minor in Marketing and can be found on LinkedIn here.