By: Christina Bernhard

Associate Director of Digital Strategy at Rockfish, Alyssa Robinson presents to students Thursday about the digital world and how to land a job in the industry during Texas State’s Mass Communication Week.  

Robinson began with educating the audience on the digital industry with shocking facts about its growth. Eighty-one iPads are sold, 600 new YouTube videos are posted and 95,000 Facebook statuses are updated every minute. “Digital is no longer an option. It is a way of life,” said Robinson.

She defined what takes part in a digital ecosystem and showed examples of the clients she has worked with. She said what makes up a digital ecosystem is omni-channels, holistic mobile solutions, ecommerce and loyalty. She explained the meaning of each part and what they entail. Some of the clients she has worked with are Sam’s Club, Banfield, Nutro, Wal-Mart and GameStop.

After being educated on the digital industry, students were explained the strategy organization of the Rockfish digital team and their digital strategy approach. Everything was covered from job positions, their duties and their importance. She said the work that is done by each of these positions should be data driven, insight informed, contextually relevant and action oriented. Each of these were clarified in further detail, and the audience was informed about the importance of each when keeping a client and satisfying them. “It is a team effort,” she said.

Robinson talked about what many students want to hear – preparing for the job. With no marketing background, she shared her story how she set herself apart from the rest of the marketing majors. She became her own publisher and published her own brand of herself. She started a blog and integrated her social media accounts to create an online presence for herself.

“Be someone people want to work with,” she said. Being able to work with others can be a simple thing to set you apart from the other candidates. She also recommended being open to new experiences and taking an interest in your industry. She said if someone can name a favorite blog or magazine about the industry, this can be impressive.

After wrapping up her presentation, students asked questions about what she did after graduation and who her favorite client was. She joked that she began at Rockfish mainly making coffee and hanging pictures. She took the initiative to get involved and learn as much as she could to make up for the lack of a marketing background and quickly moved up in the company. Her favorite client to work with was GameStop. She said the client was onboard for “agile”, which is to be on call almost any moment for a new idea to make the digital plan work faster. Since the client was willing to put in the time towards their plan, they were able to build a relationship and have fun in the process.

You can follow Robinson on twitter @AlyssaBRobinson. Find out more about Rockfish Interactive here.