End of my adventure

Mikayla Wearne - 17081270 - Bentley 

Hi Guys!

It has been a few months now since I finished my internship with Go Communications and returned home from Kuala Lumpur. I have settled back into university life and into a new internship with the Curtin Activation team which means I can finally reflect upon my time and experiences with GO.

When I first found out I would be heading off to Kuala Lumpur to work at Go Communications I wasn’t quite sure what to expect but I envisioned a large company with lots of employees, I thought the company would be very corporate in the way dealings were conducted and in the way that everyone would present themselves. I expected the internship itself to be extremely organized, with a set plan for me to follow daily. It turned out that all I had envisioned was quite the opposite of what my experience turned out to be in reality.

When I arrived at GO I discovered that it was actually quite a small company that dressed and acted very casually but professionally. Although I had many tasks and responsibilities throughout my internship it was not as organized as I had expected, I was given tasks as they came. Although this was not what I expected it gave me a good idea of how communications companies are run and some perspective on a real working environment.

In my role I completed various tasks including media monitoring, both online and print, composed monthly reports for clients, created blogger profiles for client’s potential sponsorship, wrote documents such as media releases, media invitations, fact sheets and interview questions. I also attended events where I was able to interact with the media there and see first-hand how the company’s hard work had paid off, this also gave me an opportunity to network and learn about traditional Malaysian culture.

A lot of people have asked me recently how completing my internship overseas helped me and the challenges I faced whilst over there. I think the biggest advantage I gained from completing my internship overseas was that I learned about public relations on a multinational level, I was able to observe where practices were contacted the same as at home as well as where they differed. It opened my eyes to just how big public relations is, not only in Australia or the US but in many different countries and cultures and in many different companies, brands and businesses.

Another massive advantage to completing my internship overseas was that I was able to discover and learn about a new culture. I became quite close with my team members who introduced me to traditional Malay foods, one of my co-workers even let me wear one of her traditional “baju kurug” outfits to a traditional feast! I was taken to traditional markets where I discovered many different foods, fresh fruit and veg, electricals, home wears, clothing and knick-knacks.

Of course there were challenges attached to my internship being overseas, one of the biggest challenges was trying to overcome the cultural and language barriers that existed. This issue wasn’t present so much in my working environment but I found that it was a problem outside it. Although KL is a very modern, westernized country I still found that locals often misunderstood me or even ignored me. At times I found myself confused and frustrated with the way locals did things, for example I found that I was getting charged a higher price just for being a foreigner.

All in all, the internship provided me with experiences I will never forget, I have already found that I am more of an asset in my new internship from my learnings with GO. I definitely feel more confident about graduating at the end of the semester and jumping into the real world of PR! Thank you to everyone who helped me along the way and for those of you reading my posts, good luck to everyone who is still in their internship placements!

Kind regards,

Mikayla Wearne

Making Hard Choices

There are times when we are placed into tight spots in the workplace. This may be either choosing which CSR Program to sponsor and our decisions and reasoning are torn apart due to the limited budget. However I learn that in life, we can't move on without making choices.

1. Sometimes We Need To Choose 
In PR, there are certain CSR programs that deserved to be sponsored. In making choices, we need to see how big of an impact can that CSR give to the intended community? We are sometimes tempted to choose something that has less sponsorship value to conserve what is left of our budget. But then we need to think about how can the greater public benefit from it. Is it worth it?

2. Bringer of sad news
At times, people will call in and ask if we are able to sponsor or collaborate certain CSR programs. There are times we need to say NO. How can we help others if we can't help ourself. 

I admit, it is hard being a PR officer. Sometimes we need to turn away those that need our help. However, we must not be discourage and keep on going. Sometimes we can turn them to other places for help. There is always a solution. 

Delayed post and Bittersweet Feelings about Internship

Hello readers, it's been a long time since my post is created. It is delayed due to my Internet connection at home, it was broken down on the weekends when I planned to post it on Friday and it was just working last night. So not to stretch time, let's just back to my blog post.

This few days will be the last days of remaining Internship that I will complete and also focusing my progress on the Internship report that due on this Friday. I will finish the internship on Wednesday, that is when I will send my gratitude to my supervisor and colleagues who have been helping me with my PR Internship Program.

In this post, I will talk about the service system that runs in the company. It is a software that specialise for requesting the songs by entering the songs on keyboard provided in the rooms and the song will automatically played in the screen TVs. Inside the karaoke room, it has 2 TVs for easier reading the lyrics to the songs, 1 wireless keyboard, 2 wireless microphones and 1 or 2 additional microphones with cable on it which will be plugged to the CPU.

The devices are as illustrated by images below (Inul Vizta 2015):

The songs that are available on the system is requested by our customers, we add the new songs from the radio charts, special request and also adding songs that are quite important for our business (local bands or hit singles).

The genre of the songs ranging from pop songs, R &B, EDM, rock songs, etc. The songs are not only from Indonesia, we also add songs from Western musician, Asian songs like Mandarin, Japanese, Korean and also some important songs (this is like national anthem from Indonesia).

The colour of list illustrated in the computer has changed for the past few years. At first, it was mostly blue and yellow when the company starts operating (2007). Now, it is mostly orange, red and yellow for just a change in display to our customers.

The keyboard also get improved and more simple for our customers to use it. The customers also can record the songs for karaoke purposes in their own personal use. Extra surcharge will be paid by customers to the company. I have used this service last time I visit there and it was really good to know that we can record our voices when we sing and maybe use it for entertainment purposes or just for personal collection.

That is all for today folks, I will write the new and last blog post on this Wednesday. Until then, happy reading and commenting!! :)

How did I get that lucky?

I remember sitting on the balcony of the fourth floor and realising how lucky I was! I think we are not thankful enough for the chances we get and we do take it for granted. The work, meaningful as it was, was only a small part which made my internship experience special. Meeting with important CEOs and being on the front scene was horrifying at first but the deep breath I took before pushing this door was deeply comforting, the little voice in my head yelling "You can do this" made me feel invincible!

"Cogito ergo Sum" -" I think therefore I am"

The real feeling of having neurones dancing in my head to find the most creative way to present projects. There are many reasons to consider when doing an internship, but perhaps none is more worthwhile than being a part of something bigger than yourself!

Enjoy your journey guys and make each moment a unique one! 

Dear Creative mind...

Well, I guess my internship is all about doing things on my own. I think this was going to be a turning point in my work! As the communication department of the company relied on one person who was actually busy with other things, I could set my own goals and objectives that were going to be approved of course!

Anyway, I was going to get creative by all means that the Internet could offer myself as an intern!
I didn't know I could do some amateur design? I finally managed to change boring artworks into fresh ones that were showcased on our customer's Facebook page! I can't tell how proud I was!

From this...

To thiiiiissss!! Tadaaa

Further, getting an enhanced response on my artwork was a real push for me. That's how I came to realise that visuals are very important in an increasingly digitised environment. In order to stay unique and to make an impact, businesses must be willing to be creative and add a pinch of vitamin in what they are trying to sell!

Lunch, Anyone?

Dear Friends,

It has been nearly 2 months interning here and I gotta say, lunch time has never been so rewarding. 

Mee Jawa, my favourite meal nearby the office. 

Image by www.hungrygowhere.my

To be honest, I always look forward to lunch time. Most of my lunches are with my boss and colleagues. 

In my opinion, lunch time is also another way for PR to work. Sometimes we are too fixed upon the stakeholders from outside of our organisation that we tend to forget about the stakeholders within the organisation. 

Being able to spend some time with your colleagues during lunch allows you to listen to what they have to say or what they are worried about while working in the company or organisation. Keeping an open communication amongst employees is key to avoiding miscommunication in the workplace. 

I now understand that some employees are not comfortable talking about certain issues within the boundaries of the office and it's not like we even have time to talk during office hours. Of course whatever concerns they have, we need to protect their privacy. 

And besides, we get to deepen our friendship with our colleagues cause sometimes food taste better when you have company. 



Alan Zechariah Gian

What do you mean I gotta talk to more people?

Dear Friends, 

It has been one month into my internship and I must say, I definitely learned a lot of deal here in the industry. I have to keep telling myself that this is the REAL WORLD. Work pressure and stress definitely creeps up to you by now. 

First and foremost, I am an introvert. I can definitely speak up on matters that are important and interest me (which is by now are cars, cats and food). If you get to know me more, you'd notice that I like to be alone and not talk much most of the time. Speaking to strangers scares me, MOST of the time. 

                                                   (You mean I gotta talk to strangers?)

My boss at my internship posting here loves to see me try talk to strangers cause she say it helps me in this REAL WORLD. It starts with phone call conversations and slowly face to face. Aside from writing press-releases, prepping media kit, designing and planning, I have to admit, conversing with people in general is not my forte. (Especially ones with strong personality) 

(Can Mr Whiskers just stay under the desk today? You can talk to the humanz)

Somehow after a month in, I gotta say I have more confidence in speaking and coming out of my cocoon of blankets to speak to strangers. Gotta thank my supervisor, Miss Angelyna for pushing me out of my comfort zone. Slowly but surely. 

If you can relate to me, here's to you:

May the odds be in our favour

Alan Zechariah Gian

15410649

Bachelor of Arts: Mass Communications (Public Relations)

Intern at Interhill Group

We're homeless!

We’re homeless!

Being a not-for-profit organisation, the company I am interning with, Colosoul has to work hard to raise funds for any of their upcoming ventures. Their current endeavour is this time, more of a personal one – trying to raise funds to move into a new office space in Subiaco. With developers taking over our current space, Colosoul Group is soon to be homeless, so this project is crucial to the survival of the organisation.

Being an organisation that focuses on helping youth to feel empowered within the media and arts industry, Colosoul has a lot of potential to make a difference for youth struggling in a normal learning environment.

Part of our new office space will see the implementation of several leadership programs, bridging the gap between high school, university, TAFE and the workplace. So we (the PR team) are now in the process of creating campaigns that will make our group more relatable to the public, and show them the incredible work we do in order to increase donations.

My role as an intern has seen me searching for, and contacting potential sponsors for our move, and pushing the word of our campaign out onto social media. We’ve also worked with the entire office to create marketing ideas that will hopefully boost our public awareness and reputation. This can be difficult and awkward as we are essentially asking people for money (donations), but is something that needs to be done in order to see the move ensues. We also get a lot of "no's" when asking around, which can be disheartening and frustrating!

So far, this has been the most challenging aspect of my internship. Being a venture that is really important to the future of Colosoul, and means a lot to the workers around me who have invested a lot of time and effort into the corporation – I really want to see this campaign be successful, and feel a great deal of pressure to do a great job for the team.

Enjoying my internship at RSPCA

Hi everyone! I’m here to update my time and feelings at RSPCA and what other tasks I have been appointed to.

It’s always nerve racking being the new person in a workplace, especially an intern still in university. Before starting my internship I had many worries and still second-guess myself here and there. I had worried about been thrown in the deep end not confidently knowing what to do, or whether I would remember EVERYTHING I have learnt in theory and could apply straight away into practice. However, my experiences so far have been nothing like that, my supervisor provides a lot of guidance, tips and doesn’t expect me to be a ‘pro’ straight away. This is quite comforting, as interns we have to remember we are here to learn how PR is practiced in real life and develop experience along the way, a continuous learning journey.

This week I have performed some media monitoring, using their preferred site ‘mymedia’ to listen and analyse coverage across different sources including newspapers, broadcasts and articles. Similar to practices on Radian6, I had to analyse the sentiment of the messages and concluded whether they were negative, neutral or positive on the company’s reputation. I also compiled them into the following:  proactive media, reactive media, miscellaneous, live stories, prosecution or investigation cases, issues, etc. I have also created new adverts for the upcoming weeks by analysing the outcome of the previous advert of what worked well and what didn’t. Results found mobile device was the most popular, 18-45 year olds were our main demographic, the best time of day to post was 1pm-5pm and wost was 9pm-7am and sad up-close imagery worked the best.

Most days we have an office dog in the communications department to give us company. The office dogs are generally from the adoption kennels to get out for a while. 

Meet Cookies 

That wraps up my post for this week, good luck to everyone and enjoy the rest of your internships!

Jasmine