I recently attended the Jacksonville Business Journal’s Advertising and Marketing Summit with the Rethreaded Marketing team. It was my first experience in this type of environment. I have only been working in marketing for about 6 months and I have had no prior experience, so this was so exciting for me! Ansley, the Director of Marketing at Rethreaded, explained a few things that made me feel more comfortable and at ease. I learned about the importance of networking and making connections at this kind of function as I watched her interact with other professionals.

Because of my current role, I am involved in event logistics, I was noticing all of the small details that made that event go off so well. The first thing I noticed was that the event’s sponsors were well represented. The way the tables were set-up with dark tablecloths and light-colored overlays, check-in table was well organized and the speaker was very engaging. Breakfast was served quickly and I was pleasantly surprised that they even had a vegan option! Then, the panel was introduced and we learned about each individual’s accomplishments and qualifications. I took notes as each speaker talked about their biggest victories in business and biggest mistakes.

There are a couple of things that I really liked they spoke about building trust, being authentic and that you have to market the marketing. Someone said, “just because I am immersed in a campaign doesn’t mean everyone else is”. I understood this because during Christmas we had The Rethreaded Challenge and I remember expecting someone from another department to know all about it, they didn’t and I realized then that I was having tunnel vision and needed to step back and “market the marketing”. The knowledge and experience I gained at the event were absolutely beneficial to the development of my skills in marketing and I am glad to have been a part of it.