Public Relations and Marketing Intern
RIT Press
About the company and role:
RIT Press is the scholarly press dedicated to serving the RIT community and beyond.
As the Public Relations Marketing Intern, this was my first experience putting the skills I learned as a Freshman in the Advertising and Public Relations program. The core of this internship focused on researching book titles sold in the Press’s shop, creating press releases to promote them, and building regional media contact lists.
Internship Evaluation
In the Summer of 2016, I worked at RIT Press as its Public Relations and Marketing intern. After completing the Summer co-op, I gained essential skills particularly in writing, editing, and identifying target audiences.
I was responsible for creating promotional material for the following books: The Aries Press of Eden, NY, Bob Davies: Basketball Legend, Through the Looking Glass, and George Giusti: The Idea is the Heart of the Matter.
To promote The Aries Press of Eden, NY, I created two press releases that targeted an antique and regional market. In separating the audiences and crafting a release customized to what appeals to their publication decision-makers, we were able to reach a wider more diverse audience. In addition to creating the press release, I gathered a list of media contacts consisting of editors, writers, and reviewers of publications that fit the theme of the book.
To promote Bob Davies: Basketball Legend, I created press releases for the book’s release, the many book signings by its author Barry Martin, and to encourage booksellers to stock the book. In addition to this, I wrote copy for an advertisement for the book as well. This book was the most challenging as it required juggling more than two press releases at once. In tackling this book, I realized that having better time management and organization when first approaching this book would have helped complete the material.
To promote George Giusti: The Idea is the Heart of the Matter and Through the Looking Glass, I created one press release each. Both of these titles had a similar theme which helped in the creation of both simultaneously. After working through many revisions, these press releases made it to the final revision stage where I left them as my co-op ended.
Leaving my internship, I felt more confident in my writing. I was able to assess where I could improve in my skills and how I succeeded in them. Beyond that, I gained a better idea of how to craft and target an audience. By reading each book, identifying compatible media contacts, and discovering each audience’s community, I now know how to approach marketing in a more strategic manner.