Business Plan
One of the early assignments I had was writing a business plan on how to
make a media business in the St. Louis market. The plan is very broad and
only goes into basic detail about the products, the financial planning, where
the business should be, and the overall idea.
I also have quite a few samples of my work in public relations. The first of
which is a client report summarizing the details of new products, events,
and press releases for a real company. I chose Dave & Buster's. I started off
by writing up a press release, which introduces one of D & B's new products
into the market. I chose the most obvious product - food. The press release
introduces a new, healthier menu for guests. My next task was to write a
pitch letter to a publication for a story relating to D & B's and its new,
healthier menu. I focused on the stresses of working adults, students, and
just anyone wanting a bit of relief. After promoting the new product, I
introduced the menu in a product placement with a few famous celebrities
in a new music video.
My next task was to create a special event to allow guests free samples of
the new products on the menu. I thought of a traditional event that gathers
a crowd of people. Then, I wrote up a public service announcement that
promoted another special event as well as an organization that gets people
involved in the community. The last three events introduce a couple
publicity stunts and a newsletter. First, I presented a small publicity stunt
about a NASCAR driver's attempt to set a world record. The big publicity
stunt introduces a nationwide contest, involving a scavenger hunt and a
million dollar prize. For my last assignment, I had made a newsletter
summing up all the events and releases leading up to the big publicity stunt.
The following three documents contain news stories and scripts. The first
of which is a news script about the Southern Illinois University Edwardsville's
athletic sports teams being incorporated into the Ohio Valley Conference
after going Division I.
I was able to decipher two feature stories I had written. The first one
entitled "Major Decisions" was inspired by a speech I had heard earlier in
my academic career. The student gave a speech about how students at
SIUE should not be required to take general education courses. My feature
story gives an opposing argument. The second story, "Making a Difference,"
is about how students make a difference on campus and in their communities.
One interesting assignment I had was writing a 20-page script for an
episodic television series - either still on the air or in syndication. I chose
"Heroes" on NBC because of its then popularity. The process is quite long.
This particular document contains an analysis on all the characters and
settings along with some brief background information of the storyline.
One of the most intriguing assignments I had was a study on the psychological
and sociological aspects of purchasing organic foods. The following
document contains slides of the analysis and theory we had come up with.
Writing for Management
Writing for Public Relations
News Writing
Broadcast Writing
Corporate Research
