Program Reflection
Over the past year I almost gave up
and quit school; however, with the help and support of my family I have made it
to the final assignment for my Master’s Degree in Entertainment Business. It is
scary and exciting because the next step of my life is about to begin. For my
final blog posting, I would like to reflect over the past twelve months by
summarizing what courses I have taken and what lessons they have taught me.
Media Literacy and Research Methodologies
This was the first class in this
program that taught me how to utilize new technologies to further my experience
and leadership skills as well as improving my overall online presence. Prior to
taking this class, I didn’t realize how important it was for someone to have a
good online presence; however, after applying the concepts I learned, I was
able to successfully improve that presence. I did this by making my social
media profiles private so potential employers wouldn’t be able to look and
judge me based on my personal profile. I also paid more attention to my
LinkedIn profile as the course showed me how big of a tool this could be for
finding future job and networking opportunities. Furthermore, I utilized the
research methodologies, tools, and processes taught in this class to improve my
overall writing ability and knowledge of the industry as a whole. Finally, this
class allowed me to see what caliber of work would be necessary for me to
achieve my end goal of having a 4.0 GPA.
Executive Leadership
The Executive Leadership class was
one of the most helpful classes to me as it allowed me to understand what
qualities were needed to become a successful leader in the entertainment
industry. The class enabled me to experience and decide what needed to be done
in different scenarios that I would potentially face as a boss in the future.
These scenarios weren’t decided solely on my own opinions but by the books that
were provided in the class. The two books that we had were The 48 Laws of Power by Robert Green and Developing The Leader Within You by John C. Maxwell. After reading
these books, I learned valuable lessons on how to approach different situations
that I might come across as a leader in the future. These two books are
something that I recommend to anyone that is looking to better their overall
leadership skills as the concepts in the books are something I will be using
and applying for the rest of my life.
Project and Team Management
This class allowed me to learn how
to plan a project, properly budget it, and how to properly manage a team to execute
said plan. Over the course of this month I researched and planned a concert for
a band that I was working with at the time. This included researching the
potential problems that arose as well as the costs associated with successfully
completing that plan. When I was planning this project and putting down on
paper, it made me realize just how much work something like this takes. The
amount of effort in your planning will directly affect the outcome of the event
that you are working with. I learned that it is important to write a plan or
timeline out so you can check your progress along the way. This way if you are
lacking behind or accidently forget something on the list, you won’t be left
with a failure. Finally, the class allowed me to experience and decide a course
of action for different failures that I would face with my team in the future.
Knowing how to properly approach these situations prior to them happening, is
something that is a very viable asset to have.
Business Storytelling & Brand Development
I was really excited to start this
class because it was finally a class where I could start researching and
working on my idea of opening a live entertainment venue. This class overall
allowed me to research how other companies were branding themselves, which
helped me understand how to make my own business brand become successful. The
final assignment in this class was a keynote that touched on how we would begin
marketing our brand to our customers. This keynote was kind of like a rough
draft of how my business would actually reach its customers and how it would
make money. Ultimately, it allowed me to realize that I couldn’t wait to tell
my brands story to people. I was super excited and finally realized that this
idea was truly my dream and what I would love to do for the rest of my life.
Entertainment Business Finance
This class was one that I was
really excited for as well because I have always been involved in finance and
accounting as I have grown up around it. My dad has been a certified public
accountant for the past 20 years and I have continually learned from him
working by his side for the past four years. Finally being able to that
experience and apply it was something that really exited me because I would be
able to impress my dad.
The final assignment in this class
was a pro forma financial statement for the live entertainment venue that idea
that I had come up with in the previous month. Being that I had worked in
venues and the industry for the eight years, it gave me insight on how much
exactly everything cost when running a venue. The pro forma statements included
everything from projecting income, to depreciation, to profit margins, to
break-even calculations, as well as what the start-up costs of a company like
this would be. Not only did this allow me to gain a lot of insight on how to
properly assess the financials of a company like the one I have created, but it
also allowed me to see just how plausible and profitable I could potentially
be.
Overall, the assignments in this class
allowed me to become more confident in analyzing and projecting the financials
of not only my own company but that of many others that I could potentially
face in the future.
Negotiation and Deal-Making
This was another great class that
was really fun because it allowed us to interact with other classmates through
mock negotiations. One of the main assignments in this class was a mock
negotiation, over the Internet via Skype or email that put us in a real life
negotiating situation. The fact that we were negotiating with other classmates
didn’t matter because we all took it very seriously. We were given specific scenarios
and requirements that we had to negotiate for in our mock contracts. The class
taught us how to get those requirements by applying the following concepts; how
to separate the people from the problem, how to create a mutual benefit for
both parties, how to use specific objective criteria to get what I wanted, and
how to properly bargain or haggle. The key take away from the mock negotiations
and this class as a whole, is that preparation is the main key to success with
any kind of negotiation that you are doing.
Product and Artist Management
This was another one of my more
favorite classes as it touched on things that I have actual experience doing.
The first assignment in this class was a case study over Credence Clearwater
Revival, who I really didn’t know anything about prior to this class; however, after
looking more in depth into their history and problems, it allowed me to see
just how important a good artist manager is to a band.
The next assignment that I really
enjoyed doing was to planning a live concert to benefit the local art scene. I
was able to plan everything and gain experience with the following; booking a
successful artist, finding a suitable venue, implementing event advertising,
properly budgeting, acquiring sponsors, properly assessing risks, and having a
back up plan.
The final project in this class was
to pitch a product that my business would be providing the customer in the
future. This project allowed me to assess many things that I would be facing in
the future including but not limited to the following; product description,
market analysis, direct and indirect competitors, brand positioning statement,
target market analysis, marketing strategy, artist endorsements, sales and
expense projections, and funding sources.
This assignment allowed me to see that there were many different
products and opportunities that my company could potentially have and expand
into in the near future.
Advanced Entertainment Law
I love working with law as I have
always told myself if I didn’t become successful in the entertainment industry
I would be come a lawyer. This class went over a lot of things that businesses
in the entertainment industry should focus on understanding and protecting.
I’ve learned the most important thing to anyone in the entertainment industry
is the contracts that are signed prior to doing any kind of work. It is
imperative that you have your lawyer, or two even, look over every single
detail to be sure that you aren’t missing anything. Getting out of a contract
that you have signed has never been cheap for anyone, especially in our
industry.
Another important aspect of this
class was that it showed you how to properly protect your intellectual
property. Properly registering your copyrighted material as well as your
trademarks is one of the most important things you can do to protect yourself
from future infringement and lawsuit risks.
Overall, the case studies and
lectures in this class taught me the correct legal terminologies, strategies,
and procedures that I, as a new company, should be utilizing as I enter the
industry.
Entertainment Media Publishing and Distribution
I had a lot of fun in this class!
It was one of my favorites because it allowed me to help out a band that I was
currently working with all while getting graded for it. This class focused on
how you would pitch an artists album to a distribution company which including
making a press kit and business strategy.
The press kit was something that I
was really proud of because the band that I was working with at the time
actually put it to good use. The funny thing was that their previous manager
didn’t even mention that they needed one, which was something that I couldn’t
believe. The press kit included an executive summary of whom the band was, a
biography of each band member, a band photo, a rider, touring and booking
information, as well as a demo.
The business strategy that was
required in this class allowed me to learn how to properly market and
distribute an artists CD through a variety of different venues. For this
particular band I chose to use CD Baby as their distributor for their debut
album because of past success I have personally had with it. This assignment
also included an analysis of the following; pricing strategy, sales and expense
projections, marketing expenses, target audience, marketing tools and
strategies, and future opportunities.
Finally, the overall experience I
had in this class was amazing simply because it was fun and I was able to help
out a real band!
Digital Marketing
This class is one that I learned
the most information from out of all 12 of my classes in this program. I
learned how to use tools such as Google Analytics, AdWords, and AdPlanner that
I had never even heard of before this class. I learned about other tools and
marketing strategies that included the following; search engine optimization,
pay-per-click advertising, digital public relations, display advertising,
social media and viral marketing, email marketing, affiliate marketing, and the
importance of mobile integration. Furthermore, I learned how to get more
conversions from my marketing efforts and also was able to determine how much
getting that one conversion for my company would actually cost. This
information is vital in the process for determining and planning for the
correct budget and marketing strategy. After using these tools for my own
research in planning my own marketing campaign, I realized how valuable and
important a digital advertising campaign is to a company’s success.
Business Plan Development
This was one of the most time
consuming classes that I have ever taken in my entire life. The amount of
writing and research that needed to be done each week was exhausting; however,
once I was done with it all I felt very accomplished. The majority of this
class was researching and writing different sections of our final business
plan. This was really fun for me simply because I was able to finally explain
everything about my business as a whole in one place and not just in separate
parts. This class took all of the skills that I had learned over the past 10
months and applied them all in one. Overall, this class taught me how to
properly write a business plan, which is an experience and skill that I will be
able to use to my advantage in the future.
Final Project: Business Plan
The final course in this degree
program was where all the hard work over the past year had come together. This
class was where I finally put together a business plan to its’ entirety that I
would actually be able to use in the real world. The amount of attention and advice
that the faculty gave me in molding and perfecting my business plan is
something that, even after 12 months, I am still learning from.
Oddly enough, one of the hardest
things for me to do in this class was to create an elevator pitch that didn’t
last over one minute. This was hard for me because I felt like I couldn’t say
enough in one minute that would persuade someone to have a second meeting with
me. However, after some work and research, I was able to craft a successful
elevator pitch that I will be using in the future.
One of the biggest and scariest
things that I am facing at the end of this program is the fact that I am still
unemployed. To my surprise, the lessons in my final class were about how
to find a job and how to ace the interview. These small tips that were provided
have become and are continuing to be a big help in my search for the right
career opportunity.
Finally, this reflection assignment
has allowed me to see how far I’ve come and how much I’ve actually learned over
the past twelve months. The education and experience that I have acquired at
Full Sail is something that I will be taking with me on my journey into the
entertainment business.
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