A l e n a T i p t o n
Product marketing
"If it was that easy, everyone would have done it"
-Anonymous
A bit about me...
Mission statement
​
Through the independent study and mentorship class I want to learn how to be effective in the corporate world, and further my knowledge on product marketing. I want to find a mentor that will assist me in creating a practical final product for this field, as well as show me the fundamentals of this career path. At the end of this year, I would like to have a strong understanding of product marketing, and how to effectively advertise and market for a brand.
My name is Alena Tipton, I am a senior at independence high school. I am heavily involved in theater and choir, as well as in my community as a Preston trail community church serve team member and an ASPCA volunteer. For my professional career, I am planning on pursuing product marketing. My goals as of now are to get my bachelor degree along with my MBA and work in product marketing for a successful company.
Contact Information:
Email:Alenatipton111@gmail.com
​
Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/alena-tipton-296391192
Resume
About Independent study and mentorship
Independent Study and Mentorship (ISM) is an exciting, rigorous elective offered at Frisco ISD high schools, designed for high-achieving juniors or seniors.
Students interested in taking ISM must complete the application and interview process to be considered for the course. Once selected, students conduct research and interviews throughout the year on their chosen topic of study in order to select a mentor and gain real-world experience.
Blog
Updates posted every Monday
10/28/19
There is a lot going on right now school and life-wise, and I would be lying to my loyal blog viewers if I said I wasn't stressed. It is prime scholarship application time and with ISM original work kicking off along with theater and choir shows this month there is a lot on my plate. Last week there was a lot due but also a lot that I learned. For my research assessment, I took two articles that focused on product launching, and how to get your brand name out there. I got a lot of pf great information that can be easily applied to my original work. A lot of tactics I would have never considered for instance starting the launching plan months before the products hit shelves. Getting a release date in a consumer's head and offers special promotions to the brand name out there. This week I have a lot of outside of school work but I hope to start learning about to get my brand in stores in order to complete that step in my marketing plan. I know a lot about my target audience and the products I will be launching but I need to figure out what steps I need to take to get it into stores and also what exact stores I want in. This week is very stressful because a lot of college applications are due, and I have a theater show so hopefully, I can get it all done with proper time management.
10/21/19
Last week was great, and brought up a lot of exciting work I get to do in the future. We had a lot due last friday including another interview assessment and our original work proposal. In writing my original work proposal I got really excited for what I am going to learn and get to do in the future. For my original work I choose to create a makeup brand that is affordable, targeted to teens, accessible and high quality. I will create a marketing and launch plan for this imaginary brand, that can hopefully be used by people in the future. This is going to be a lot of work but I know I am going to learn a lot about the product marketing world. Since I am creating the brand myself I am going to start by doing some design and product research. This week I want to find at least 3 articles that help me with the creation of these products. Since I am studying marketing not product development I will not spend much time on the creation aspect, however in order to correctly advertise this brand I will need to know what goes into making it. By the end of this week I would like to have a good idea on what goes into these products, and what I will actually be launching. This week is very busy though, we not only have our last interview assessment due but a research assessment, so I will really need to manage my time well. Once I have completed this creation step I am able to get into the real work of it all so I am excited for what is to come.
Blog 10/14/19
This week was not as eventful as last, but I was still able to learn a lot. In class we had a discussion about our original works and I got a lot of great information. First of all, I realized how creative my classmates are and how ambitious their original work ideas are, and it was very inspiring. Hearing all my peers have these ambitious plans made me think about how I could make my work more ambitious. Luckily I had another class I think about my work. With the help of my teacher and classmates I came to my final work plan that is ambitious, but not so much work that I am overloaded I am going to conduct research on the makeup world and how it is not accessible for most people and try to make the ultimate brand that is affordable, accessible and high end, and formulate marketing and launching for it. It sounds like a lot, but due to my passion for makeup I know a lot about the pricing, marketing topics, and different product launches, therefore the research part of it won't be difficult. I am really excited for my original work because it is taking my outside of school passion and out into my passion for marketing. Along with figuring out my original work I had my 4th interview with the director of marketing at novlex. I will save the juicy details for my interview assessment but my big takeaway is business is communication, and if you can't communicate and use your soft skills, it will be difficult for you to climb the corporate ladder.
Blog 10/7/19
This week was not as eventful as last, but I was still able to learn a lot. In class we had a discussion about our original works and I got a lot of great information. First of all, I realized how creative my classmates are and how ambitious their original work ideas are, and it was very inspiring. Hearing all my peers have these ambitious plans made me think about how I could make my work more ambitious. Luckily I had another class I think about my work. With the help of my teacher and classmates I came to my final work plan that is ambitious, but not so much work that I am overloaded I am going to conduct research on the makeup world and how it is not accessible for most people and try to make the ultimate brand that is affordable, accessible and high end, and formulate marketing and launching for it. It sounds like a lot, but due to my passion for makeup I know a lot about the pricing, marketing topics, and different product launches, therefore the research part of it won't be difficult. I am really excited for my original work because it is taking my outside of school passion and out into my passion for marketing. Along with figuring out my original work I had my 4th interview with the director of marketing at novlex. I will save the juicy details for my interview assessment but my big takeaway is business is communication, and if you can't communicate and use your soft skills, it will be difficult for you to climb the corporate ladder.
Blog 9/23/19
This last week was moderately calm, the only big event ISM wise was the business symposium. The symposium was on wednesday 10/02 and it was definitely a great experience. I learned and experienced a lot all over a 4 hour period, I started with the guest speaker and she was fantastic. She brought up something that I had never thought about before, self worth at a job. I know the importance of self worth through life, but I never applied it to the workplace. The main saying that stuck with me in her speech was, “Your not an employee you are a partner.” Another station I had was the interview station, I am very thankful I got this opportunity because it gave me a lot to work on. For instance talking to fast, something that I struggle with because I am often trying to get as much information out as possible. Another is jumping around topics, when looking back at what I said I can understand why I got this note, In the future I know when I am asked a question I shouldn't steer too far from what they asked. I also learned that my makeup can cause people to judge me before I even walk in, so I will have to keep my makeup more tamed. Overall the business symposium taught me a lot of great skills I can apply in the world, and I am very grateful I got the opportunity.
Blog 9/16/19
This past week has been very eventful for me, however the week ahead is even worse and it is my own fault. I have quickly learned that ISM can become a mountain of work if you let it. Last week was very hectic for me between my AP courses, theater rehearsal and choir all region competition I had a lot to do, but I mistakenly pushed all my ISM work aside except for what I absolutely had to get done. So now as you can imagine I have a large amount of work this week that I could have avoided with some better time management skills. This is a painful but useful lesson because in the real world no one attends your deadlines and you have to get your work done to keep your job, and be punctual and efficient to climb the corporate ladder. The assignment that I did finish last week was actually very beneficial for me. I did my research assignment on an article about the introduction of psychology in marketing. I loved reading this article because I actually was already familiar with a lot do the human tendencies they were describing because of the AP Psychology class I took last year. I found it fascinating about how many of these terms can be used to successfully market a brand. The article I read the week prior showed me the aspect of this job I will not enjoy, but this article brought marketing into a new light I am very excited about.
Blog 9/9/19
These beginning weeks of ISM have been jampacked, but I know we are just getting started. I have quickly Independent study and mentorship is very independent, and takes a lot of responsibility to keep your grade up.Last week we had our first research assessment due as well as interview questions. The research assessment was a lot of work, however, I learned a lot by reading those 12 pages about my field. My article was about the skill sets in different marketing jobs. This was very beneficial and eye opening to me, mainly because I realized the large technical aspect marketing has. I was aware that the corporate world is technological, but marketing especially has a lot of data oriented work and design. In learning this, I realized In choosing a specialization that the technical skill set will have to be something I factor in. The article also raised some questions for me, am I taught the specific programs I need in school or at work? How many different. programs will I need? Do all businesses use the same types of programs? For my next article I will try and look more into life on the job and day to day activities.
My upcoming week is absolutely full between my extra circulars and AP classes, so I know procrastination is not an option and I will hopefully try to finish this next assignment a few days early. I guess you'll find out how that goes next week.