Grady Alum, Lindy Simmons, Natalie Siegman and Emily Nalwasky, Speak On Their Experience In the Food, Beverage and Hospitality Brand Management Industry 

By: Raynor Manley 

Lindy Simmons: 

  • Lindy’s position with Green Olive Media is a Social Media Manager. Lindy also runs her own food influencer account on Instagram called @lunchwithlind. 
  • Lindy has always had a passion for food and food photography. She encouraged students to go to career fairs while in college. A friend told her about Green Olive Media and they were coming to the career fair, so she went with the intent to speak to them and the rest is history. 
  • One of Lindy’s favorite projects has been getting to work with a local Athens restaurant, Taqueria del Sol. She runs their account and feels like they are her child. She loves this account because it is a favorite of so many college aged kids so she gets to play around with captions and use TikTok references that will appeal to a younger audience. 

The Start of @lunchwithlind:

  • Lindy began by uploading pictures of her food to her snapchat stories and putting them on Facebook. Her friends told her that the pictures were good and she should post them on Instagram where more people would see them. Thus, Lunch With Lind was born in 2019. She began following people and interacting with people and her account started to grow. However, her account didn’t fully blossom until she began putting a voice and her personality behind her content. She began posting about herself and her beliefs and her quirks along with her content. People began resonating with her account and brands started reaching out to work with her. Her account now has over 16k followers and this platform has been a fun way to make friends and tell people what she thinks they need to hear.

 

Natalie Siegman: 

  • Natalie’s position with Green Olive Media is a Social Media Specialist. 
  • Natalie graduated in May with degrees in public relations and international affairs. She is currently completing her master’s degree in Integrated Advertising and Public Relations through Grady. Natalie encouraged students to network as much as possible because you never know when a connection, relationship or even conversation can turn into a job opportunity. 
  • One of Natalie’s favorite projects has been getting to travel to the Ritz Carlton in St. Louis. She gained more appreciation from the program by being on site and getting a lot of in-person content and a better understanding of the client.

 

Emily Nalwasky: 

  • Emily’s position with Green Olive Media is an Account Coordinator. 
  • Emily began working for Green Olive in January of 2020 and she works on the PR side of the company but she still gets to work hand-in-hand with the social media girls. She works on press releases, pitching to journalists and more.
  • One of Emily’s favorite projects has been working with Fox Bros Bar-B-Q which is a chain restaurant around Atlanta. They recently expanded into Truist Park and she likes working with them because it’s a fun, new scene.

 

About Green Olive Media: 

Each speaker agreed that social media is the job that never ends. You have to constantly think outside of the ballpark in order to succeed and showcase your client in a light that is doing something different from the competition. You have lots of freedom to be creative and independence to do what you think is best for your client. Social media jobs are not the typical 9-5 job because you have to constantly be interacting and engaging with followers on various accounts you manage. 

 

Getting to travel is one of the best perks that comes with working for Green Olive Media. Although COVID-19 has impacted travel during the pandemic, as things are starting to open back up again, the girls often visit clients to check in, get content and form relationships with clients. Various travel locations have been the King and Prince Resort in St. Simons Island, the Charleston BBQ Festival and often local clients in Atlanta. 

 

One of the most challenging parts of working for an agency is how fast-moving and sometimes unpredictable their schedule can be because you never know when a crisis will arise and you will have to put all hands on deck. Crisis PR is real, make sure to pay attention in your classes because you will use the skills you learn to handle these events. Take Crisis Communications while in Grady if you have the opportunity to. 

 

Helpful Tips to Keep in Mind: 

  • Learn time management skills as early as possible. Especially being remote, it’s very important to manage your time well. Have a set schedule, but also remain flexible if you need to switch things around last minute. This is a skill you will develop over time, but it’s important to form good habits early. 
  • Organization is key. You are often working with multiple clients so it’s important to keep track of each one and their needs. You want to give each client your best work, so be organized with what needs to get done and when. 
  • Networking is one of the most important things you can do for your future self. Find something you’re passionate about and go for it, and express your interest to them. 
  • UGA alumni runs deep and alumni are always excited to talk to students so don’t be afraid to reach out and ask questions. 
  • Join Marketing and Communications Women of Atlanta on Facebook! 
  • Network with people who aren’t even hiring, because they could reach out to you when they are. Network in LinkedIn and in person but there are numerous other ways to network too. 
  • Make friends in your classes! Natalie and Lindy met in Tom Cullen’s class and began talking about food and their internships and now a few years later they are working together! 
  • Pay attention in your Grady classes because they really will prepare you for your future career. Try to get as much hands-on experience as you can and appreciate your professors’ feedback because it will make you better. 

Mental Health Awareness: 

  • Make sure to put your phone away when you aren’t working. Working in social media, you are constantly looking at your phone which can get very toxic after a while. Make sure to leave time for yourself to do things you enjoy that don’t involve looking at your phone. 
  • It’s okay to put things on pause when you’re feeling overwhelmed and in need of a break. It will all be okay and it’s very important to focus on your mental health so you can do your best at work.