Entertainment PR Meeting with Betsy Powell
On Oct. 3rd, PRSSA was joined by Betsy Powell. Betsy has always had a passion for creating and joined us to talk about her experience in the workforce. She shared that her career started when she was just 5-years-old. She was living in Hawaii and each day her kindergarten teacher would have the students choose roles. If she didn’t get the artist role she was always distraught. From an early age, she was passionate about creating and this holds true into her adult life.
Betsy shares memories from her early career in the entertainment industry with PRSSA members.
Betsy graduated from UGA with a Bachelor of Arts in journalism and a minor in graphic design. During her time as a student she competed in the American Advertising Association National Student Competition in Washington, D.C. where her team placed 2nd in the country. She is from Warner Robins, GA and wanted an educational path that would set her up for success to move to a big city.
She highlighted her immediate drive which led her to great opportunities right out of college. One of her first jobs was freelancing. She worked for Turner for all different networks and divisions for many years. After a short time in the field, she decided to pack up and move across the country to Los Angeles. Although she has held many roles, she highlighted her experience working for Harry Potter and Moulin Rouge through showing copies of designs with her own copywriting on them from these films and shared them with our members. Currently, Betsy is back to freelancing and is soon to open a digital marketing business. In addition, she is also writing a few e-books.
Over time, her career has always been evolving. Tech has changed the game and is something she claims everyone must be aware of. She has learned a lot of different systems because every company is different and she has had different roles throughout her career. She always aims to inspire regardless of the job it may be.
To close out, Betsy gave students a few recommendations:
- Try out agency careers early on as it gives you a look into so many different career paths
- If you want to stand out in first jobs, get there early and make it no big deal to stay late
- Be good at whatever you do and people will notice
- Have a good attitude, get things done, make friends keep friends
- If you are interested in a specific company, research! They all have communications and parent companies you can work for
