Crystal Amberlyn

Last summer, I had the amazing opportunity to complete an internship at Ohio Northern University’s office of communications and marketing. If you did not know already, I am a graphic design student at Ohio Northern University (ONU). Since I live two minutes from the university, this opportunity was very convenient. Although I did not have to travel far, I had a helpful experience which taught me many lessons and skills. The transition from the classroom to the workplace in my profession was difficult for me. In the classroom, there were set steps which were monitored and graded by the professor. Other students in the class gave feedback as well to improve your designs. For my internship, this was not the case. I was given a project and once completed, I sent the completed work back. Rarely would I receive any feedback at all. This was stressful and often lead to me questioning myself and my work. It felt as if my training wheels were removed, and I was given the full responsibi...

This year, I added a social media minor. Whether it was a mistake or not, I am still unsure. Social media principles is a required course for the minor. During this course, I have worked a lot, learned a lot and cried a lot. Overall, the class was enjoyable, but I do have some suggestions. Entering this course, I heard it required a lot of work, but I was up for the challenge. I admit I became very stressed hearing I would have to blog three times a week as well as learn and use The Associated Press writing style. In the end, I actually found this to be an enjoyable challenge. Through this course, I was expecting to learn the many different social media platforms as well as how to best use them for business purposes. This was successfully taught, but it went a little further than expected. The content of the last book, “Measure What Matters,” went far above my head. Personally, I felt it went too far toward marketing and public relations than social media. As a graphic design...

My mother and I are Christians. Through the years, my mother has told me of times she had seen angels or other signs of God.   Some may think they are only stories or exaggerations. Honestly, I cannot say whether they are or not, but I trust my mother to be true. Now, I understand and respect not everyone is Christian, and this blog does not intend to change anyone’s religious beliefs. I only wish to share my mother’s spiritual encounters I have grown up hearing so much about. The first spiritual encounter my mother had was shortly before the birth of my brother Jacob in 1985. She said, “ A beautiful angel appeared to me in my sleep, and I was amazed at her presence. She told me she had come to give me a message. The message was, ‘Blessed is Jacob.’” My mother could not believe what she saw. She is not sure why it happened or why her baby was blessed. It never happened with her other two children. I have personally heard this story many times, but she is hesitant to tell othe...

When you think you have found the one, it is common to want to let everyone know. Therefore, you spread the word through social media. You change your relationship status on Facebook, and you put your anniversary date in your bio on Instagram. Is this wrong? Not exactly, but Andrew Arnold explains in his article social media can have a negative impact on your relationship if you let it. Some may think this is another hoax to get people off social media, but Havas Media conducted a study which shows the true impact social media has on people. Their survey found nearly one-third of participants exaggerate on social media, including about their relationships. Also, 68% said they have used social media to check on ex-partners, and 75% said they feel social media can destroy or harm relationships. Why is this? Well, Arnold explains, “this is most likely because social media has a way of creating insecurities and frictions, and young people find a need to present themselves and th...

People have reputations and so do companies. In both situations, they mean a lot. The main difference is a person will survive if he or she has a bad reputation, but a company may not. In “Measure What Matters,” Katie Paine explains how your company’s reputation can have large effects on its success. Through my experience as a consumer, I have noticed once a company’s reputation turns negative in my mind, it can be hard to turn it around. Therefore, it is important to pay close attention to your reputation and be prepared when a threat to your reputation arrives. Paine explains “crises occur when events threaten your reputation.” Some crises are bound to occur, but they can possibly be avoided. First, listen carefully to your audience. Notice how Paine adds “carefully.” What are their complaints? What do they value about your company? If your customers value your products are made in America, odds are it is not best to move your production to China. Also, it is really important...

In Katie Paine’s “Measure What Matters,” she highlights an interesting dilemma many people may not think of. In order to grow your company, you might expand it overseas or through franchises. This is great, but you may encounter some issues. You might be at risk of losing control of communication and consistency. Paine particularly highlights franchises. Separate franchises seem to be given more freedom. Therefore, it is highly likely for inconsistencies to form between franchises and the corporation. Some may not see the importance of this, but it can have some harmful effects. What if a franchise harms the company’s image? I can imagine this happening with fast-food franchises. Pretend one McDonald’s franchise does not follow proper food preparation procedures. Someone sees the issue, shares their findings on the media and the McDonald’s image is damaged. Although it was only one franchise, the whole corporation takes a hit. Paine also explains by having these franchises or exp...

In 2015, the inclusive emoji was introduced. This is where people can select the skin stone of the emoji they choose.   Once the emoji was revealed, people worried what outcomes would result. It was an understandable concern it would be used inappropriately. There was also a possibility it could case racial tensions.   According to this article , the University of Edinburgh has found the result to be quite opposite. Researchers from the University of Edinburgh looked at a billion tweets to collect their data. What they have found through their research is rather interesting. Despite what some people may think, most people who personalized the skin tone did so to match their own. Also, if a skin tone chosen did not match the user, responses were mostly positive. Personally, I think this is good to see the option is not being abused. It is also good to see it is not causing racial drama on social media. Overall, the study found the inclusive emoji fulfilled its purpose...