By: Vanessa Jenneman
Do you remember attending a prospective college student event to learn more about possible career opportunities? Lance Gulotta ’18 attended one of these events at UW Oshkosh as a high school student.
He noticed one of the tables didn’t have a lot of students around it, so he decided to check it out. At that table he learned about the advertising major from Brody Karmenzind ’14, another alumni of UWO, and decided to go on the program tour. To this day, he is still in contact with Karmenzind and credits that chance encounter as the reason he chose to pursue a career in advertising and public relations.
Experience at UW Oshkosh
Gulotta graduated from UWO with a double major in Public Relations and Multimedia Journalism with an Advertising emphasis. He was involved in the Public Relations Student Society of America (PRSSA) as an executive board member and completed two internships throughout his college career. He truly enjoyed his time at UWO, and notes the program and professors prepared him both academically and professionally for his future career.
“Dr. Nicolini is amazing! She gives you the most real-life job experience…and provides a competitive edge in her classes that makes them very interesting,” Gulotta said. “[She] has high expectations because she is preparing you to be the best… [and] she really does care.”
Gulotta’s Work Experience
Gulotta currently works for Procter and Gamble, as a beauty care social trading manager maximizing social advertising results for a variety of brands. He is responsible for the scope, design, launch, and oversight of digital advertising and branding campaigns through partners such as Facebook, Snapchat, Google, Bing, LinkedIn, YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, Pinterest, Quora and 6sense.
To create social advertisements for the Procter and Gamble brand portfolio, Gulotta has partnered with many different influencers on TikTok.
“This is the coolest job,” Gulotta said. “…I track analytics and help get the buyer influencer content for brands like Old Spice, Gillette, Olay Body, Native, Aussie, Herbal Essences, etc.”
There are many decisions that have to be made when planning and creating advertising materials for the brands represented by Procter and Gamble. Gulotta prefers using smaller influencers to help build their brand while also maintaining lower product prices for everyday customers.
“It’s really cool getting to work with those big brands,” Gulotta said. “I’ve always wanted to be on the inside…and see how they make those decisions for who gets the ad, the celebrity or the smaller influencer.”
Post College Graduation Job Search Advice
Finding a job after graduation can be a daunting task, but Gulotta offers some crucial advice for students who are entering the next chapter of their lives.
During the job search process, applying for many jobs and conducting interviews is great professional practice even if you don’t get hired for the position.
“You are going to have to send out many resumes and applications and you are going to get no’s or no responses,” Gulotta said. “Everytime you get a no, especially after you have done an interview… you are getting better at interviewing. You are getting to a point where you are so good at doing these interviews, that you are going to knock them out of the park.”
Do not be afraid to apply for positions that look right, even if you don’t love the product or company.
“If the position looks right, always apply,” Gulotta said. “It might be a really cool job and you might love the people that you work with.”
Gulotta said the first job you accept after graduation doesn’t have to be the position you have for the rest of your life. Soak in all the learning opportunities you experience at that first job. That knowledge may help you transition to your next position and open new doors.
“Wherever you land you don’t have to be there forever… Make sure you are getting good experience and be open to doing anything,” Gulotta said.
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