Red Sky, a public relations agency in Boise, Idaho, is on a mission to “create and share stories that matter”. A competent and dedicated team of public relations professionals works to carry out Red Sky’s mission every day.
As the newest member of Red Sky’s team, Sophia Hartsock serves as an Account Coordinator and has a variety of duties, from media relations to social media management. She also happens to be a recent graduate of Boise State University.
Public Relations challenges your creativity
Hartsock recently shared why she loves her job at Red Sky and the public relations field.
“It is a lot less structured. I imagined coming to work and having a schedule for the day and having certain things to do, and it is not like that. Every day it’s something different, every day you have a different task to tackle. It’s very much a great challenge of your creativity. Your clients are constantly looking to you to come up with different ways they can tell their story and promote their brand.”
Hartsock now feels comfortable with working in a changing environment and now loves that “every day you come to work and every day is never the same.”
Hartsock’s experience at Red Sky illuminates the many opportunities for people entering the public relations field. From employee relations, copywriting and fundraising, to becoming an account executive, media buyer or government public affairs officer, there are so many different options for a public relations professional.
Public Relations is a growing field
Not only is there a lot of variety in what job you can do with your Bachelor of Arts in Integrated Strategic Communications, but there are also a growing number of jobs to fill. The Bureau of Labor Statistics estimated that the employment of public relations specialists in the United States would increase by six percent between 2018 and 2028. In comparison, on average, the employment in all occupations in the U.S. economy is expected to grow by five percent in the same period.
Whether you’re a strategic communications student or choosing to study in another Boise State program, Hartsock offers more advice as a recent graduate. “Once you find the path, the major, the career that you love, stick with that. When you graduate and you’re choosing a job, make sure it’s in a place with people that align with your culture and that you’re comfortable in the environment that you work in.”
About Boise State Online
Check out the Boise State Online Bachelor of Integrated Strategic Communications Program and learn how you can get career-ready today.
Along with the Online Bachelor of Arts in Integrated Strategic Communications, Boise State University offers more than 55 online degree and certificate programs to help you make your educational dreams a reality–whether you need a bachelor’s degree, a graduate degree or a single, online class. For more information, visit boisestate.edu/online.
Story by Pamela Craig and Casey Longstreth, Boise State Extended Studies
Video – This is Public Relations: Sophia Hartsock Public Relations Professional
Video contains captions and a text transcript is provided on this page.
Video by Doug Kessinger, Boise State Extended Studies
Video Transcript
I’m Sophia Hartsock I graduated in 2019 from Boise State University with my bachelor’s in communication with a public relations certificate. I’m now an account coordinator at Red Sky Public Relations. We have so many different endeavors for our clients going on from one day you can be working on social media to a blog post and content creation for your clients and the next day you can be attending an event and helping them navigate again media and then all the way to sometimes crisis. People in the past thought public relations were these spin-doctors, we’re just coming in to brush crisis under the rug, so I think more so that’s changing and people are seeing us now as a tool to use to tell their story, to help them build their brand, and to help them communicate best with their publics. Every brand, every organization has a message that they are trying to get out but there are so many different groups to communicate that to and every generation, every group hears and perceives information differently so it’s important to be strategic in your communication so that you’re making sure you’re effectively reaching all the audiences that you are hoping to reach and getting your message across in a way that’s most effective to that group or that generation. My advice for people going into the public relations field would be: be comfortable with change and ebb and flow. Every day it’s something different, every day you have a different task to tackle and your clients are constantly looking to you to come up with different ways that they can tell their story and promote their brand it’s a good exercise for your creativity. I’m Sophia Hartsock and this is Public Relations.