How to Write a Music Press Release

How to Write a Music Press ReleaseHow to Write a Music Press ReleaseThe music is ready for its public debut - now you just need to know how to write a press release. When you write a music press release, you need to get in and get out - in other words you have to communicate all of the necessary information in a clear and engaging manner without overstaying your welcome with the reader. Sure, it may sound like a tall order, but once you get the hang of it, writing press releases will become a breeze. Lets begin. Identify What Youre Promoting Focus is your friend when it comes to press releases, and it helps to have a clear goal in mind. What do you want the people reading your press release to do? Do you want them to write about your new release, your upcoming shows, your Battle of the Bands win...you get the picture? Choose a very specific promotion goal to build your press release around. Beware of being vague. Sure, essentially what you are always trying to promote is yourself - you want to get the word out about what youre doing now, so people will be interested in what youre doing in the future. However, even megastars dont JUST promote themselves. They are the subject of profiles and interviews when they have new projects coming out - and those new projects are the focal point. In other words, sending out a hey, I just started a band press release isnt going to be very useful. Youre looking for a hey, I am playing five shows at these venues in support of my recent album press release. Find Your Hook And you thought you were done narrowing your message. Not quite yet. Once you know what youre promoting, look for the hook that makes your project a good story. So, youre releasing an album. Thats excellent - but so are many, many, many other people. Why is your release (or tour or what have you) the one that should get the press, love? If youre thinking, hmmm, well, Ive got nothing - youre wrong. Youve just got to find it. Did someone on the album pl ay on another release of note? What about the producer? Did you raise money to fund the release by mowing lawns? Did you write all the songs while training for the Iditarod? Did you quit a job at the IMF to record the album? Find your story, so you can then present it as a story worth telling. Write Your Intro Paragraph Much like the first paragraph of a berichterstattung story, the first paragraph of your press release should cover the whos, whats, wheres, hows and ?maybe whys of whatever youre promoting. Look at it like this - you want someone who decides not to read past the first paragraph to still know the basic information they need to know about your project. Of course, your first paragraph should also give someone a reason to WANT to keep reading, but even if they dont, they should still walk away from this intro knowing who you are and what you are promoting. Keep it short and sweet. Go for a few punchy sentences. Write Your Second Paragraph It is where the meat com es in. In your second paragraph, add some color to your project. Obviously, what you include in this paragraph depends very much on what youre promoting, but for instance, describe the music - comparisons are always a little tricky, but a few comparisons to other artists give the reader at least a frame of reference. Highlight the reason why your story is unique. List your tour dates. Use this paragraph to give information that a member of the media could use to tell your story. In other words, your first paragraph tells them Artist X is doing Y. The second paragraph might give them Artist X is doing Y because of Z. Paragraph two will be longer than your intro, but remember to keep it tight and on point. Write Your Closing The final paragraph is the easiest part of your press release to write. Tell the reader how they can get more information and promotional copies (if applicable). That means you should include the email address and phone number of the part in charge of handlin g press inquiries. Also, include links to the website and the social networking platform used most often by the artist (if applicable). Thats it Easy, huh? Keep It Short If at all possible - and in 99.99999% of cases, it IS possible - your press release should not exceed one page. If you seem to be going over while youre writing it, dont sweat it. Just keep writing until you get out all of the information in your head. Then, go back and start cutting. Opt for Telling It Straight Creativity in press releases is to be applauded. However, remember that a press release is essentially a sales pitch. Not only can trying to be too cutesy come off as cheesy to the max but getting caught up in the creative can sometimes obscure your message. If you have to choose between going all Kafka and going all news copy, go for the news copy. Be sure your main points are crystal clear before throwing in those obscure references and the like. Dig Hard for Your Angle If you had any idea how many people write about entertaining their parents by singing into a brush when they were kids in their press releases, you would be shocked. Spend some time thinking about what makes you unique. After all, youre competing for coverage with other musicians. Most of them love music, too, and most of them have a long history of loving music. Loving music is a beautiful thing, but it is not what sets you apart from the other musicians promoting projects. Instead, look for interesting things about the recording process, your work history, your tour plans and so on.

The Pros and Cons of Crowdsourcing in Advertising

The Pros and Cons of Crowdsourcing in AdvertisingThe Pros and Cons of Crowdsourcing in AdvertisingCrowdsourcing is the practice of obtaining services, ideas, or content by soliciting input from a large group of freelancers or crowd rather than from salaried employees. Those who work in advertising or marketing are likely familiar with this term, which was first coined by Jeff Howe of Wired Magazine, as the act of taking a job traditionally performed by a designated agent (usually an employee) and outsourcing it to an undefined, generally large group of people in the form of an open call. Crowdsourcing in Action ?A prime example of crowdsourcing can be seen in the Victors Spoils agency model. It is the first advertising agency to be built on crowdsourcing principles. A typical advertising project for a client may include An account director or account executive A strategy directorA creative directorA production department unterstellung full-time employees work at the advertising agency office with the exception of the creative department. This area is crowdsourced, meaning that every project that comes into the advertising agency is outsourced to the crowd. Putting the Crowd in Crowdsourcing A crowd is a seemingly endless supply of talented freelancers who are prepared to work on any jobs that become available. They include Art directorsCopywritersProducersDesignersWritersStrategists Victors Spoils maintains a large database of creatives, and they will access this database as and when they need work produced. A creative brief is issued to the crowd, the ideas come flooding in, and directions are chosen from the ideas the agency receives. Advantages of Crowdsourcing There are many benefits to adopting crowdsourcing, such as The overhead Is lower You only pay creative people as needed, and only if their ideas are chosen. Also, benefits are not included.The talent pool is large An advertising agency built on crowdsourcing can choose from thousands of available creatives.It allows an agency to expand and contract as needed Agencies that do not use crowdsourcing layoff or rehire creative staff, depending on the economy. However, with crowdsourcing, the creative department grows and shrinks to accommodate each job.The work, theoretically, is fresher You can have different teams working on the same client for years to obtain new ideas, rather than repeatedly tapping a select few and draining the creative well dry. You have access to international talent The geographical barriers no longer exist, as you can team up a writer in India with a designer in Japan, all via cloud computing.Collaboration Great teamwork and collaboration across multiple disciplines, languages, and age ranges. Disadvantages of Crowdsourcing There is also a downside to crowdsourcing that can affect both agencies and freelancers Talent is only paid for chosen ideas This means that dozens, perhaps hundreds, of people are working for free in the hope of having their idea chosen. This devalues creative talent enormously.Other traditional agencies find it difficult to compete Economically, crowdsourcing is highly desirable among agencies. However, it does skew the marketplace in favor of freelance-only geschftliches miteinander models, which could negatively affect creative careers.Below-average wages They fall well below the average salary, for the lucky ones who actually have their ideas chosen. A greater probability of failure Creative departments in the worlds top agencies are staffed with the best minds. The external talent pool that remains is not comprised of top-level talent, as 99% of those are employed. Crowdsourcing, therefore, sacrifices an expensive A-team for a much cheaper B-team.A breakdown of working relationships As creatives change for each project, its difficult to build solid relationships with reliable staff.No accountability With no contracts and low?- or no?- wages, the creative team will always be searching for a be tter deal. Future of Crowdsourcing Because of its money-saving benefits and access to fresh creativity, crowdsourcing will likely continue to be used by some agencies in the industry. However, others may want to weigh the pros and cons to determine if it is a worthwhile strategy to adopt.

Get Over the Feeling That Youre Not Good Enough - The Msue

Get Over the Feeling That Youre Not Good Enough - The MsueGet Over the Feeling That Youre Not Good Enough - The MsueYoure doing greatThats what everyone tells you at work. And therbeies plenty of evidence to back up the claim Your co-workers like you, you get positive performance reviews, theres even been hinting that you might get a promotion soon.But heres the problem Despite the adulation, youre feeling less than great. You may project confidence, but underneath that self-assured veneer, youre certain that any day now, someone will find out that youre not actually cut out for your job, that you only got where you are because youre lucky. Youre worried that youll stumble and reveal how supremely untalented you really are.Sound familiar? If so, you may suffer from a phenomenon first identified as impostor syndrome by two researchers at Georgia State University in the late 70s to describe an experience common among a select group of high-achieving women who felt like intellectual pho nies despite their outstanding academic and professional accomplishments.I think the best way to know if you do have the impostor syndrome is if you have low-level fear or high-level anxiety that youre going to be found out, Dr. Valerie Young, author of The Secret Thoughts of Successful Women, told me. You downplay your accomplishments and think, if I can do it, anybody can. You look for reasons outside of yourself to explain your success.This kind of chronic self-doubt, while unfortunately common, may prevent you from taking on worthwhile challenges and realizing your potential. With that in mind, here are three tools to begin quieting your inner impostor.1. Redefine Competence and Success for YourselfDr. Young explains that impostors have an unsustainable definition of competence. For some, the word success might not even resonate because they feel theyre not smart enough to be accomplished. For others, this might mean that they only deem themselves successful if theyre awarded th e equivalent of a gold medal at work a perfect performance review every time, the right answer to every question, or knowledge of every single facet of their field. For others still, they may only feel accomplished if they get ahead without any help at all.Getting away from this kind of mentality requires a huge shift in beliefs. To do this, you have to keep reminding yourself that youre never going to be perfect all the time and that, if you equate success with perfection or not failing, then you will prevent yourself from learning and growing from worthwhile failures.Easier said than done, right?To start making this shift happen, Dr. Young suggests changing the tone of your self-talk. When confronted with a challenge, if the dialogue in your head tends to be something like, Oh my God, Im in over my head People are going to find out the truth about me, Dr. Young says to instead try reminding yourself, Wow- Im really going to learn a lot. It will take time, but fostering this nachwu chs voice can do you wonders in the long run.2. Validate Your SkillsEven though she had earned an Ivy League MBA and become the first female African American Vice President of Global Marketing for Avon Inc., Joyce Roch felt like a fraud and constantly feared she was going to stumble.In her book The Empress Has No ClothesConquering Self-Doubt to Embrace Success, Roch explains how she discovered she was dealing with the impostor syndrome and the coping mechanisms she adopted to quiet the drone of self-doubt that was preventing her from enjoying her successes.One of her most effective tools, she says in her book, was simply making a list. Either with a pen and paper or with someone you trust, write down an inventory of your accomplishments, she explains. This will give you the ability to internally validate yourself.Armed with this concrete list of your achievements, you now have something to focus on when you find yourself feeling like a failure. (Coincidentally, this list also gives you great material to update your resume and LinkedIn profile or to mention to your boss when seeking out a promotion or raise.)3. Fake It Until You Make ItEven if you arent feeling totally sure of yourself and your abilities, its important you present yourself otherwise. That means shifting your body language to portray confidence. So, while you may be so nervous before your big interview or meeting that you want to curl into a ball, resist the temptation to cower or make yourself smaller, and walk in with your head held high.The best news is, this shift in body language can not only trick others into believing your confidence, but it can change how you perceive yourself as well. In her remarkable rocknroller Talk, Amy Cuddy explains her research into body language and how simply tweaking the way we carry ourselves can significantly change the way our lives unfold. Her experiments show that by power posing for just two minutes, people were able to raise hormones associated with lea dership and perform significantly better in high-stress interviews- meaning its possible to use powerful body language to actually feel more confident.Cuddy concludes her talk with an emotional story describing her own experience with impostor syndrome She explains how, for most of her career, she felt like she wasnt supposed to be there, but was encouraged to fake it until she made it. She did just that- accepting every speaking opportunity and pretending to be smart enough- until she realized one day that she had faked it until she became it. She was the confident person she never thought she could be.While it may be far easier to be successful than it is to feel successful- because we can always change our definition of success, strive for perfection, or move the success target farther away from where we stand- allowing yourself to acknowledge your accomplishments is important for your career. Once you take ownership of your wins at work, youll be able to embrace your talent and acknowledge that you are, indeed, doing great.

Advertising Agency Account Executive Job Description

Advertising Agency Account Executive Job DescriptionAdvertising Agency Account Executive Job DescriptionAn account executive, also sometimes called an AE, is a middleman between clients and the creative department in an advertising agency. A great account executive is the glue that holds a project together. Account executives facilitate the exchange of information between the agency and the client from the time a client first initiates a request until that campaign is live and the results are collated. Clients have demands, and the account executive takes care of them. Account executives must be on top of the timing of every project to meet crucial print and broadcast deadlines. Advertising Account Executive Duties Responsibilities Theres no typical day in advertising. This industry experiences daily- if not hourly- challenges and emergencies. But a typical working month for an advertising account executive will usually include the following duties Meet with clients.Present find ings to the agency.Discuss projects with clients.Write briefs.Formulate advertising.Formulate marketing strategies.Define advertising budgets.Present creative work to clients.Present business pitches to clients.Day-to-day administration duties.Organize focus groups.Lead brainstorming sessions. An account director will typically oversee the bigger picture, ensuring that the AE isnt overwhelmed to the point of burning out. AEs provide a critical liaison between the creative staff of the agency and its clients. Theyre creative forces, but theyre also problem-solvers. A keen ability to multitask keeps everything running smoothly. A great deal depends on the accurate and insightful interpretation of clients wishes and goals, and transmitting that information to the appropriate staff within the agency. Advertising Agency Account Executive Salary The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) includes agency account executives in its data for advertising and promotions managers. Those who w ork for advertising services are the most highly compensated, however, earning a median salary of $134,780 annually as of 2018. Overall, the median incomes for advertising and promotions managers in 2018 were zentralwert Annual Salary $117,130 ($56.31/hour)Top 10% Annual Salary More than $208,000 ($100.00/hour)Bottom 10% Annual Salary Less than $57,150 ($27.47/hour) Source U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2018 Some travel, long hours, and meals on the go can be involved with this job, but few agencies expect account executives to pay the bills for these costs, particularly for travel. Late evening meals might be a perk of employment. Education, Training Certification Those looking for careers as agency account executives should ideally have a college degree and related experience. Education A typical account executive will have a four-year college degree in advertising, communication, journalism, business administration, marketing, finance, accounting, or economics. Many advert ising agencies look for candidates with a masters degree in one of these fields as a result of increased competition for the job and a flooded marketplace.Internship Although its not necessarily required, interning at an ad agency will help get your foot in the door and provide experience you can use on a resume. On-the-job Training If you have no formal education, begin working at a smaller ad agency in another role, such as an administrative assistant or other entry-level position. Let your boss know that you want to learn other facets of the industry so you can understand how the various positions in the agency work together. Advertising Account Executive Skills Competencies Certain qualities and skills will help you succeed as an AE Communication skills Youll need the ability to communicate clearly both verbally and in writing.Organizational skills Youll be charged with overseeing several projects, and different aspects of projects, so a knack for organization is vital.Inte rpersonal skills Excellent people skills and the ability to work with a wide range of people are important.Professional appearance and persona In many respects, youre the face of your agency.Nerves of steel You must be able to handle pressure well. Job Outlook The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics anticipates job growth for advertising, promotions, and marketing managers of 10% through 2026. This is somewhat faster than all occupations, but those dealing predominantly with newspaper publishing might not fare as well because electronic media continues to push this industry aside. Seasoned, professional account executives can earn higher salaries and can go on to become partners in advertising agencies. Work Environment Account executives travel a lot to attend print and video shoots, and this includes both national and international destinations. They may be invited to client functions, as well as creative and agency events. Great account executives will often find themselves dealing with two or three different clients at one time, which can cause untold stress if the AE isnt adequately prepared. Work Schedule More than 30% of all advertising, promotions, and marketing managers worked more than 40 hours a week in 2016, according to the BLS. They arrive at the agency before everyone else to ensure that clients calls are answered, and they often are at the agency after all other departments have left for the day for the same reason. Be prepared to work long hours, especially under tight deadlines. How to Get the Job KNOW WHOS HIRING The American Association of Advertising Agencies can provide networking opportunities and up-to-the-minute developments in the field.ACE THE INTERVIEWWorkable offers a list of bewerbungsgesprch questions specific to this occupation. Comparing Similar Jobs Some similar jobs and their median annual pay include Art Director $92,780Market Research Analyst $63,120Public Relations Specialist $60,000 Source U.S. Bureau of Labo r Statistics, 2018

The Number One Article on Resume Layout 2018

The Number One Article on Resume Layout 2018 What Resume Layout 2018 Is - and What it Is Not When you speak about your prior works, its always recommended to create certain that the dates and facts about every job is portrayed in a very simple but highlighting way. Your resume needs to be filled with all the data you will need to convey about yourself to advertise yourself. Choose one that most suits your existing situation in order for the info you wish to share will be delivered successfully. Your contact info and other information are available easily beside the suitable icon. Life After Resume Layout 2018 You shouldnt utilize loud or many colors on your resume. Below are free resume templates and a number of premium ones too. Target the work especially to demonstrate that youre the ideal applicant in only a couple of pages. You may also download absolutely free templates from our Resume Library to get going on your best resume. So extraordinary care must be taken by selecting the resume most recent configuration. If youre an artist I should understand your work so incorporate a URL to your site or demo reel in your contact section. There are two images, a number of icons, and an unusual layout that numerous ATSs and of course menschenfreundlich recruiters will come across difficult to read. To assist you choose whats appropriate for you, lets look at the advantages and disadvantages of each resume format. Knowing the distinction between a resume and courses vitae is much more essential before picking a template. Its tough to stick out in a crowded pack however strong your credentials are. Writing a resume can be an intimidating task unless you take advantage of a template to make one. Writing that effective resume 2018 however isnt a simple task in any way, for example, should you need some college student resume for internship 2018. Just make sure, whichever format you pick, which youre targeting it for the job that youre applying to. Th e absolute most hard step here is to determine which resume format is appropriate for you. Well, the very first step is to begin with a format for a resume 2018. Part of creating an effective resume is deciding on the most suitable format to inform your private story. If you would like to earn a very good impression with your readers, it is best that you customize your paper according to the demands of the organization and the profession. Whats more, it was inspired by Scotch Roman designs of the 19th century, so should you wish to be noticed, you may want to go with something different. Be honest and youll be rewarded for it by locating a job which suits you best. Resume is being regarded as an effective tool to market oneself for a specific job prospect. If your resume format is disorganized and unclear, a possible employer has possibly hundreds of resumes from different candidates to check through therefore they is not going to waste time attempting to make sense of it and youll miss your opportunity for an interview. If youre a seeker free of experience, you will be in a position to compose your profession targets in 1-2 sentences solely. The aim is that employers can consider and judge you, no matter whether youre worthy or not. If you want to have that job, then you need to give them a targeted resume. The vorkaufsrecht is right your choice Each you must make the perfect resume to utilize for work. Should you need some help, youve come to the correct spot for sure. A lot of job seekers even dont understand where to get started. At the moment you spot a job which you like, go right to the task opening on LinkedIn to learn more regarding the chance and apply. Simply because youve got zero experience or its your very first job. Finding work today isnt an easy endeavor.

Who Else Wants to Learn About Wall Street Journal Article on Resume Writing?

Who Else Wants to Learn About Wall Street Journal Article on Resume Writing? Since major news publications have a tendency to only track BigFirms, its not possible to understand immediately how many individuals in smaller firms were affected. The website compiles the jobs that pay over $100,000 from across america, which means you can look everywhere with a couple mouse clicks. Simply take the opportunity to recognize the companies you would like to work for before you sit down to compose your resume. Some businesses are making extensive efforts to seek out candidates with the proper skill set that can be trained in the mora technical facets of a function. It is a lot more powerful to write that you created a marketing program that resulted in a 30 percent boost in leads, rather than noting that you simply made a marketing program. The fact of the problem is that wont improve if you dont practice. Most companies wont even offer you a second appearance, however qualified you are. As an example, knowing a company youre applying to is in the middle of making acquisitions will be able to help you structure your resume to highlight relevant work experience. The job of the stock in front or rear of the grid shows its everyday percent change. The lines seem to demonstrate some kind of floor program. The most important thing is to just incorporate an objective if it is not generic. Wherever youre in your career, were here to assist. Before beginning writing, do a little research on the employer that will help you come up with ideas to allow it to be original. Jobs continue to attract a lot more applicants than busy hiring departments have the opportunity to interview. You arent obliged to list each and every job you have at any time held. Wall Street Journal Article on Resume Writing - Dead or Alive? For instance, if you were in charge of making an advertising campaign on Facebook, show that you had the ability to get to the businesss target market without needing to devote the money thats usually spent on advertising. You will also find valuable easy-to-implement strategies and insights on what you can do in order to create the applicant tracking system zero in on your application. Resume writing requires critical thinking and a lot of creativity with regard to the way the info should flow, what the messaging ought to be and the way the resume ought to be designed from modest to modern. One particular top blogger told me youll only turn into a prosperous blogger if you dont have any other means to feed your loved ones. A professional will understand what language businesses are searching for and how to make sure that all your abilities and experience are effectively communicated to employers. Job seekers have been striving for a long time to produce their resumes stick out from the pile. Youve got to demonstrate that youve got the experience and skills they need. Highlight your transferable abilities, which are the on es which you are able to use from 1 job to the next no matter the position. The 5-Minute Rule for Wall Street Journal Article on Resume Writing Inexperienced writers will need to find creative when preparing clips. Its far better include published work, but inexperienced writers may incorporate work thats unpublished. You may be taken aback at how many writing gems you find when you get started searching your files. Get as many interviews as you are able to. Essentially, it ought to be like a cover letter in that you need to introduce yourself and touch on your background. Whats more, it doesnt hide the simple fact your grammar is disappointing. Lastly, irrespective of which font you use, make certain you size it appropriately. Your resume should resemble an expert document, not just a bit of paper thats been stuffed with as much content as humanly possible. If youre scared, you are just about to be slightly reassured. Its public, easily quantified information that may be collected automatically. Dont include as much information it gets distracting.

What the Experts Are Saying About Theatre Resume Template and How It Affects You

What the Experts Are Saying About Theatre Resume Template and How It Affects You Theatre Resume Template for Dummies For instance, if youre seeking to do film and youve got experience in theatre and film then set the film experience first. A casting director looks for certain abilities and talents, depending on the project hes casting. By doing so, he will know that your hairstyle is very versatile. Lease agreement is quite ideal for the landlord only because they have their established income for a lengthy period of time. As a result, if youre planning to acquire a rental property for your company, then you might be searching for the industrial lease arrangement. Industrial lease arrangements have become popular due to a selection of advantages that accrue to the lessee along with the lessor. Generally, the industrial lease arrangement is quite a lengthy, complicated and detailed record. By example, you might have only had a few speaking roles and a large number of additiona l work. Which means that you have to understand the way to make the best letter as possible deliver to the organization and offer good first impact about yourself. It can be quite tiresome making the resume by yourself. You will most likely discover the example simple to comprehend. Theatre Resume Template - Overview Think of expert theatre resume schablone for a weapon, which you might logically produces to be in a position to goal a particular job and to gain ones heart of the business. Do leid consist of anything your child has not done or that he cant do proficiently. With the aid of the template you may develop a perfect resume. Ensure you select the right type of template to fit your need. You would want to record in-depth truth about your responsibilities and accomplishments, so youre likely to have. The main reason for listing hobbies is the exact same as the reason behind listing professional skills. Therefore, additionally its along with the info of abilities. Y ou may want to generate headings for example Skills, Strengths or Interests and collection info and facts that may be highly pertinent to the work you want to get. The employers may have run into very similar resume designs with their practical experience, so its critical to alter the resume template so that it appears distinct from the customary one. Therefore, its important to talk more about the situations youve achieved not only the list of businesses you have worked with before. There are a number of sites giving free of charge resume template with no watermarks or trademarks inside them. Sometimes as the organization receives a lot of words, then they may use computer software to examine the letter. Besides altering the dummy text there may be additional data which you need to include. Irrespective of your degree of job practical understanding, your resume structure is vital to making your program stick out. There are many sorts of resume templates readily available on th e net and you may choose the one which is suitable for your need. The templates are useful since it is going to aid you to make a professional resume even when you dont have the notion of formatting a customized resume which may incorporate all the exact important specifics. Choosing Good Theatre Resume Template It is vital to create rental lease before placing a deal to prevent the possible conflicts. The details you want to provide will change, because you may see. As a consequence, no 2 resumes will look the exact same. All you will need is a great resume, and you may use this template that will help you prepare one. HEADSHOTIf you are in possession of a professional headshot, thats fantastic. Developing your resume is vital. Your resume should not mention your own personal hobbies, unless these have an immediate bearing on your favorite career path. Naturally, there might be sure formatting to include your information.

How the GMAT Fits into your Business School Application by M

How the GMAT Fits into your Business School Application by MHow the GMAT Fits into your Business School Application by MThis isthe third and final installment of a three-part series on the GMAT from MBAPodcaster on Vault.com. In the first segment, we talked about GMAT preparation,and our experts gave advice about how to get ready for the test. In thisarticle, we will discuss the GMAT in general and how it fits into your geschftliches miteinanderschool application package. We will also talk about how to approach the test,different studying options, and what to do to get the score you want. Ourexperts will also share their personal experiences taking and teaching thetest. As always,this is Diana Jordan with MBA Podcaster, here with our GMAT experts, ChrisRyan, director of ManhattanGMAT Brian Galvin, director of academic programsfor Veritas Prep Lisa Weale, executive director of the GMAT program at KaplanTest Prep and Admissions Jon Denning, director of operations for PowerScoreTest Pre paration and Jose Ferriera, CEO of Knewton. The pressureis on to get the best GMAT scores you possibly can. There has an unprecedentedincrease of prospective MBA students taking the GMAT in the past year. JonDenning is the director of operations for PowerScore Test Preparation. Jon, howis competition impacting applicants? At no point ever, perhaps, has it beenmore important that people do all that they can to prepare themselves as wellas possible to take this test. Be it with a tutor, a class, a bookbut gonecertainly are the days when people would just go in and take this test andsay Ill see how I do and hopefully thatll be good enough. That doesntfly anymore. Liza Weale isexecutive director of the GMAT program at Kaplan Test Prep and Admissions.Liza, did you take the GMAT? Actually, the first time I took it I did leid doso well. I took it right out of college and I got a 590 on it and fast-forwarda few years later, I was committed to making a career change and knew that Ineeded to get into a top-five business school in order to do that. So I knew my590 was not going to cut it. So I said, OK, Im going to change the way Iprep for this exam. Well before I came to Kaplan, I enrolled in a Kaplancourse and my score went up significantly. I ended up getting a 740. And I wasaccepted into MIT Sloans MBA program. So, Liza, how important is the GMAT?Fifty-five percent of business school admissions officers that we surveyedtold us that the GMAT is the most important factor in an application. So youwant to get the highest score that you can. And to do that you need to prepareadequately. Most people study for 100 hours or more, which assuming that youwork full-time translates to two or three months or maybe more depending onyour schedule. Jose Ferrierais CEO of Knewton. Is anybody a natural at this? They dont really have tostudy? No. These tests are unnatural acts. So its like bending your elbowbackwardand thats true in just about everybody. Some people who appear to begoo d test takers have essentially done a lot of the test prep work alreadyintuitively while they were just going about their daily lives and thats justthe way their lives work but I have never met anyone who came out of the wombgood at standardized tests. Liza withKaplan, how tough is the GMAT? Not only does it test you on things likeisosceles triangles and subject verb agreement, things you likely havent beentested on since high school or earlier. But the GMAT exam is also in a formatthat is probably unlike any other test youve taken. Its a computer adaptedtestor CAT, as it is often referred to as. And that means it adapts the questionsto your performance. But its a time test, so responding quickly is just asimportant as responding correctly. So you have enough time to get through thefull test. Jose, letsput the GMAT score in perspective. The most important criteria for businessschool are work experience (number one) and GMAT (number two). And if your workexperience is pretty good, ab ove the average for the schools you want to applyto, you can probably get in with a GMAT score thats a little below theaverage. On the other hand, if your work experience is just average for theschools you want to apply to or even a little bit below average, youre goingto want to get that GMAT score higher to give yourself some insurance thatyoure going to get it. Brian letssay an applicant keeps getting mediocre scores, is it better to re-take theGMAT and risk getting that bad score over and over (showing determination), oris that detrimental? If Im the admissions director and I look at the GMATtranscript that says this person every other month for the last year has scored620, Im going to ask myself Well, why didnt they learn from the first threeof them and realize that they should have done something different? Or if theywerent going to do anything different, they are just going to repeat the samemistakes and, quote-unquote, study harder but not necessarily smarter, then whynot re alize that if youre only going to do the same thing over and over again,youre not adding any value and find a better use of that time? Liza, whatare your thoughts? If the scores are low, is it better to keep re-taking thattest or go with what you got? If your GMAT is close to or matches your targetschools average and you feel like you have a top-notch application outside orbeyond the GMAT, youre probably OK. But if the gap is pretty big, as it was inmy case, or if you really want your GMAT to help you stand out from the crowd,its worth your time to think about taking it again. Most schools willencourage you to take the exam again because it can show dedication andcommitment. But, theres a big if here, if you show that improvement. Chris, whatif your GMAT score keeps coming in low? If its 10, 20, 30, 40 points belowthe average at the school that youre targeting and you just cant seem toget it up beyond that point, well, you should probably focus on the otheraspects of your applicati on and send it in. If its well below that, then youmight want to think about getting a tutor or getting some professional help fromthe likes of our company or wherever you go in order to try to crack the case.But there is some point ... at which you should probably say, You know, I amnot seeming to improve on this, I should look at the rest of my application. Chris, how doyou know if you should take the GMAT again? Getting a 750 versus a 760 doesntmatter at any of these schools. I can tell you that, flat out. If youre belowthe average then, yeah, you should think about taking it again. And if you feelthat its too low, then definitely take it again. Now, you have to wait 31 daysbefore you take another GMAT. You cant take it any sooner than that. So youshould re-prepare if you do decide to take it again. You should absolutely dosome reflection on where you think you went wrong. Unfortunately, the GMAT doesnot provide any feedback other than a math and verbal break down (a sub scorein each section), but it doesnt tell you what question you got right or howlong you spent on them. Nothing like that. So you have to just kind of reflecton where do you think you went wrong, and less about content and more aboutprocess. Did you manage your time well, that sort of thing. And then platzdeckchen upanother focused preparation plan and re-prepare. Jon, ifstudents arent doing well, should they try tutoring? For some people, itsalmost magical how much they can improve with tutoring. The whole patina of itchanges. I think the student who can benefit the most from tutoring is astudent who either just doesnt learn well in a group environment or has atougher time, perhaps, concentrating and dealing with the inflexibility of abook. That person is really going to benefit from tutoring because its sopersonalized. I also think, too, that somebody is going to get the most of itif they can come into that tutoring situation with a high degree ofself-awareness, self-knowledge about wha t they need help with. Brian, howwould tutoring help? The best part of having a one-on-one tutor, someone withthat kind of expertise, is the ability to diagnose. OK, you do have a pacingproblem, you are taking too long but you really only tend to take too long whenits a word problem that you cant set up quickly or its a data-sufficiencyproblem and you second-guess your answer three or four times. Or, lets justsay you re-read reading comprehension passages two or three times beforegetting it. Here are the steps that you need to take Try to figure out wherethose problems are coming from and then maybe enlist the help of someone tohelp you diagnose even more specifically what youre doing wrong and how youcorrect that quickly. If timemanagement is your issue, what is your advice? The GMAT is really challengingin that you are penalized if you run out of time before completing the exam. Soleaving a few questions at the end unanswered is worse than answering thosequestions incorrectly. S o in order to prep well for the timing aspect, you needto practice pacing. Thats not always easy when youre working on a computeradaptive test. Every time you get a question right, the GMAT will present amore difficult question. So imagine this the better you do, the harder itgets. Its really hard. Its a really hard mental flgel to get over. Thats whypracticing with computer adaptive tests as well as using pacing and targetquizzes is really important, because you cant skip questions on the GMAT or goback to previous questions. You will get into a situation where you were stuckon a given question. Its just because it keeps getting harder, its going tofind your limit. So part of performing well on the test is being able to make astrategic guess let it go and move on. So if youre not seeing a bigincrease, you need to get smarter about your practice and gaining comfort withthis approach takes practice and evaluation and then practicing again. Brian, how doyou handle practice tests? Tes ts are good for experience, but they are alsoreally good diagnostic tools. So over the course of eight to 10 weeks, towardthe latter half, take one to two practice tests a week It tends to give youthat confidence and experience with the test, and also allows you to shore upthose mistakes and make sure that youre not giving away points that reallyshould be yours. For moreinformation, advice or to read a transcript of the full show, visit MBAPodcaster.com. Im DianaJordan with MBA Podcaster. Thank you for listening and stay tuned next timewhen we discuss another topic, it will help guide you through the MBA processand your career beyond. To learnmore about how to get ready for GMAT, read the other MBA Podcaster articles inthis series about GMATprep and testday advice on Vault.com.

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