A Day in the Life: Claire Bentley, '10, PR Account Coordinator

Today’s “A Day in the Life” profiles 2010 Communication Studies alum Claire Bentley.  Claire works as a Public Relations Account Coordinator for Andrew Freeman & Company.  Sound familiar?  That’s because it’s the same AF&Co. that was the subject of Emma’s recent “Internship Ideas” post.  Wait, the similarities don’t stop there.  Emma is currently the President of Lambda Pi Eta.  Guess what Claire was her senior year?  You got it.  President of Lambda Pi Eta!  Here is a day in the life of Claire: March 2, 2011:

2010 Communication Studies graduate Claire Bentley

7:15am- alarm goes off and I immediately turn it off, make my bed and stumble to the kitchen to turn on the coffee pot
7:20am- Brush my teeth and jump into the shower
7:30am- Pour myself a large cup of coffee with non-fat vanilla creamer, pick out an outfit and get ready for the day
8:15am- Put on Pandora and walk to the 5 Fulton.  I have it perfectly timed so I get on the bus and am the first person on.  I sit in the seat closest to the back door.
8:20am- Check my email (respond to a few) catch up on all of my pending Words with Friends games, check Facebook and Twitter
8:45am- Get off the 5 and transfer to the 45 or 30
9:00am- Get off the bus and walk to work, stopping at the store to pick up today’s copy of the San Francisco Chronicle- which features one of my clients
9:15am- Have booted up my computer and catching up with my coworkers about their nights and the quality shows we watched (I work in an office full of women, and two gay men)
10:30am- Call a cab and get agendas and anything pending together for my hotel client meeting
12:00pm- Arrive back to the office after a successful meeting and catch up on emails that we’ve missed while being out
12:30pm- Create recap notes from the meeting and send to the client
12:50pm- Send images from a recent restaurant opening to local and eager San Francisco media and publications
1:10pm- Draft a press release for a new lunch menu that one of my clients is promoting
1:45pm- Pull a media list from Cision of people who we will send the press release to once it has been approved
2:00pm- Grab a couple of the coworkers and walk to the local Bodega to grab a sandwich and Diet Coke
2:30pm- Have a weekly conference call with a client
3:15pm- Send several more update emails, schedule a photoshoot at one of my client’s restaurants and secure media reservations for dinner that evening
4:00pm-  Craft an agenda for the early morning meeting we have at a restaurant and send to my supervisor for approval

Claire busy working at AF&Co.

4:15pm- Schedule several client meetings
4:30pm- Facebook and Tweet for AF&Co. and my clients
4:40pm- Brainstorm next month’s PR tactics for a client
5:00pm- Create seasonal packages for a hotel client
5:30pm- Draft a media alert for an upcoming bar crawl in an up-and-coming neighborhood in San Francisco
6:00pm- Begin client monthly activity reports- outlining all of our PR and marketing efforts for them for the month
6:45pm- Clean and straighten up my desk, shut down my computer and grab my stuff to head home
7:00pm- Check email, call and catch up on the phone with my parents and friends on the bus ride
7:45pm-Arrive home after a long smelly MUNI bus ride, my roommate is working again tonight so I cook dinner, pour myself a glass of wine and plop down on the couch for the newest episode of Glee
9:00pm- I check my email on and off again, exchanging texts with friends and coworkers about what we’re going to do this weekend- it’s only Tuesday….
11:00pm- Plug my phone in, set my alarm, brush my teeth and wash my face.  Turn on the TV to zone out to and fall asleep
1:45am- Wake up from work dreams and check my email…

Wow, that is a day!  Thanks, Claire, for giving us a glimpse into your work at AF&Co.  We’re so proud of you!  And hungry (from reading about your work with all of these restaurants!).

Want to take part in an “A Day in the Life” post?  You know you want to.  Now let me know you want to at edoohan@usfca.edu.