JCOM gave Ethan Babcock the tools for his job
Steven Ballif, writer
Ethan Babcock began his career in public relations and marketing when he graduated from Utah State University in 2018. While in the journalism program and working with USU Student Media, Babcock cultivated his love for creating content through writing, photography, videography and more. Learning more in these mediums gave him the desire to pursue a career in content marketing.
After graduating, Babcock learned something he would like to pass on to other students: the need to sell yourself to employers, meaning using the experiences you have to help you land a career where you want to be. He didn’t complete an internship in college, but had valuable experiences that qualified him for a job in PR or marketing.
“I wish someone would have told me that,” he said. “Hearing whatever I’ve done is okay and can still get me where I want to be. That would have made me feel a lot more confident graduating and starting in square one and still getting somewhere with my career.” He learned this lesson on his own as the opportunity of a lifetime passed by him.
During spring break of Babcock’s senior year, he landed an interview with Vayner Media, a marketing agency in New York. With his uncle being the chief creative officer, he was sure his connection would help get the internship.
“Literally two weeks before graduation, I found out that I didn’t get the job they gave it to somebody else,” he said. Considering the reality of the situation, “I wasn’t surprised that I didn’t get it.”
Babcock realized that there were probably many other great candidates for the job and getting that job wasn’t the end of the world. Instead of sulking in sadness of the loss, he searched for jobs in Salt Lake City and searched within himself for things that set him apart.
His time at Utah State taught him the skills he needed to do the job and gave him opportunities to gain confidence in those experiences. After graduating, he found there was more within his experiences he could use to qualify himself for new opportunities. Things like how he learned to manage relationships, to work on a team or how to be coachable.
“Being able to sell myself with the skills I had learned from nontraditional PR jobs allowed me to get my foot in the door,” he said. “I feel like that’s what set me apart to get my first job.”
Babcock’s first job in the marketing field was at Young Living Essential Oils, where he laid the groundwork to get his position at Entrata today. He is the product marketing manager where he covers accounting, utility services and payments through Entrata’s property management software.
He enjoys the work he does at Entrata. “Being able to do so much, meet with so many people, it’s a fun flow to work through.”
Even though he is doing more than writing, he feels that he goes back to what he learned in Matthew LaPlante’s writing classes. His colleagues trust him to be the “de facto copywriter” for the team and gives credit to the news writing class for giving him the confidence to serve in that capacity.
Babcock leans on his experiences in PR agency class where he learned how to collaborate with several different businesses, when he works with other departments to do his job at Entrata.
“I have never been more collaborative in my role than I am right now and still feel like four years later I’m leaning on things that we started on in the agency class,” he said.
Babcock used his skills in collaboration to help Young Living save millions of dollars in publication-related costs by creating a digital catalog. He was a key player in creating the Young Living digital library on its website.
A memorable piece of advice for students and PR professionals he received was to be positive and empathetic in working relationships.
“I believe that relationship management is the key to wherever you end up in PR, communications and marketing,” he said. “Being able to talk to people, work with people and collaborate; I think it’s undersold. You have to learn it as you go.”
He reflects on group projects and classes in the JCOM program that helped him learn how to manage relationships. In his role, he seeks to care for and build a helpful relationship with everyone he works with.
“I feel like every class I took at Utah State helped me get to where I am and made me feel confident about going forward working with anyone I come across.”
Babcock is happy to connect with other JCOM alumni, students or anyone who wants to reach out. He can be reached at ethanrossbabcock@gmail.com or on LinkedIn.