Alumni Spotlight: Andrea Bazzoli
February 22, 2024 |
The last decade has been filled with many different roles for Xavier communications alumnae Andrea Bazzoli, since she graduated in 2013 with a major in digital innovation, film & television, and a public relations minor.
Through her current role within the realm of the influencer world, her days are a mix of emailing prospective clients, pitching meetings, and internal brainstorming of potential plans for clients. There is also a lot of fun and entertainment that comes with her role as Account Executive for RhythmInfluence in Chicago, Illinois, as she enjoys client lunches and various activities in the “windy city.”
As an Account Executive, Andrea is primarily responsible for growing and maintaining client relationships. She works closely with different brands and agencies to build a plan for potential influencers the brand would like to bring in. A brand will come to her with an idea and they will work together to organize and budget a plan to present to multiple influencers. A few of the big legacy brands that RhythmInfluence has worked with are Starbucks, Toyota, Campbell’s, and Capital One, among others. Andrea shared that recently they worked with Meghan Trainor for a campaign which came together in two weeks—“in near record timing,” Andrea shared. She explained that the process of an influencer post is not always easy: “I think people would be surprised at how much goes into one influencer post, for both the influencer and those behind the scenes.” Before an influencer can post, everything must be reviewed by the brand, agency, and legal teams multiple times. “It takes a lot of negotiation with the talent and a lot of back and forth to keep things on a schedule,” she added.
While Andrea knew that communication was the path she had wanted to take in college, she was not sure of the direction she wanted to go until her senior year of college when she declared a major in electronic media—now digital innovation, film & television (DIFT)—with a public relations minor. “I had a very random and wild path to where I’m at now,” she shared. When asked if she would have done anything different during her time at Xavier, her response focused on networking and the intimidation that is connected to it. She wishes that she would have practiced her networking more in college and not been as scared to do so. She explained that while networking in some cases might be connecting with strangers at different career fairs and events, it also means connecting with the people that you already know. Andrea added, “every single job I’ve had since college I got because of someone I knew.” Xavier, particularly her studies in communication, gave her “the tools to figure it out in any work situation.” She graduated feeling confident in her skills and while the path to her “dream job” might have been unclear, she had the tools to navigate her journey and land her current position.
Prior to working with RhythmInfluence, Andrea had internships with Fox19 News and the Cintas Corporation during her senior year of college. After graduation, Andrea moved to California where she worked as a personal assistant for one of the showrunners of Game of Thrones. While starting in Cincinnati, then California, and now Chicago, she was always connecting the dots to her next career move.
Finding the right career path is not always clear, and along the way to her position at RhythmInfluence Andrea experienced many trials and errors. Andrea advises today’s students to avoid placing “too much pressure on finding the perfect fit right off the bat,” because through the journey, "you will discover what you like and what you do not, leading you to the right place."
Andrea, pictured on the far right, at graduation in 2013.
