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How do you promote a residential rental complex to attract the largest and most diverse group of potential tenants?

Do you emphasize all the unique, top-of-the-line amenities? Do you enhance the ambiance by having musicians playing in the pool area to promote the property’s fun atmosphere? Or maybe you highlight all the incredible experiences offered in the surrounding community.

Real estate marketing is about creating a destination, not just a location. That’s a lesson Haley Mierzejewski remembers most after spending a summer immersed in her favorite aspect of business as a marketing intern at .

“I found a really strong liking for the experiential side; transforming that perception of a building into more of a real experience,” said Mierzejewski, a junior business administration major at ������ý’s School of Management (SOM). “I’ve always loved creating stuff, making videos or collages, and this was a way to balance that creative freedom while also analyzing who you’re marketing to. You have to not only do your research but also sometimes force yourself out of your comfort zone.”

During the summer, Mierzejewski joined other marketing team members to develop strategic social media content, sometimes collaborating with other media groups, to enhance TRITEC’s presence in the Long Island area. One of her videos hit 5 million views, and she also gained valuable skills in coordinating large-scale community events.

The internship culminated in a presentation for TRITEC’s leadership she and a fellow intern created on the value of placemaking, building on a theme her supervisor wanted to convey to demonstrate how investing money to cultivate a vibrant community is as important as money spent to develop an attractive property.

“For people who aren’t in marketing, who might just see it as money being thrown for a party, you have to convey how it’s going to help bring in more renters, generate better awareness for your location and, as a result, make more profit,” Mierzejewski said. “That can be hard to explain to people who aren’t inherently into the creative side, so it was fascinating to contribute to important conversations within the company I was working with!”

Starting from ’square one’

While the world of marketing feels like a natural fit for Mierzejewski now, it wasn’t long ago that she struggled to find her way.

Not all students like feeling like a “blank slate” when they show up to college, but Mierzejewski didn’t want to rush into something she might not enjoy. She knew her hobbies dwelled on the creative side, but how could that lead to a career?

Starting out as a student without a declared major in Harpur College of Arts and Sciences, she explored different general education courses to get a feel for what interested her. But by the end of her first year, it was obvious: the business world was calling her. After a bit of legwork, in her sophomore year, she joined SOM.

When it came time for an internship, Mierzejewski knew her breadth of experience might look lean. But that didn’t stop her from working with the SOM Career Services team to build the best resume she could.

Despite casting a wide net and facing a bumpy path to landing an internship, she never lost her determination. “I felt like I was starting from square one,” she said, “and when you’re finding a lot of dead ends, it can be hard to push through.”

But in the spring semester of her sophomore year, her aunt suggested contacting TRITEC after hearing the company had been getting more involved in retail openings and other projects.

Mierzejewski showed up to the internship interview with a clear message: “I want experience; I want to get whatever I can out of you guys, whatever you want to teach me,” and her persistence paid off.

“My experience reinforced the idea that you can’t just sit behind a desk all day and email people; you have to get out there and put a face to the name, whether you’re looking for a job or building your network of contacts,” Mierzejewski said. “If you’re in a meeting, even if you’re the youngest one in the room, you have to push past any anxiety you have and speak up. Sometimes, these things might feel like they’re not immediately benefitting you, but they really take you a long way. These things actually do work out.”