Vonnai Phair

Good Questions

Asking the right questions is vital to setting oneself up for success during any type of conversation. In order to obtain the most information, it’s important to ask open-ended questions. According to the WSU Comstrat476 lecture “Questions & Answers”, specific questions result in exacting answers or opinions, which is just what one needs in order to truly gain valuable information!

Here are some examples of how I turned closed-ended questions that would almost surely result in “yes” or “no” answers into open-ended questions that should illicit a more robust response…

• Have you ever sent a text message while driving?

Alternative Questions: What do you consider distracted driving? How do handle receiving notifications while driving?

• Would you say you travel abroad frequently?

Alternative Questions: How often do you travel abroad? Where have you traveled abroad?

• Do you post a lot of pictures on Instagram?

Alternative Questions: How often do you post pictures on Instagram? What types of pictures do you post on Instagram?

• Do you prefer to shop at big boxes or locally owned stores?

Alternative Questions: What types of stores do you do your grocery shopping at? What are some of the factors that determine where you do your grocery shopping at?

• Do you have an iPhone or an Android phone?

Alternative Questions: What type of phone do you have? Why did you decide to get the brand of phone that you own?

• How often do you eat sweets?

Alternative Questions: What is your favorite type of dessert? Do you prefer sweet foods or savory foods, and why?

• Do you tend to buy things that are on sale?

Alternative Questions: When you go shopping, what is your favorite section of the store, and why? Do you consider yourself to be a big spender or a money saver?

From the questions above, it is clear to see how crafting an open-ended question opens the door to responses that will give one plenty of useful information. Asking good, curious, open-ended questions consistently proves invaluable in all aspects of communications, within all careers.

So, remember…it is important to ask the right questions in order to get the most information (that is also useful) out of a subject. From research settings to everyday conversations, asking the right questions can illicit responses that are helpful and valuable. In the end, asking the right questions allows for more information, insight, and data to be collected!

Want to practice your own question asking skills? Check out this five step resource for further practice!

Facts vs. Insights

Facts and insights can often be confused for being the same thing, but the truth is that they are two very different things.

The difference between a fact and an insight is…

A FACT is the undeniable truth, and it can be proven to be true. The Merriam Webster definition of fact is something that has actual existence.

An INSIGHT is a belief or conclusion based on things observed. The Merriam Webster definition of insight is the power or act of seeing into a situation.

To put it into words, we observe facts with our five senses, and then we can infer conclusions from those said facts!

For example…

It is a FACT that I received five hours of sleep last night. It is an INSIGHT that I will be tired today.

It is a FACT that my roommate ran a red light. It is an INSIGHT that she is a reckless driver.

Here is my first project!

My first project is an interactive portfolio of all of the lifestyle related published communications work I have done so far. I created this on September 6th, 2020 using Adobe Spark. Creating this project taught me that it is important to have a space made where my work can be displayed in a professional manner. I am going to link this portfolio on my resume and use it in the future for professional work and my journey to find a job post college.

Analyze Communications

A piece of brand communication that really resonates with me is the social media (Instagram, specifically) profile of my favorite activewear brand, SET Active. Instagram is the brand’s main social media profile, and they communicate through this medium extremely well.

I have followed the SET Active Instagram profile since March 2020. This is a brand that values customer feedback, and they are always communicating and interacting with both their followers and customers. For example, almost daily on the brand’s Instagram Story is a question or some sort of option for interactive feedback. I really value this as both a customer and communications student because I recognize that this brand truly cares about customer feedback, which I believe is extremely important in order to be successful in the long run. SET Active loves to create a space for conversations to take place in order to provide better products in the future, and I think that using communication tools in this way is a smart and effective method for running a brand.

SET Active also prides themselves in being transparent and open with their operations and business. The brand regularly features a BTS (behind the scenes) Instagram story where they share pieces of their operations with customers. They explain things like how they pick colors for their clothing to where they source the fabric. I believe that brand transparency allows for trust, and more trust means a more reputable brand!

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Most importantly, SET Active is transparent and honest when they have made a mistake. During the coronavirus lockdown in May, the brand dropped new styles on their website. Customers happily ordered but then experienced major shipping delays, as everything in the country was essentially shut down. The brand responded by posting a comprehensive and transparent explanation and apology, which was featured on their Instagram page.

I think SET Active’s planning team knows the value of creating a brand that listens to their customers. They are constantly receiving feedback and input from their very own buyers, and what better form of research is that!

The open and interactive communication style of the SET Active Instagram page resonates with me because I feel like I am part of the company. I feel valued, listened to, and important with this brand. On the SET Active website, the brand states that, “We’re a community first and a brand second. Connected by our love for all things active, we live to create what you want, because we’re at our best when you feel yours”. The community first mindset and communication forward strategy is what truly sets SET Active apart from other brands on Instagram or other social media mediums.

SET Active has over 200,000 followers on Instagram. For a brand with this big of a following, it would be expected that they would not respond to direct messages…but SET Active does! Most of SET Active’s customers are young (ages 15-30) and are familiar with brand engagement and communications on social media. SET Active’s style of communication is one that everyone should be comfortable with and appreciate, although there are always outliers.

Overall, SET Active is a brand that values communication and community as their top priorities. As a communications student, I see how this brand has mastered the art of transparency and conversation with customers over social media in order to run a successful business, and as a customer, I couldn’t be happier!

Paris Fashion Week Internship

After a lot of careful thought and consideration, I’ve concluded that Paris Fashion Week (in all of its’ glitz and glam and glory) can only be compared to what a child must think Christmas in the North Pole is like.

Celebrations of fashion and culture create a magic in the air that is only too similar to the enchantment of the holiday season – it’s like everyone in the city is worshipping their own respective fashion icons while collectively dashing from showrooms to runways. The normal hustle and bustle of the city gets electrified by the presence of designers, models and celebrities from all around the world converging in on the City of Love and Lights (and also, for this week, Labels). From well-known powerhouses like Chanel and Louis Vuitton taking their respectable runways by storm to designers like Badgley Mischka setting up glamorous showrooms, the week was truly filled with an aura of excitement.

This past PFW, I was incredibly lucky to be offered an internship with Badgley Mischka. For five days, I worked in a showroom at the Park Hyatt Paris Vendôme along with a few other CEA students.

The showroom was filled with all of the beautiful looks shown on the Badgley Mischka New York Fashion Week runway. From their couture line to their cocktail and social dress line, rows of clothes were neatly hung for clients to inspect and have shown on the two French models in the showroom, Marianne and Meggie.

From setting up the showroom by unpacking and merchandising items on the first day to helping the models in and out of each elegant look, working in the showroom included many different tasks. Interns took client orders, ran various errands, re-merchandised clothing and socialized with the models. We even got to take daily lunch runs to cafés around the hotel, picking out arrays of different vegan treats, juices, sandwiches and salads to feed everyone in between client appointments.

The Badgley Mischka internship is one of the highlights on my study abroad adventures so far, but now that PFW has long passed, the city is sleepy once again and it’s time to get back to classes. Until next time!

Find my post on CEA’s website here: https://www.ceastudyabroad.com/blog/mojo/2020/03/11/my-internship-abroad-paris-fashion-week

Valentine’s Day Weekend in the City of Love

Find my post on CEA’s website here: https://www.ceastudyabroad.com/blog/mojo/2020/02/20/video-valentine’s-day-weekend-in-the-city-of-love or on Youtube here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HK5udDPzkz4

Being a Journalism Major in Paris

Paris – the city of love, the city of light, and perhaps the best place on Earth to be a journalism major, a hopeless romantic, and a dessert addict.

This blog post is intended to shed light on being a communications student in Paris, but I also want to share some tidbits of wisdom and gathered knowledge from my (almost) month of living here.

So, as I sit here writing my version of an advice column in my cozy Parisian apartment, I couldn’t help but wonder (in true Carrie Bradshaw style), in a city as inspiring as Paris, just exactly how much will studying abroad help my writing?

Now, don’t get me wrong, Paris has ignited the writer within like no other. How could it not, with all of its corner cafés and neighborhood bakeries enticing one to spend some time?

As a student, I have so much time to let slip by and minutes to muse — walking to school, walking to the bakery, walking to museums, walking, walking, walking. All of this time for reflection has forced me to find a physical place for all of my thoughts. Pen and paper are my new best friends, and in close second is the notes section on my iPhone.

As a communications major, I naturally write a lot! It’s truly the most familiar and comfortable method of processing my thoughts and emotions, and I’ve been having a lot of them since being plopped down into a new city (note to other study abroad students, you’re not alone!).

Day by day, I am visited by emotions that are evident and influential and raw, and they are serving as the perfect commanding spark to my writers’ flame, which has forced me to slow down and actually soak up what it means to be living in this beautiful city!

I saw this advice online the other day, and I think these words describe better than my own how study abroad students should spend time reflecting, just like writers and journalism majors do: You’d better slow down. Don’t dance so fast. Time is short. The music won’t last. When you run so fast to get somewhere, you miss half the fun of getting there. When you worry and hurry through your day, it is like an unopened gift thrown away. Life is not a race. Do take it slower. Hear the music before the song is over.

At the beginning of my time in Paris, I found myself rushing through each day, afraid that I was going to miss out on something in a future that didn’t even exist. But when I slow down and give thought to why I’m really here, it forces me to return to my roots and write; transforming my short experience in Paris into a forever one on paper – it’s like studying abroad and journalism were just meant to be.

Find my post on CEA’s website here: https://www.ceastudyabroad.com/blog/mojo/2020/02/03/being-a-journalism-major-in-paris

CEA Excursions

Bonjour tout le monde! With three weeks of living in Paris officially under my belt, the perfect opportunity to venture outside city limits arrived last weekend. Whether students want to stay close to “home” or hop over to a different country, CEA offers both day-trips and weekend getaways that whisk students away to new and exciting destinations. Just last weekend, I embarked on the first of three CEA excursions.

The Senlis and Pierrefonds excursion took CEA students outside of the bustling city to a medieval town tucked in the countryside an hour north of Paris. The day-trip also took us to Château de Pierrefonds, a castle that showcased the best of medieval and 19^th century architecture.

SENLIS, FRANCE

After boarding the early morning bus ride out of Paris, we left the city and reached the town of Senlis just before noon. Our time in Senlis began with a walking tour that led us to the local gothic-style cathedral, Cathedrale Notre-Dame de Senlis (fun fact – many churches and chapels in France are dedicated under the Notre Dame name).

We then strolled through the winding cobblestone streets adorned with fragrant local bakeries and charming shops. After eating lunch at a restaurant situated in an underground cellar, it was time to board the bus for Pierrefonds!

PIERREFONDS, FRANCE

My favorite part of this excursion was – of course – the real-life castle! Our bus took us to the commune of Pierrefonds, which is nestled by the Forest of Compiègne and vast countryside.

Château de Pierrefonds, a castle that is “new” in the French historical context, was built in the late 14^th century. Military force destroyed the castle in the 17^th century and it laid in ruins until the 19^th century. Napoleon III and Eugène Viollet-le-Duc then completely rebuilt the castle, hence the “new” reputation it carries. The castle serves as a perfect marriage between medieval architecture and 19^th century architecture, the two styles meeting between steel roofs and cobblestone courtyards.

The walls of the inside of the castle were intricately painted with flowers and animals representing the prominent families who once occupied the castle. Each room we entered had at least one enormous fireplace, each tasked with heating the large stone rooms long ago. My favorite room within the castle was the grand ballroom; a room once used to entertain guests! The space included a total of three fireplaces and beautifully upholstered circular couches on either ends. The warm maple-colored wood decorated the entire hall, giving the space a warm glow along with the afternoon light flooding in from the windows of the southern wall.

The trip to Senlis and Pierrefonds included a day’s worth of medieval sights and sounds, immersing students in a new cultural experience. It was the perfect first excursion, and it served as a warm up to traveling outside of our home base of Paris for many students within my program – including me!

Find my post on CEA’s website here: https://www.ceastudyabroad.com/blog/mojo/2020/01/21/cea-paris-excursion-to-senlis-pierrefonds

“Favorite parts of my hometown…”

For over 9 months in the year, I live in Pullman, Washington. This little college town is the home to Washington State University, the school that has given me my sorority, my best friends, my education, and – if I’m being honest – my life.

My favorite part of Pullman is that it’s in the middle of nowhere. Quite literally, there are hundreds of miles of wheat fields in every direction outside of this town. So, Pullman is really like an oasis of college fun! Everyone is stuck here, and no one would want it any other way.

Being the quintessential college town that it is, P-Town is filled with endless Instagram-worthy coffee shops and Walmart is referred to as the Disney Land in town.

This place and all of its uniqueness has truly grown to be my hometown even though it’s not where I’m from.

One of the most important pieces of Pullman is the home that it has given me; my sorority Alpha Gamma Delta! Our little (mansion) is adorned with cream brick and black awnings, and it’s even cuter inside than it is outside.

From giant sleepovers on our sun deck to countless movie nights in the basement, the memories I have made in this house are some of my favorite parts about Pullman.

I can’t talk about Pullman without talking about WSU and the school spirit at this school. Every student would easily tell anyone that we bleed crimson and gray and that our football games are basically a Super Bowl every week. Oh! And, we hate the Huskies (our westside of the state Seattle based rival).

As I reflect on my favorite parts of this little town, I realize that I am definitely going to miss it when I go abroad. But now it’s time for me to find my favorites in the city of Paris, so au revoir Pullman!