Being Relevant in the Digital Age

A lunchtime talk with CCNY alumna Jackie Leo helps students prepare for the futureby Elisa Cavaliere.The internet has greatly affected how consumers perceive the media. We no longer read, we skim. News that took a day to deliver now takes only a few minutes. And making an online impression is harder than ever in this crowded digital marketplace.To help students learn how to best position themselves for the future, CCNY alumna Jackie Leo (shown here in center with MCA faculty), director of digital operations at the Peterson Digital Group and editor-in-chief of The Fiscal Times, spoke to an eager audience of City College students and faculty. Her talk was part of this semester’s Lunch with Leaders, an AD/ PR series.Leo began by quizzing the participants about “what we forget.” A surprising 82 percent of young people forget names right after they are introduced. This distracted state contributes to our civility and productivity in everything from email to phone calls to text messages. “If you’re working on something and open an email, it takes you 15 minutes to get back to what you’re doing,” explained Leo.She stressed the importance of being professional online. First, she explained, amateur content is becoming increasingly available. Because of places such as the Huffington Post which allows almost anyone to contribute, the line between the personal and professional is fast disappearing. “Blogs make everyone feel like they are an expert,” said Leo.Leo says that there's no need to be flashy online; simplicity rules. She gave the example of Google winning over Yahoo because it is a simple search engine with no distractions. Everyone, she advised, should strive online to be the “chief officer of simplicity.”You can learn more about Leo at her website.