After interning with Marketing Works for the past three months, I’ve learned a great deal about how social media and marketing works (pun intended)! It’s been an exciting journey to learn some of the ins and outs of public relations, marketing strategy and writing to different audiences. While I’ve grown significantly in all of these areas, I also feel as though I’ve only reached the tip of the iceberg in this ever-changing industry. Nonetheless, here are five great things I’ve taken away from my internship:
- All sorts of new lingo. I remember my first Monday of the internship. I came into the morning meeting with a fresh notepad and ready to learn. That’s when I found out that marketing wasn’t just a profession; it was a whole other language. I heard “RFPs,” “ROI,” “CRM” and “CTA” thrown around and had no concept of what those might be. Now those acronyms are woven into my conversations without even realizing it, like second nature.
- A new understanding of social media. While at Wittenberg University, I had dabbled in social media channels for many organizations across campus. Little did I know that there was much more to it. Through interning with Marketing Works, I had the opportunity to stay up-to-date with the latest social media practices, news and trends. Not only did it help for posting on Marketing Works’ social media channels, I improved my own personal practices as well. Staying up-to-date with the latest social media news always made for great conversation. Between knowing what’s next in social media, social media crises that occurred and how to avoid such disasters, I felt I had gained an encyclopedic knowledge of the social media tactics of specific brands – and needless to say: it was awesome.
- Not just being organized, but being really organized. I like to think of myself as a pretty organized individual, but my internship required me to take that to the next level. I learned the importance of making a list (checking it twice) and sticking to it. Multitasking was essential along with working efficiently and effectively on all projects. I also learned the importance of planning ahead in detail, with the use of content calendars for social media as well as roadmaps for planning and executing projects.
- Writing for a different audience. When I was in school, I wrote for my teachers, professors and peers. When I write creatively, I write for an audience of literature-lovers. During this internship I learned to write press releases to send to local media outlets, which was a different style of writing altogether. After being used to decorating my sentences with flowery, descriptive language, I had to learn to shave all of that down and cut straight to the facts. Similarly, when I wrote blog posts, I learned to write with short, succinct sentences in order to convey information accurately and precisely.
- The power of teamwork. In working in a small office setting, I’ve seen the power of creativity, collaboration and innovation in action. In working with the Marketing Works team, I had the opportunity to see all aspects of the creative process and got to be involved in it too! The experience I’ve gained from working with such an amazing team has been simply invaluable and irreplaceable. I am forever appreciative for the great experience I’ve had here!
If I were to provide one piece of advice to future interns, it’d be to never stop learning, never stop improving and never stop growing. Each day was something different and I had to learn to take each task in stride. Through making mistakes, accepting constructive feedback and recovering from a few mix-ups – it’s important not to see those times as a downfall, but as an opportunity to grow and improve.
When I look back at my first blog post of the internship, So You Want to be an Intern, my goals were to expand my horizons, learn more about public relations and marketing and to collaborate with colleagues to reach common goals. All in all, I’d have to say: Mission accomplished.