6 Things We Learned Interning at an Agency

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Hello! Our names are Katie Brewer and Holly Taylor and we had the awesome opportunity to intern at Hey Now! Media. Technically our titles are Creative Fellow (Katie) and Strategic Fellow (Holly), but let’s be honest, does anyone really know the difference between fellow and intern?

We both go to Baldwin Wallace University and we got these positions through Baldwin Wallace’s Digital Marketing Clinic. Since the semester ends soon and we’ll be graduating, we wanted to reflect on all the things we’ve learned as fellows here at Hey Now!.

1) It’s not as daunting as we learned in our classes.

Advisors and professors make agency life seem intense: clock your time every fifteen minutes, be on demand for any client needs, and be an expert at all things about the client. While some agencies and some clients still implement this, our client wasn’t one.

As long as we did our work and had a final product at the end of the day to show it, it was obvious we cared about the client and knew what we were doing. This was also something different every day. We may have worked majorly with one client, but we got to complete a variety of tasks for them.

2) The culture is fun and casual.

In class, we learn that we need to dress business professional everywhere we go in order to get a job, but that isn’t always the case. From our first day, we were told to dress in jeans and just be comfortable, which is honestly a really great policy. Not having to wear heels and a suit, and instead wearing jeans and a sweatshirt really showcases Hey Now’s! culture. Everyone here is really fun and laid-back – it would be weird to us if they were all dressed in suits everyday. The weekly Monday meetings we got to attend were always fun and it was interesting to see how the agency’s projects were progressing.

3) Work hard. Play hard.

While everything was fun and we learned a lot, we also worked hard. Every time we were at Hey Now!, we accomplished something. Whether it was research, a strategy, or a content calendar for almost six months, we were expected to work hard which taught us great work ethic. Every Wednesday, in the midst of doing great work, the staff takes a break to relax and do something new – play Mario Cart, make crafts, or go outside to play basketball. Being in an environment with so much balance and so many great opportunities was a very valuable part of this fellowship.

4) Deadlines are real.

Maybe it’s just our internships, but for us deadlines generally weren’t really a thing in our past internships. This idea that you are an intern automatically suggests that deadlines are loose. “When do you want this done?” I would always ask. And my supervisor would nonchalantly say “Whenever you get to it. Just send me it when you’re finished.” Deadlines were lax and the projects that did have them could be pushed back if need be. But here at Hey Now! there are tight deadlines that are all outlined in Basecamp projects which help keep us on track. There’s definitely no slacking here!

5) Collaboration is key.

Each Monday we come in and participate in Hey Now!’s weekly meeting which recaps new sales, project timelines, and meetings and events happening that week. We love to watch the chatter occur between everyone as they dive deep into a client’s strategy. It’s also reaffirmed that collaboration and communication are important in an agency setting so that everyone can do their best possible work.

6) There’s help when you ask.

Everyone has their own job, and everyone is busy with client work, but that doesn’t mean they won’t help you. It’s important to ask for help or clarification when you need it. It’s as easy as saying, “Hey, can I meet with you in a few minutes to discuss the next steps?” It also helps that everyone in the office is so close and we can just lean over if we have a question.

So it’s with a sad face we’ll be taking what we learned and saying goodbye to Hey Now! in a few short weeks. After graduation Katie will be working at Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad as their Manager of Media Relations and Digital Communications and dreaming of the day she can adopt a cat. Meanwhile Holly will be living her best life working at an awesome agency listening to TSwift on repeat. Here’s to the great experience that Hey Now! has taught us!

Editor’s Note: We love our fellows and will be sad to see them go! Thank you Katie and Holly for all that you’ve accomplished this semester and the awesome work you’ve done for our client!

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