It has been almost two months since I started interning at Maiden Media and it’s been a wonderful experience so far. For those of you who might want to intern at Maiden, here’s a short list to summarize what I’ve witnessed there:
- Interns are treated as employees- no getting anyone’s coffee/lunch unless you want to
- Small agency- you get much more involved in the nooks and crannies of the work, plus you will work side by side with the people of your department
- Relaxed but professional environment- everyone likes to have fun here, but they are very thorough and professional with their work and clients
- Always helpful- people are genuinely helpful
There were many reasons I wanted to work at this agency, but one that I felt was most beneficial to me was that Maiden emphasized the digital aspect of advertising. I felt that I needed to push myself to learn more about the digital side of advertising, especially as an art direction student. I had already learned a good deal about print ads and wanted to gain more knowledge about the ever changing digital world.
While working at Maiden Media, I have noticed that everyone in the agency is constantly finding and sharing things online, whether it’s an article about a new ad agency or a hilarious viral video. These kinds of information may be fun and interesting to share, but they are also important to know. As someone in the advertising industry, whatever their specialization, they must know about cultures.
Specifically, as an art director, it’s important to know about cultures because advertising always uses cultural influence. In thinking about the specific audience advertisers wants to target for an ad campaign, they will puzzle together and deconstruct the culture of the that target audience. Through research or just common knowledge of that culture, the creative team of an agency will craft ads using what they know.
So I encourage everyone to start (or continue) surrounding yourself in the digital culture. Even if you’re not into pop culture, make sure you are aware of everything that’s going on around you. Consider it as daily homework , but lucky for us ad students, this is a fun type of homework.
I respect that Maiden Media was started up by 20-somethings. I interviewed for this same position and we chatted for a while. Their agency has the sort of vibe that I’ve been reading about in Ad News over the past few months. My trip there was the first time seeing it in action. And by that I mean seeing my peers running the show. I’m older than the vast majority of people in my classes, but about the same age as the guys at Maiden Media (and a couple of other places too).
They say that boutique agencies run by young professionals are on the rise especially here in Philly. I like that the tide is turning.
I agree. It’s so encouraging to hear young professionals in the advertising industry start up their own business. I would also like to start my own agency some day, after I gain experience at many other places. It’s hard being a young agency, especially in a new city/state, but the people at Maiden have great socializing skills (amongst other things). I’m sure they will continue to grow quickly.