Building My Skills, One Home Builder at a Time
Hello! I’m Kija Chronister, a senior advertising major on the account management track. For my final semester at Temple University, I decided to intern at Group Two Advertising, working with their account management team. As a full-service agency, Group Two is unique because they only work with home builders nationwide. My previous agency experience was at LevLane, which works with clients in a variety of industries. So, working within a niche market was different, yet exciting to me. Throughout my time with Group Two, I have learned many valuable skills and lessons that will help me with my future in the advertising industry.
Owls really are everywhere!
Throughout my years at Temple, everyone tells you that Temple alumni are everywhere, and it was definitely true at Group Two! As a smaller agency with around 20 employees, four of them went to Temple, which is amazing. Having that commonality gave me a sense of comfortability at the beginning of the internship. During the slower hours, we would all talk about our favorite food trucks or who thought Maxi’s or Draught Horse was better. Of course, everyone else was super friendly and really created a welcoming environment.
Home building is actually fun!
Going into this internship, I knew that Group Two specifically worked with home builders, which is different from having a variety of clients. I had no real knowledge about this industry, but I went in with an open mind willing to learn as much as I can. Working with the account team I really got to know the clients, who were from all across the nation. What I found most interesting is that even though they’re all home builders, each one of them is so unique. There are so many different factors such as, location, type of homes, what they build (communities or BOYL), and with the help of Group Two they created unique campaigns for each client to stand out in their market.
Smaller agencies = more involved.
My previous agency internship employer is larger than Group Two, so I wasn’t very hands-on on a lot of projects. I was just given a task to do and then, sent it along to the next department without seeing it come to fruition. Luckily, I was a lot more hands-on at Group Two, which was extremely beneficial. I worked directly with two account executives and their clients. I would sit in on daily client calls, brainstorm ideas for campaigns, open and route jobs through their project management platform, do competitive research, help with monthly analytics reports, and so much more. Being this involved really exposed me to how an agency works and flows, which will be super helpful for the future.
Hi Kija! Hope is well. I loved your article! I’m currently interning for a small agency and I completely agree with you that working in a small office really provides you with hands on experience as well as good interpersonal relationships with the staff that makes for an open and comfortable culture and office atmosphere (some of mine went to Temple too!). Also, it’s good you kept an open mind going into working for a company in a field you knew nothing about, because it really helped you learn a lot and you gained great experience for your future! I wish you the best of luck!
aubrie jaworowski
This is awesome. I am glad you had an experience with an industry you didn’t know much about. My internship was with a construction management group so I can relate to you on that. Being in a smaller company is also very intimate and you can stand out and really show off your skills, which you did. I am glad you enjoyed your internship and had the opportunity to be more involved.
Hi Kija! I think it’s awesome you jumped into an opportunity with a niche market you didn’t know too much about. I’ve heard of Group Two and I knew they worked with home builders, but I didn’t really think about how many different kinds of home builders they get to interact with until I read your post. I would imagine you learn a lot of cool things and have super interesting conversations. I think it’s amazing you were able to work so hands-on and did a variety of things across the campaigns you worked on. It sounds like a great internship experience! Also, I totally agree with how it’s amazing to work with other folks who went to Temple. It’s a great connection and talking point. I’ve found that I almost immediately bond with the Temple alum I work with.
Hi, Kija! Your experience at Group Two Advertising seems really exciting! I really appreciate how you compared this internship with your last and how different they turned out to be. I’m also in account management. So, it’s great to see your positive outlook on the company especially, now since I am researching for a job!