Catching the Big and Small Things…

Hi everyone! I’m Hassan, a senior advertising major concentrating in brand strategy and research. Beginning in the summer, and extending into this semester, I have been an intern at SEOM Interactive. SEOM is a digital marketing agency specializing in

• Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
• Pay-Per-Click Advertising (PPC)
• Public Relations (PR)
• Social Media Marketing
• Email Marketing
• Local Service Ads (LSAs)

My role as an intern is ever-changing, as I’ve been with SEOM since May. When I first began, I mostly did administrative tasks like posting for local businesses on Google Business Profile, updating copy on older web pages, etc. Now that I’ve been with SEOM for some time, I’m working with clients by sitting in on calls and being copied on emails to better assist with client needs. I’m being assigned strategy-based projects by my supervisor, where I’m tasked with finding where to add new content to a webpage, delete old content, or update the copy on the page.

It’s been great to finally have an internship where I can use and build upon the skills I learned in my courses. I mentioned this in my interview for my internship, but I really feel that having an internship helps crystalize the knowledge in your mind. Showcasing the skills I’ve developed while developing new ones has been an invaluable experience.

I’d be remiss not to acknowledge the pure headache one goes through to find an internship. Like many of my peers, I had not had much luck finding an internship in previous years. While this can be attributed to a lack of experience, even many of us WITH experience still have trouble landing roles. This really is an odd time in the marketplace for ALL careers. I have friends who majored in computer science, biology, communications, marketing, MIS, etc., who have had difficulty landing roles. It’s important to give ourselves grace in the job-hunting process. We can feel hurt, but not defeated.

Moving into my more practical advice, something that I picked up quickly working my internship was the ability to see EVERYTHING. There are so many working parts in the world of marketing/advertising, and it can be quite simple not to pick up on something. I think it’s really easy to say to yourself “Ehh, I don’t need to check that” or “Ehh, that’ll be fine”. While a mountain won’t crumble because of a simple oversight, it’s more about what constant mistakes will say about you as an employee. You never want your employer to doubt your abilities because you keep making mistakes. No one is perfect and mistakes happen, but you should learn from your mistakes and try not to repeat them. In addition to that, never accept the bare minimum for your quality of work, strive to be the best you can be.

I’ve enjoyed myself at my internship, and in addition to more career-oriented development, I feel it has made me a better student overall. Going into my senior year, I felt oddly energized and equipped with the tools to be more organized. I really feel like majoring in advertising was the right decision, and working my internship definitely solidified that.