How A Marketing Agency Really Works
LightStream Group is a marketing agency concentrated in bank and credit union, healthcare, and higher education advertising. The organization has two locations, one in Lansdale PA and another in Telford PA, both suburbs of Philadelphia. They currently have just over 30 employees and one intern. They have had a handful of interns in the 10 years since their establishment, all of which acquired their internships through networking. As the only intern at the organization, I was given tasks in various departments: project management, writing, design, accounting, sales, and media/data analytics. My role in the organization changed from day to day, the main focus of my internship being to learn as much as possible about marketing.
To prepare for my internship I reviewed my marketing resources, collected from various classes, as well as research Lighstream, its employees, and reviews through sources such as Linkedin. When I first started with the organization I was able to shadow a handful of project managers, to ask them questions and learn their various processes for juggling clients and projects. During this internship, I was able to shadow team members in various departments to get a deeper understanding of how the company works and to get a taste of the day-to-day operations in each department. My first week with the team was primarily spent in the project management department shadowing project managers, attending meetings, and filing resource documents. I spent the following week the same way: assisting the project managers, taking note of their organizational skills, and developing a better understanding of the lifespan of a project from its commission to completion.
In the following weeks, my role in the organization changed; my tasks grew to include reviewing documents and shadowing writers. During this time I reviewed/proofed internal project management workflow charts and lists, project proposals, a credit union client magazine, and a hospital annual report. I got the chance to shadow two of LightStream’s writers, one of which with a concentration in higher education writing and another with a concentration in healthcare writing. One of the more notable pieces I sat in during, was the writing and editing of a healthcare video script. To conclude my shadowing in the writing department I sat in with the editor as she talked with me about the editing process.
Before my internship at LightStream group was complete I was able to shadow multiple employees in each department. My time at LightStream was incredibly informative and allowed me to witness the marketing and advertising process firsthand. At LightStream group my managers were intentional in providing me with valuable experience and knowledge to aid me in my career in the marketing and advertising industry.
