During my years at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, I have never shied away from a challenge both inside and outside of the classroom. Thus, I knew that I wanted to spend the summer and fall of 2018 challenging myself with an internship in the Advertising/Marketing industry, my chosen area of study. I was inspired by VisionPoint Marketing’s commitment to higher education and client-focused approach to marketing. I knew this internship would give me hands-on exposure to the intricate day-to-day of an integrated marketing agency that I wanted.
My first week at VisionPoint was full of what are known as “1-on-1s” where I got to sit down in person (or through Zoom) to talk with every VisionPointer for 15 minutes. I got to hear about their role at the company, their background and their interests outside of work. After my first week, I worked in every department of VisionPoint from Account Services, to Strategic Partnerships, Web Strategy and of course, Integrated Marketing.
December marked the completion of my 5-month Digital Marketing Internship. The past months were ones of great growth and discovery. On my first day at VisionPoint, I was thrust into the fast-paced world of higher ed marketing with an Integrated Marketing meeting to discuss the naming system for VisionPoint’s Google Urchin Tracking Module (UTM) parameters. Needless to say, I was vastly underprepared and overwhelmed. I listened as our Director of Research and Integrated Marketing, Josh Dodson, discussed intricate components of this process with Digital Marketing Strategists, Sarah Filipovich and Richard Jenkins. I, for one, did not even know what a UTM was but was in awe at the digital prowess of my new colleagues. However, thanks to several Google AdWords courses, I now understand UTMs and even recently helped my mentor Sarah fix a UTM issue for one of our clients.
I participated in dozens of brainstorms, strategy meetings, report presentations and progress calls during my time at VisionPoint. I audited and wrote ads on every platform from Google Search to Facebook. I gathered and synthesized data for both internal and client-facing reports. In short, I dabbled in a wide range of VisionPoint's integrated marketing capabilities.
As I reflect back, the past few months have been anything but what I expected- in a good way. I have learned software, skills and tactics that I did not know, or expect to learn, before. Although challenging, learning a new skill or ability, in the end, is rewarding in a way that far exceeds any bumps along the journey to get there. In lieu of this growth and learning mindset, I have compiled a list of 3 career and life lessons that working at VisionPoint has taught me:
Be willing to make mistakes
As Albert Einstein said best, “Anyone who has never made a mistake has never tried anything new”. Making mistakes is hard. Especially when you’re an intern. You never want to be the person who makes a tiny mistake that influences a campaign’s performance. Mistakes, although not wanted in excess, are an opportunity for discussion and open feedback about how processes can be improved. Without this discussion, you could miss an opportunity to reflect on how you are doing in your work and what improvements can be made.
Open your eyes (and ears)
During my 1-on-1 meeting with Diane, VisionPoint's President and CEO, she encouraged me to pay attention to everyone in the office’s calendars regularly. This has proved to be great advice. By simply opening Google Calendar, I can see what is going on each day at VisionPoint, and if intrigued, can reach out to the appropriate person to be included in that meeting.
Always ask “Why?”
I’ve always been innately curious, asking a slew of questions as I go about a task, wanting to know the reason and goals behind the task I am doing. Asking “why” is a major component of digital marketing. There is a reason behind everything that happens in marketing, from ad copy, to brand pillars to downloading Facebook leads. Paying attention to the reasoning behind why we do things certain ways helps to provide you with context and a frame of reference to understand the results that these campaigns generate, especially when it comes time for reporting.
There are a dozen other life and career lessons that I have learned over these weeks. I am thankful to have had the opportunity to grow in my integrated marketing skills and discover more about digital marketing in the higher education sector through this position.