Hola, my name is Andrea
I am The Brandlab summer intern for Nina Hale this year! If you aren’t familiar with the BrandLab, it’s worth looking into. It’s a diverse organization that works to connect high school and college-aged students with paid internships in the marketing and advertising industry – at companies just like Nina Hale!
Coming into Nina Hale, I was nervous yet excited to meet so many new colleagues. My nervousness didn’t last long as I realized how welcoming and supportive everyone is. Having the opportunity to work in a digital agency has been quite a personal accomplishment. Outside of the office, I am taking classes at Normandale Community College, including a few marketing classes like accounting, interpersonal communication, and management. After I reach my goal level of credits, I plan to continue pursuing a marketing degree from the Carlson School of Management at the University of Minnesota. A path in marketing allows me to experience freedom and creativity, while also exposing me to constant daily change. Ultimately, I am searching for a career path that provides many possible responsibilities and an opportunity to allow my creativity to flow.
My personal area of expertise (as well as passion) is writing. Writing is something that transports me, places me in a creative mindset, and offers me the chance to share my opinions and ideas. While I love writing, I have not yet had the opportunity to use these skills specifically for marketing. With this internship, I am hoping to learn more about other disciplines of digital marketing and discover my niche. Who knows? I could end up becoming a talented SEO and social planner like my amazing supervisor, Meredith.
FUN FACTS ABOUT ME
- I was born in Chihuahua, Mexico and moved to Minnesota at the age of 5. Learning to adjust to living in a new country was extremely challenging. My family and I only spoke Spanish, so adapting to a new lifestyle as well as the language was not easy. Despite these challenges, my family has supported each other endlessly and I am incredibly proud of who we are; I will never let go of my roots and my culture.
- This past May, I went on a trip to New York City by myself to gain a better sense of independence. Because I had been working so much throughout the school year, I decided to treat myself. The trip was an eye-opening experience and I saw some really cool (as well as some pretty weird) things that I will never forget.
- Finally, I was a waitress at an Indian restaurant during my first year of college and I know nearly everything there is to know about Indian food. If any of you foodies out there need a recommendation, feel free to ask me anytime.
WHAT I’VE LEARNED SO FAR
On my first day, I learned what search engine optimization (SEO) is and the necessary steps to move a client’s website to the top of a search engine’s results page (SERP). I also learned that Google’s algorithm changes significantly every few months or so, and SEO is constantly trying to keep up because it has the power to give clients an overall competitive advantage, gain traction, and maintain visibility/clicks on their site.
Another thing I’ve learned during my first week at Nina Hale is the power of spreadsheets. They may be simple(ish), but they are essential for both the client and our internal teams to ensure all projects and reports are streamlined and accurate.
WHAT I WOULD LIKE TO LEARN
- As I look ahead to the rest of my time with Nina Hale, I hope to gain more knowledge about audiences and consumers and learn how to anticipate their wants and needs in a way that is unique to their demographic. Research, of course, plays a key role in this process, so I want to learn about the digging that needs to be done.
- I want to become more familiar with vocabulary unique to this industry – specifically in the SEO field. I have already learned many new words (even making my own personal written guide), but I want to become comfortable and knowledgeable enough to incorporate them more freely into my vocabulary here at work.
- Finally, I’ve learned that I tend to hold back and be hesitant in sharing my ideas with peers. For a long time, voicing my thoughts and opinions to a group of individuals that I wasn’t very familiar with was a terrifying thought. But to overcome this, I remind myself of one of my favorite quotes: “It is better to fail in originality than succeed in imitation.” I remind myself of that as often as I can because I am determined to overcome it.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Although I have only been here for about two weeks, I am beginning to feel more comfortable with both the people here as well as the environment. I have started asking for help more and striking up conversations with those I do not know. Being excited for the rest of the summer would be an understatement. I find myself wanting to go to more meetings and learn as much as I can about what it’s like to work in a digital agency. I look forward to learning all there is to know from my Content, Social, SEO, and User Experience (CSSU) team.
