I'm Just a Marketing Intern, What do I Know?

Not Like the Movies

Before joining the VGM Forbin team, I wasn’t sure what an internship would be like. In my mind, it would be something similar to the movie The Internship with Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson. In the movie, two middle-aged men decide to interview for an internship at Google. They know nothing about the online industry and their internship is a series of chaotic competitions against tech-savvy, young adults fighting for a full-time position at Google. The reality of an internship at VGM Forbin is very different.

Take Ownership

I came from a military background with little knowledge of web marketing. Despite that, after my interview, I was offered an opportunity to learn from web professionals VGM Forbin. Part of me still thought I would be doing monotonous tasks and not given an opportunity to show my actual worth. This could not be farther from the truth.

In my first week, I recall sitting in on a client kick-off call and taking notes about topics I did not understand. At the end of the meeting, a team member asked me what my thoughts were about the interaction. I thought, “Why does anyone care what I think? I’m just an intern.” Nevertheless, I told them that it seemed the client was still unsure of what direction their company was going in and once they figured that out, it would be easier for our marketing efforts to be successful.

Throughout the next few weeks, I learned everything I could about search engine marketing from the head of our SEM team. I was also tasked with reading blogs, earning Google certifications and watching videos about anything that related to web marketing. At that pace, it did not take long for me to realize I was a real part of the team.

TELL ME ABOUT SEM

As I gained knowledge and improved my skills, I was given more difficult tasks and was trusted to provide more search engine marketing expertise, growing my confidence in the field. I realized that I was not going to be treated like an intern, and I didn’t need to act like one. I took ownership of my work within the web marketing team and consistently looked for ways to improve our processes as well as develop plans to implement those process changes. I met with other team members and supervisors to implement those plans and collaborated with them on future projects that I wanted to handle. The reason that this happened is that, in my mind, I was no longer an intern; I took ownership.

Take Advantage of Your Opportunity

Throughout the internship, VGM Forbin has done so much to help me grow personally and professionally. The team has utilized my natural strengths, and helps me to improve on them as well. If I had acted like a stereotypical intern and waited for constant guidance, I would have never seen the benefits of what VGM Forbin could provide me and what I could provide them. If you are looking to build upon your undergrad experience or are interested in future career opportunities, VGM is definitely the place for you. 

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