WEEK ONE
The first thing that comes to mind when I think of starting something new is the first day of school. You have a first day of school every year from kindergarten through college. With all these first days comes a bunch of nerves from wanting to make friends, impressing your teachers and doing well on schoolwork. Your first day at work is very similar. Just like school, you want to make friends with your coworkers. Instead of impressing teachers, you strive to impress your boss. And now you need to excel on work projects that you’re putting out into the real world – only this time the impact goes past you onto your clients.
This surmises how I felt about starting at Points Group. I wanted to make new friends, impress my boss/mentor and ensure that the work I put out there was the best I could do.
Luckily, my new “teachers” made this transition an easy one. On the first day, they welcomed me and the interns with open arms and made us feel comfortable. Day 1 consisted of a lot of meetings and introductions giving us a taste of what we will be doing over the course of the summer and the types of software we’d be using. The great thing about the internship program at Points Group is that the work we do here is real work. Therefore, we will get real experience. I was relieved and inspired when I heard this because I did not want to spend my whole summer going on coffee runs.
For the rest of the week, I worked very closely with my mentor Matt, diving into the digital marketing world. He talked to me a lot about Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and the different types of traffic a website can get. Then, I actually applied his lessons, working on SEO for different clients.
At the conclusion of my first week here at Points Group, I can honestly say I’m thrilled for what this summer has in store for me. I’m excited to learn from Matt and the rest of the Points Group staff, and I’m excited to see what I can do to help the Points Group team.
WEEK TWO
Things started right away for me at Points. There was no downtime. I got down to work immediately, working with Matt and Rory in the digital marketing world. Since the month of May has come to an end, I worked extensively on monthly reports for our clients. Also, I had the opportunity to work closely with Melissa, a fellow intern, to research landing pages and improve the ones previously produced. The main project I have been working on, however, has been the Google AdWords campaign for the new Florida office. It’s really cool that I am given the opportunity to help this company grow.
So far, I’ve had a great time here. Aside from our work, the interns were assigned a company scavenger hunt. This was a fun way for us to get to know the people in the office and for the people in the office to get to know us. In addition, the social media team gave me the opportunity to sit in and provide input on a couple of social media brainstorm meetings. Another awesome part of my experience is that Matt and Rory have taken me under their wings, imparting their wisdom any time a teaching moment presents itself. That is something that I really appreciate as it gives me a chance to grow and learn.
WEEK THREE
This was another productive week at Points. I did a lot of onsite optimization for different clients. I also created a megalytic template for each client to make our weekly DM status meetings easier and faster. Now, every Monday morning the digital marketing team will receive emailed reports for each client. This will enable us to get all of our information in one place telling us how that client is performing.
Since Matt was out on Monday, I had a chance to venture outside of the digital marketing world into social media. I got to write our July social media posts for a client. Writing posts for a healthcare practice is a lot different than writing for your own personal account.
I also ventured into video as the interns received a new assignment. Once a week, we are supposed to sit in front of the camera in the studio and just talk about things in the office. The idea is to eventually edit these video confessionals together and make a “Real World: Interns Edition.” It’s a fun thing, but when I got in front of the camera I just blanked and forgot what I wanted to say.
One thing that I am really proud of though was becoming Google Adwords certified. In order to get your certification, you need to pass two tests: one general fundamentals test and then your choice of a more specific test. I can proudly say that it only took me one attempt to pass each test. This certification will not only help me with the work I do for Points, but it gives me something new to spice up the resume.
WEEK FOUR
Sometimes I forget that I’m actually an intern here at Points. Not because I don’t know my place but because everyone in the office has been great to us and has made us feel like we’re a full part of the team. No one looks down on us and makes us feel lower than them. Realistically, the only reason being an intern even resonates is the nickname I got this week. I am now known around the office as Intern Dave. I like the new nickname; I think it flows. That is, however, my only reminder that I am in fact just an intern.
In any event, it was another good work week for Intern Dave. This week I did a lot of data group research for programmatic ads that we are running. I also learned how to set up Google My Business and was given the opportunity to set that up for a couple of our clients. One last big thing that I was tasked with this week was redirecting pages on our clients’ websites that came up with a 404 error.
Not much else to report from this week so Intern Dave is signing off.
WEEK FIVE
It’s surprising how quickly I settled in. I’m starting to get so comfortable here that the other day I actually made the decision on where we should go for lunch. Obviously, I chose Chipotle.
In addition to comfort, I’m learning life lessons. I have come to realize and appreciate that this internship is doing more than just giving me experience in the digital marketing world. It is preparing me for life as an adult in the real world. I’m getting used to my 9 to 5 job. I go to work, go home, go to the gym, make dinner and go to sleep. This is a lot different than what I am used to at school, but I’m happy that I’m getting used to it now rather than just being thrown into it once college comes to an end.
On a more work-related note, it was a fun office week. We recently had “Patriotic Palooza” during lunch to celebrate Independence Day. Everyone brought in something for the party (my contribution was shrimp cocktail), and it was finished off with a Hawaiian-shaved ice from an actual ice truck. A great time was had by all. A big project I was tasked with was conversion tracking for our clients. I had to make sure that our goals were set properly, that all of the correct accounts were linked together and then see if the right goals were being triggered when there was a submission.
All in all, I can’t believe the summer is already more than halfway over and that I only have five more weeks here before I head back to school. It’s going so fast, but I’ve learned so much.
WEEK SIX
Week six came and went— it just flew by. That is, in part, because it was a short week, but also because it was a busy week for me. On Thursday, our power went out so we had to leave early for the day, and the power didn’t come back on until the next day around noon. So, I did not have to come in on Friday.
My big assignment for this week was to pre-launch SEO for a website that we are getting ready to launch. To do so, I had to go through a nine-step checklist to make sure that the site was fully optimized and ready to go. Included on the list:
- Making sure contact forms were set up properly
- Setting up SEO page titles and meta descriptions
- Installing plugins for the back end of the site
- Redirecting pages from the old site to their corresponding page on the new one
Another thing that I was tasked with this week was checking in on the AdWords campaign that we are running for our new Florida office. I discovered that ads and keywords were performing well, and created new ads where necessary.
Overall, the campaign is running well so far and we’ve already had some conversions!
WEEK SEVEN
This week started with six interns but finished with four. On Wednesday, we had to say goodbye to Pat and Friday, Melissa. They are both done for the summer. Taking a nice vacation before they head back to school for the year. It was sad to see them go, but it was nice to get to know them over the course of this internship.
My workload for the week consisted of two major projects. The first of which had me switch over from the digital marketing world to the IT department. I worked with Rory to get iPads set up for our referral marketers, so they can get work done on the road a lot easier. While setting them up, it made me really jealous and now I want an iPad. Also, many people are getting new computers while others are getting their old computers. I was tasked with setting up the brand new ones and then wiping the old ones. I enjoyed the IT experience.
My other project for the week was to finish up the pre-launch checklist for the new site from last week. The last thing on the list was to redirect pages from the old site to their place on the new one. This required me to stare at an excel spreadsheet for hours on end, and I hope that I don’t have to look at another spreadsheet for at least another two weeks!
WEEK EIGHT
No more spreadsheets. No more spreadsheets. No more spreadsheets … My wish did not come true. This week consisted of more of the same work from last week just for a different client. That meant, yep, more spreadsheets. When I get back to school, I am going to avoid Excel at all costs. I think I’m starting to develop a phobia. (I’m just kidding. It’s really not that bad, and I enjoy the work that I’m doing and the people that I’m doing it with.)
Having said that, spreadsheets weren’t my only task this week. We launched a new site for one of our clients. It was my job to redirect pages from the old site to their corresponding pages on the new site. Another thing that I worked on was keyword research for new pages on a different client’s site. The keyword research will help to optimize the pages we are creating and to get them to rank better organically.
In addition, I recorded my last intern confessional for the summer. I can’t say I am too upset that I don’t have to do those anymore since I could never think of anything to say. HOWEVER, I am upset that this means the summer is starting to come to a close. It really has just flown by.
WEEK NINE
Nine weeks later and I can honestly say that I’ve learned so much from my experience here at Points. I can’t believe that it’s already coming to an end. This summer has just flown by. I knew right away, from the first day, that this would be an amazing summer. The people here at Points Group were welcoming and eager to help out if I ever needed assistance. The intern program was perfect. Danielle and Allyson did a great job running it. We had a couple of early assignments to help us get comfortable around the office and then we really dove in.
Working, that was the real beauty of this internship program. I got to do real work. This is why I was able to learn so much. I wasn’t out getting coffee for people; I was doing real work for real clients. I’ve always believed that the best way to learn is by doing and that really applied this summer. I learned so much from Matt and Rory about the digital marketing world. Some of the things I learned included SEO, link building, Google AdWords and much much more. They did a great job mentoring me this summer, and I appreciate all the help they gave me and everything that I was able to learn from them.
So I just want to say thank you to everyone here at Points Group. Thank you for this amazing opportunity. Thank you for welcoming me and making me feel like a part of the team. Thank you for everything that you’ve taught me this summer.
For the last time, Intern Dave signing off.
