3 Things I Learned As An MWI Intern

Sweep the floor. We’re out of snacks. Go get our coffee. You’re just the intern. These are phrases I’ve never heard in my two months of interning for MWI. When most people hear the word intern, they think of someone who does the grunt work, the coffee runs, the mindless paper work. Not at MWI. After being an intern for just two short months, I’ve already learned the basics of how a digital marketing agency operates and gets results for their clients. In addition, I’ve created Facebook audiences, achieved Google Analytics certification and much more. My time at MWI has not been spent sitting around twiddling my thumbs, I’ve been immersed in the digital marketing culture and completed tasks that benefit the company and the clients we work with. Needless to say, in these first two months of interning, I’ve learned so much.

My first day on the job, I got dumped into a history lesson of MWI and digital marketing as a whole. Having only one year of college under my belt, I really had no idea how much went into creating a successful business. I had just been sprayed by a fire hydrant of knowledge. Two months later, I’m still learning something new every day.

Let’s start with the basics: Analytics, Linkbuilding, and Facebook Audiences

I am now Google Analytics certified. Before MWI, I can honestly say I didn’t even know that was a thing. Because of my Google Analytics certification, I’ve been able to help with analytics audits for incoming clients. I have a better understanding of how incredible and extensive Google is. It’s amazing, and a little creepy, the amount of information you can collect and glean from analytics.

Another drop into my pond of knowledge was learning how to linkbuild. I was tasked with researching outside pages where the link and name of the client could be placed in order to increase SEO rankings. My job was to research colleges and organizations to find an appropriate page to place the link, then contact these people. I’ve reached out to hundreds of companies. Although this sounds like a menial task, it helps our clients and myself. The client benefits because their website will have an authoritative back link which can help them rank organically. I’ve benefited from this because it’s taught me how google recognizes data. There are a lot of steps to building high-quality links for our clients. This has helped me to become better organized and thoughtful on how to approach businesses.

In between all these linkbuilding projects, I learned how to build Facebook audiences. Learning how to build Facebook audiences was similar to learning google analytics in that I learned so much I didn’t know. I had no clue that you could target specific audiences and genders for different ads. It’s so incredible learning things that open your eyes to a whole new world. It’s been cool to make connections with what I’m learning in this internship and how it relates to everyday. I’ve started noticing the difference between re-marketing ads compared to pay per click ads at the top of my google search. It’s been the coolest experience to take what I thought I knew about digital marketing and completely rework and rewrite it all. There is so much more to a business than just deciding that you have a cool business idea. It takes constant effort and hard work.

As a digital marketing agency who wants to see our clients succeed, there is always work to be done. Two months is long enough to see that it’s the dedication to clients and constant communication that makes MWI thrive.

What’s on the Horizon

So, what now? MWI is built for growth. Everyone – the company, clients and employees – has the opportunity to grow and expand their knowledge. I’ve worked with the sales team, the account managers and the marketing team. I’ve learned the basics of multiple departments.

The leadership of MWI functions in a way that you feel comfortable coming to them with your questions and opinions. They genuinely want you to succeed. The directors of each department are willing and ready to offer their opinions in the hopes that you grow and succeed in whatever you do. After a month and a half of working mostly with the account managers, I decided I wanted to change course and focus more on design. I sat down with the CEO and COO of MWI and talked over the options. They took my opinions and questions seriously and helped me find a path that would best suit me and the company.

So, what now? For now I’ll keep doing what I’ve been doing: searching out opportunities to learn from an educated team; reading books in my down time to become well-rounded; asking questions and getting people’s opinions; working hard to be an asset to the agency. For anyone looking for an amazing growing and learning opportunity, MWI is the place.

-Written by Kaycee Palmer

Internship 2017-2018 – Phoenix, AZ