When you first begin looking for an internship, be sure to ask your reporting manager what your expected duties or responsibilities will be. It’s important to communicate openly as not every internship is made the same, and some might not align with what you want to achieve; after all, no one wants to run coffees all day! Internships are about learning, being a sponge and taking everything to get ahead in your career. Take the time to ask all the questions and ask why things are done the way they are.
Becoming a Yoghurt Digital Intern
As part of my Digital Marketing degree at Macquarie University, I completed the unit MKTG3006. We had guest speakers join our weekly lectures who spoke to the students about digital marketing strategies, including co-founder and Strategy Director of Yoghurt Digital, Michael Laps. I remember thinking to myself, “I want to work there one day”, and so that was my goal. Students of this particular unit were given an optional task to complete to gain a digital marketing internship at Yoghurt.
The task involved mapping out a digital marketing plan and making recommendations for P&O cruises that wanted to increase customer conversions and brand visibility. Using the skills I had learnt during my 3 years at Macquarie Uni, I was able to present original ideas, eventually landing me an interview with Yoghurt Digital. Following a comprehensive process, I was chosen amongst four other individuals, also from Macquarie University.
When the opportunity was presented to me, I took the bull by the horns, ran with what I knew, and dove deeper into what I didn’t. I was eager, determined and wanted to gain the experience.
My advice for any students looking for an internship or a job; BE YOU! If you’re working for a business in any capacity, it’s essential to be open and honest with your answers from the start. Or as one of the founding attributes of Yoghurt Digital, “Tell it like it is!”.
Five Important Digital Marketing Internship Lessons
- Be a sponge. I encourage anyone who starts an internship or a new job to soak up everything they can because one day, you might just need to know how to add a Facebook pixel or properly audit an account.
- Experience is invaluable. Interact with other people, see how other people interpret things that you might not have thought about and take note of the ideas and suggestions from other people. Speaking of notes…
- Log a journal. As an intern, I made it my goal to log everything I could during my three months of training. Having a journal allows me to identify areas where I wanted to know more or any concepts and topics I needed extra clarification on.
- Ask questions. Take the time during your internship to ask questions, find out why certain things are done the way they are. Experience directly benefits your knowledge which in turn will help your career.
- Be Proactive. Ask, help, repeat! Getting feedback, asking to do more things or going above and beyond in your work will make you stand out from the crowd. Make an effort to engage your colleagues, not just those you report to. Find out what your other members of the company do and understand what role they play. You’ll be sure to learn something new all over again. You might even gain a passion for a whole new world of digital marketing!
My Favourite Yogi Moments
My favourite memories throughout my internship started from the very beginning. Those that began their Yogi journey with me would know how organised Yoghurt Digital was. Throughout the internship process, I was assigned daily tasks to recap everything I learned the day before, which was invaluable.
Despite being in lockdown for most of my internship, I thoroughly enjoyed joining team drinks and participating in our online antics, including an ad-hoc trivia game for Yoghurt Digital’s 7th birthday. But out of all this, my favourite thing about Yoghurt is the fantastic and supportive team that comes with the job – I guess team drinks are just a bonus too!
Overall, my experience throughout the internship has given me skills and insights into digital marketing. Being given responsibilities for several different clients demonstrated the level of trust and guidance that Yoghurt digital provides at every level.
Having come from the print marketing industry, I took a risk to upscale my digital marketing skills to get ahead. With my internship over, and the next phase of my Yoghurt Digital experience just getting started, I can’t wait to #makeithappen at Yoghurt Digital.
