Going to school for Journalism at Rutgers University and studying Global Sports Business in grad school, people are often surprised when I tell them that I did a four-credit internship at a digital marketing agency. The reason why chose this internship is simple- the ability to market myself and others online is an essential skill (and, honestly, its importance will only grow in importance as the digital age progresses).
Being at a small agency like Semgeeks allowed me to get a peek under the hood of the digital world in a way I never could while interning for a team’s marketing department or for a newspaper. During this past semester, I became fully immersed in the strategy and planning, specifically in the application of pay-per-click marketing campaigns and SEO strategies. I now understand not only how important it is for a business to run ads on social media, but how to go about building an audience and optimizing the ad to the best of its ability. This is something that I never learned in any of my classes at Rutgers.
While working with the SEO team, I gained skills that are highly valuable in today’s marketplace. As a journalism major, I learned how to write content, but working with the SEO team, I now understand how to make content more accessible to search engines. I learned that the best content starts with picking the right keywords before the article is even written. While working with the SEO team I had the opportunity to generate blog topics for clients, perform keyword research, and analyze client’s sites through website audits. I even got a chance to apply what I’ve learned to my own website and almost doubled the site’s organic traffic in just a couple of months!
I thoroughly enjoyed all of the hard work, but what made this internship even better was the people. I was surrounded by amazing people who take pride in helping businesses – large and small – reach their full potential. Every team member was passionate about their job and worked hard to stay up-to-date on the latest developments in the digital marketing landscape. One of the coolest aspects of working at Semgeeks was that everyone was eager to help me learn as much as possible. From sitting in on calls with clients to getting Google certifications, everyone was willing to stop what they were doing to answer any questions I had. These people helped cultivate a really fun work environment (and their proximity to places like 10th Ave Burrito and the beach didn’t hurt).
I want to thank everyone who I worked with for helping me learn as much as I could. I didn’t feel like an intern, I felt like another member of the team. I would encourage anyone who wants to be a part of the digital marketplace of the future to intern here and find out how Semgeeks is redefining what it means to be a geek!
