Summer 2009 - Marketing Dimensions from Felber & Felber Marketing

	Summer 2009

This Issue • Other Issues • Subscribe • Felber & Felber Marketing • Our Blog

The Power of Interns

By Michelle Hirsh
Summer: the smell of fresh cut grass, long lines at ice cream parlors and the plethora of interns. Traditionally summertime means the start of internships for many college students looking to get ahead, fill their resume or find out if the career they chose is at all what they thought it would be. In the past year at Felber & Felber Marketing, we have opened our doors to a high school intern, a college graduate and now a college student looking to fill a requirement for graduation.

Interns may sound like a solution to your needs but only if you do your due diligence to ensure they are the best fit for your company. Taking the necessary time to select your interns can pay off in the end. Why? Because for one, if the intern's talent matches your needs, you may have the opportunity to groom a new hire. Plus, if the talent is there, then the work will get done.

So how do you find interns when your time is limited? Contact the local universities and schools, post intern listings on internship-specific sites, reach out to your industry association/organization and of course, use social media sites like Twitter to post internship opportunities. When reviewing submitted resumes, pay attention to those who have already completed internships, held leadership positions and completed some coursework relevant to your industry.

Informational interviews are a fantastic way to meet the best of the best. Go deep with your questions to find out what makes them passionate. Design your questions to help discover the real career path they prefer; not just the path in front of them at the moment. Understand that the interviewee probably memorized the answers to the typical questions so try to ask untraditional questions. Clarify their perception of your industry and/or company as well as expectations of what the internship would entail. Setting expectations during the interview will help determine which candidate really wants the job.

When your intern(s) first start, you must remember that there is a learning curve, just like with every new employee. You will need to allow time for questions, reviewing the work and ultimately, teaching. Learning how to manage employees is one thing, but managing interns is another story. Be prepared to lay the foundation with this generation of students attached to cell phones, Facebook and web surfing junkies. Once the ground rules are set, the fun will start.

At Felber & Felber Marketing, we encourage interns to become part of the team immediately. This includes creative sessions as well as client meetings. Clients seem to be pleased that we are sharing our knowledge and often get excited about impacting the process as well.

The magic of interns is the fact that you can learn from them too. You have the opportunity to teach, share your knowledge, meet new people but ultimately, you may pick up a thing or two from them. Interns may bring fresh thinking with not only an outsider's point of view but also new ideas or trends learned from the classroom.

Start an internship program at your company if you don't have one already. Nothing can be said for some real-world experience, so give back to the next generation and hire one today.

Contact Felber & Felber Marketing at 330.963.3664 or info@felberandfelber.com.

This Issue • Other Issues • Subscribe • Felber & Felber Marketing • Our Blog