It’s All About Who You Know

I started my internship at Eric Mower and Associates (EMA), an advertising agency in downtown Buffalo, almost three weeks ago.  Although my supervisor hasn’t thrown me into any crazy projects yet, I have had the chance to network with many people in different departments at EMA.  As an account services intern, it is my responsibility to sit in on client/department meetings, do research on competitors and current market trends, and lend a hand to whatever projects the account managers and project managers need my help with.  Throughout my first few weeks at EMA, I was given the task to set up meetings with art directors, copywriters, graphic designers, account managers, project managers, members of the media department, PR executives, and even the COO himself.  I was intimidated to say the least.  These people are constantly busy with their own work and I didn’t want to make them feel like I was taking them away from their projects for clients who, unlike me, are paying them.  I also wasn’t sure if they would be responsive to my questions or be willing to give me advice for the future.  It turned out I was worried for nothing.  Each member of the team at EMA that I have encountered has been nothing but helpful and quite frankly hysterical.  They each have given me a great piece of personal advice and I even got to sit in on a focus group centered around new Canisius advertising based on my meeting with the account manager for the project.  In the first few weeks of my internship I have learned that making the most of my time at EMA is all about making myself known and building relationships with as many people as I can in this short time.  It’s true what they say, “It’s all about who you know.”