What's the Scoop on Summer Interns?

Summer interns…not to be confused with cheap summer labor. Marketing geniuses, a challenge for you to look at the young new professionals entering our business. What are you doing to ensure the success of the new talent out of college?

Summer interns are undoubtedly hired every summer to “gain experience”. What can you do, as a professional in your field, to give them that experience and blow their expectations of a summer internship away?

Start by treating them as a part of your team. When you are hiring interns, be sure to choose one that meshes well with your firm and who you can trust to turn projects and assignments over to. Without the trust in an intern, it will be unfair for them to be bored at their “internship” everyday and it can waste a lot of experience someone else, better qualified to work with your team, could gain.

Be critical. Interns are just now starting to see how the marketing world works. Look at their work and tell them what they could do differently or better. Or, if it’s great…tell them it’s great. As a student, I know that I am thrilled to have feedback on anything I do, just to make sure I’m being the best I can be.

Show them things. Of course interns can’t take over a client and do everything for them, but you can show them what your team is doing for these clients. So, maybe they didn’t have the opportunity to write the press release, but get their input on it…You never know what kind of new and different ideas they can have or how the feel about what your company is doing for these clients.

Interns aren’t just hired summer help to do your clerical work. It seems as though that kind of reputation is given to them, but it has evolved into much more over the years.

So, geniuses…Have you trained your intern and given them experience that can help them be successful in the future? I know I’m ready for the next step in my life, and I hope your summer intern is, too.