This summer I was a PR and Media Relations intern for the Akron Racers, which is a national professional fastpitch softball team in Akron, Ohio. I worked with a group of five other PR and Media interns. Our key roles were to generate buzz around the Akron Racers and their upcoming season. We were in charge of weekly blogging, day-to-day social media posts and other projects that were assigned by the general manager. During games, we took care of posting on social media accounts, specifically Twitter and Instagram as well as crafting the game story that would be posted on our website and the leagues website.

The key lesson I learned from this internship is not being afraid to fail or do something wrong, because whether you like it or not, there is a possibility of it happening. I went into this experience not knowing anything about sports or the industry. My main goal was to learn about things I knew nothing about and I achieved that goal. Now, I know what it takes to work down to the wire during a no hitter game and what to write for the game story. It’s more than play by plays, it’s the in depth details that matter.

I also learned to take risks and step up and ask for work. I have an interest with graphic design but never thought I was good enough to create things for an actual client. The Racers gave me the opportunity to design different posters and promotional materials for them that were posted online for their thousands of followers to see. It was an amazing feeling seeing my work being used to get people in the door to watch games.

The biggest piece of advice I have for future student interns is to make the best of every experience and step outside of your comfort zone. Taking the internship with the Racers was a huge leap of faith for me and I’m so glad that I spent my summer with them. In a cool turn of events, I was asked by my boss to stay on with them as a graphic designer during the off-season and into next year!

  This summer, I was given the opportunity to intern with the marketing team at Signet Jewelers under the Sterling division. Signet is a jewelry corporation and is the parent company of multiple jewelers, including Kay Jewelers, Jared the Galleria of Jewelry and Zales.

            With three other interns, I work under the PR and social media team. My responsibilities change on a regular basis, but I weekly work on monitoring social media for our brands and competitors, counting sentiment on social media and compiling a “What’s New in PR and Social Media” digest for my co-workers. I also provide a bi-weekly report for our competitors on social media and a monthly report for our competitors with PR.

            My other responsibilities have included research projects for our brands, metrics projects and assisting the PR team with press releases. As one of the four interns for the entire marketing team, I am occasionally asked to assist with other small projects around the office.

            If I had to give a piece of advice for future student interns, it would be to not be timid and afraid. Occasionally, there will be days where there is just nothing for you to do. Don’t be afraid to ask if you can assist with something. The executives will notice and appreciate the initiative. Also, just because you’re an intern, don’t think that your ideas aren’t good enough to contribute. Just stay comfortable and positive, and everything will be just fine.

This summer I was a communications writer intern for ServiceLink, a mortgage services company working to build its reputation as an employer. My main project was writing and editing content for a new recruiting website. Among other things, I had to make ServiceLink’s business easier to understand to jobseekers.

My job was to take something steeped in corporate jargon and put it into plain English. However, those I consulted for information, and who also had final say, sometimes clung to their corporate jargon like a lifeline.

Public relations professionals always have to work with members of other parts of the business, and communications we produce will often need their approval. No matter what we know about the principles of good writing and communication, unfortunately sometimes people just want to capitalize “Sales Executive” or describe the field services department to jobseekers by saying it offers a full suite of field services solutions, and there’s not much we can do.

The good news is that effective communication can often get people on our side.

The people you’ll be working with are busy, and you are not their top priority. Like when communicating with other stakeholders, you need to make it easy for them. The first time you contact someone, explain simply, clearly, and concisely what you need and why. Tell him or her what problem you’re addressing, what your goal is, and how he or she can help you. State the call to action clearly and near the beginning. Taking the time to do this from the start will save time in the long run. It will make that person more sympathetic to your needs and more responsive. You’ll need to follow up less often, and, above all, the end product will be better.

 Allied Integrated Marketing has become a second family to me. This summer has been filled with opportunities, growth and dedication. As I balanced between two jobs and this internship, it is no surprised that I’ve pushed myself to the limits and learned to become an extremely hard worker. Allied Integrated Marketing has given me the opportunity to do research, practice phone conversations, face-to-face communication and problem solving.

In the beginning of summer my supervisor, Holly Duns, gave me a check list of tasks I will experience and learn over the course of my internship. Some of the tasks include promotional movie screenings, schedule social media posts, direct and accommodate the press at screenings, research and target a specific demographic for a film, and send  mass emails. With every task I completed, I learned something new about myself and was able to get creative with each one. On top of the overall intern check list, Holly gave me many unique opportunities and learning experiences with this internship. I was able to set up events in Buffalo, NY to promote the movies ‘Terminator Genisys’ and ‘Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation’ at a paintball/airsoft complex called Buffalo Battleground. Holly gave me more responsibilities than many other student interns by having me set up events in a different state. Another unique opportunity I was fortunate of experiencing was working the ‘Paper Towns’ Tour in Columbus, Ohio. I was able to work with the press, engage the fans, and monitor the red carpet. July 15, 2015 will be a day I’ll never forget in my college experience and that is all thanks to this internship.

Allied Integrate Marketing has changed me as a person and more importantly, as a public relations professional.

“How lucky am I to have something that makes saying goodbye