10 Things You Cannot Learn In a Classroom

By Marc Kovarsky, Intern Marketing & Strategic Partnerships

As a 20 year old about to venture into the “Business World”, my perception of the whole marketing industry changed considerably during my summer internship here at Resolution Media. To help all those college students out there who, like me, are trying to break into the digital space, I have compiled a list of ten important things I’ve learned these past eight weeks that I never would have learned in a classroom.

Search Engine Marketing is Awesome.
I start with this one because SEM is currently not being taught in most colleges. Since it is such a new branch of the marketing industry, universities are just starting to create classes about Integrated Marketing and related topics. Northwestern University is one of the first to offer such a program. I had the pleasure of attending a talk with John Greening, Associate Professor at Medill School of Journalism during a trip to the Google offices for a day of seminars. He spoke on topics relating to the ever changing media world and the impact by consumers, definitely capturing my interest.

Work your Connections.
I attribute this internship to utilizing the proper connections. Unlike many other friends who sent out fifty resumes when looking for summer jobs, I took a more direct route by simply emailing anyone and everyone that I had some kind of association with. While some never replied back, I pursued anyone that was willing to talk to me. If I hadn’t taken the initiative to work my contacts, I would not have found this great internship at Resolution Media.

How to Work in Groups.
Growing up, my mom said, “You’re never going to like everyone you work with.” She was right. However, working in groups within the workplace versus in school groups is a little bit different. There is not that one person who does all the work while the others sit back and relax. If you’re not contributing, your boss will know, and it will reflect poorly on you. Everyone has to pull their weight; the more communication between you and your group, the more creative ideas you will come up with.

Blogs are Great.
Not only do they give you an excuse to use bad grammar, but they are useful for writers and readers to have an interactive relationship. They really helped me gain an inside look into the marketing industry, and you can learn from other people’s experiences. There are blogs for almost any interest and I assume if you’re reading this right now, you’re probably a blogger and I don’t need to elaborate further.

Business Models Vary Between Companies.
As I’ve learned at this relatively young company, if something works go with it. While there is definitely structure, it can often times be fluid. Unlike other more “corporate” companies, which have very specific infrastructures set in place, there is no room to operate differently then how they specify. Just like in the search industry, formulas are constantly being tweaked in order to optimize accordingly. It is important to be flexible with your organization, because you’ll be able to better adapt to the changing market.

Six through ten to come tomorrow.