Most small businesses do not realize that their marketing strategies can make or break business within the first few years of its operating life. Marketing is essential to anyone who runs a business, whether it is for-profit or not. This summer, I had the opportunity to work with Main Street Arts Council, a nonprofit organization run by Karl Pratt and Bonnie Cameron in Hoxie, Kansas. Main Street Arts Council is only two years old and has taken advantage of the opportunities given to them as a nonprofit organization,
I have been working with Main Street Arts Council over the summer remotely as their marketing intern. I worked with Ogallala Commons to find this internship. Ogallala Commons is an organization that works with students, high school through graduate school, to pair them up with internships that will let them experience new opportunities within the workforce. While working, each intern contributes to their community with actions toward increasing the commonwealth of their community. It has been an eye-opening experience to work closely with my community, not only where I live physically, but remotely help the community that is Kansas.
While working, I was able to defeat challenging new tasks and obtain new skills that I will be able to use later in life. I completed many tasks throughout my internship that helped to create and master skills that I will be able to use in upcoming job opportunities. Some necessary skills that I sculpted included Microsoft Word, Facebook, and Google Drive. Skills that I learned throughout this job included Photoshop, Adobe Reader, InDesign, and the different uses of PNG, JPEG, and PDF files. I learned each of these skills through various tasks that I completed throughout my internship and will continue to practice as I leap forward in my career.
In the first week of my internship, I met with my supervisor, Karl Pratt, in person and discussed an overview of what my job would entail. The main aspects of my position included graphic design projects, social media posting, press releases, and delegation of tasks to other interns that were working with Main Street Arts Council. Looking back, I believe this is a correct representation of what I needed to carry out during my internship.
I have come a long way since my first meeting with Karl Pratt. I completed my internship and achieved the goals for my internship. These goals consisted of communication skills, leadership skills, and the expansion of my professional network. I learned how to communicate efficiently through email and text. When working remotely, it is essential to stay connected with your supervisor and understand what you need to do for that specific week, or even daily tasks that come up. I tested and achieved my leadership goals in two diverse ways. I delegated tasks to other interns, but I also learned to delegate tasks to myself and lead with time management in the back of my mind to make sure I was completing my projects on time. Lastly, I grew my professional network by working with Karl Pratt and Bonnie Cameron. They connected me to completely new communities that I never thought I would see before.
I want to thank Ogallala Common and Main Street Arts Council for this internship opportunity. I would have never been able to gain the knowledge and experience I now have without each of these organizations and the beautiful people within them.
