Zen Say Goodbye To Their Latest Intern

Ellis McEwan was our latest Digital Marketing Intern. Ellis is a 3rd year International Marketing student at Glasgow Caledonian University who had a passion for social media marketing & branding. She worked closely with the Digital Marketing team whilst gaining an overall understanding of agency life.

What made you look for an internship and why Zen?

My university degree required me to gain experience as part of one of my modules. I chose Zen as they presented me with the opportunity to gain valuable insight into SEO and PPC which has allowed me to expand my knowledge into an area of marketing I hadn't considered before.

What were some of the key tasks or projects you worked on during your internship?

• Social Media - I had control of scheduling and creating ideas for content to be posted, whilst also starting a TikTok account for Zen.
• SEO - I helped the team provide audits for potential clients and used Google keyword planner for suggesting new possible keywords to create content around. 
• PPC - worked with the team to create meta and Google advertising within the whiskey industry. 
• Completed Google garage course
• Completed SEO crash course on SEMrush
• Email marketing - helped produce promotional emails for clients, this included National Whiskey Day and Father's Day.

Can you describe any specific systems or software you became proficient in while working on these tasks?

I used multiple different tools within this internship, specifically gained experience and a clear understanding of how to use Google keyword planner, and SEM rush to analyse potential client's websites, I also became proficient in using Word press to create and edit blog posts for clients ensuring SEO was at a high level. 

I have also used social media scheduling tools like meta business suite and Buffer to ensure Zen's social media is kept up to date with new content. 

Were there any challenges you faced during your internship? How did you overcome them?

At the start of my internship, I didn't have any previous knowledge of SEO or PPC so undertaking tasks within this area presented confusing at first, however with the help of the team carefully talking me through the new tools and taking online classes that discussed these areas, which helped me gain a clearer understanding. 

Did you have any personal achievements or milestones during your internship that you're particularly proud of?

I enjoyed the process of starting the agency's new TikTok account that gained over 600 views within the first 24 hours of being active. I'm proud of achieving multiple certificates within the course of my internship.

How did your internship contribute to your personal and professional growth?

This internship has allowed me to gain more valuable experience in agency life and how they operate day-to-day with clients. I can take this knowledge into future jobs knowing how to deal with tasks. It has also provided me with aspects of marketing that I haven't learned in university.

Working at Zen as an intern has also allowed me to build my confidence in the work I produce, however, some reassurance is needed but feel this will come with the more experience I gain. 

What feedback or guidance did you receive from your mentors or supervisors, and how did it impact your development?

At every stage of this internship, I have been guided in the right direction, from how to use certain tools to support in developing ideas I've provided. Having this guidance has allowed me to benefit from this experience more as I have been able to ask questions comfortably and get the most out of this opportunity.

In what ways did the internship align with your career goals or aspirations?

I have always wanted to work in marketing since learning business management in high school. This internship has provided me with an idea of what route I'd like to take in my career, as before I had a very broad sense of the type of marketing career I wanted. However, I feel this is something that will change as I gain more experience and gather more knowledge. 

What valuable lessons or skills have you gained from this experience that you will carry forward in your future endeavours?

SEO is something I am particularly glad I got to learn and understand, I feel this is an important skill to have to differentiate my skill set within marketing. It's also valuable to know to help build the best content.

Learning the basics of WordPress and SEMrush is something I will be able to take forward in my career.

The team at the Zen Agency would like to thank Ellis for her fantastic work over her 6 week internship. 

Are you looking for a full service digital marketing agency? The Zen Agency has 23 years experience of running numerous projects ranging from web development to digital design to PPC marketing. Our team of experts are here to help take your business to the next level. Contact our friendly team to discuss your business needs.