By Frances Blount, Jacob Estrada and Morgan Clay Scudder
What do an MTSU graduate, a Knoxville native, and a University of Alabama rising senior all have in common? They are Sullivan Branding Nashville’s summer interns: Jacob Estrada, media intern; Morgan Clay Scudder, account executive intern; and Frances Blount, public relations intern.
Though representing different departments within the agency, the three of us work together to form “Team Intern.”
We came to Sullivan at the beginning of June, eager to learn about the operations of a full-service advertising agency, and we leave now, two months later, with experience and knowledge that we never expected.
This summer, we have had the privilege of working with the Old School Farm (OSF), a community-supported agriculture farm – located in Nashville – that is committed to providing sustainable jobs to individuals with intellectual disabilities. Our team created a fully integrated marketing and communications plan to increase mission awareness and donations. And like the agency’s staff, we also committed ourselves to bringing Sullivan’s Sharp, Genuine and Fearless approach to our Old School Farm client.
Each of us feels a connection with OSF for various reasons. Morgan, whose brother has learning disabilities, is passionate about the farm’s mission. Her attention to detail and ability to perform under pressure (even when the Wi-Fi went out in the middle of our presentation) made her the sharp leg of “Team Intern.” Frances, who believes in the power of the farm-to-table movement, loves the work being done at OSF and is enthusiastic to help them grow. Even when printers jammed and PowerPoint failed, she remained positive and brought a genuine attitude to the table. Jacob never came to work without his fearless pants on, and his research-minded personality and innovative ideas allowed him to brainstorm unique ways to implement media tactics. He was excited about OSF because of his love of community service, which stemmed from his work with volunteer organizations since high school.
By collaborating on all parts of a strategic and tactical plan, our three distinctive personalities, backgrounds and specific skill sets allowed us to succeed in creating a plan and a presentation that “wowed” Old School Farm.
Click to view slideshow.When creating the marketing campaign theme for the plan, we considered both the physical and philosophical missions of OSF. After brainstorming and research, we developed a tagline that speaks to the farm’s mission, Unearthing Potential. Not only does OSF unearth the potential of the land it farms, but it also unearths potential in the people it employs. Once we had our theme, we hashed out details of the plan, developed tactics and were ready to present to the Old School Farm Board of Directors.
While the presentation went great, we learned that producing a project as big as this is not an easy task. Along the way, we had to ask for advice and accept critiques and constructive criticism in order to perfect our assignments and align with professional expectations. No longer was our work just a class assignment. We learned that we could never ask too many questions, and when a team represents all aspects of an agency, communication is paramount.
We observed that, much like our collaboration on this project, the rest of the agency mirrored that communication every day. We realized that Sullivan is truly an integrated community, relying on each other in order to always exceed clients’ expectations. We saw projects move, from creation to completion, through the agency like it was a well-oiled machine. Just like our small team of interns, the agency needs everyone’s personality and knowledge to achieve success. We think that this is the beauty of a smaller agency—each department operates together like a family, instead of separate entities.
Sullivan Nashville is even located in a remodeled house, helping the office feel even more comfortable and cohesive. We participated in all-office activities that gave us a chance to really get to know everyone outside of their formal duties. From Bloody Marys and biscuits to fruit and French toast, we agreed that the monthly Breakfast Club was our favorite Sullivan tradition. As we watched our CEO, Evette White, whip up scrambled eggs on the porch during the July Breakfast Club, we started to feel right at home, too.
As our internship comes to a close, we leave this summer not only with hands-on experience and great portfolios but also with the satisfaction that we are leaving the professionals at Sullivan with a strong foundation to continue their important work with Old School Farm. We have experienced an integrated agency community, learned from passionate and knowledgeable supervisors, and done meaningful work for a deserving organization.
Looking back, we realize that, through the course of a summer internship, Sullivan has been unearthing the potential within us all along.
