As a college junior and a double business major in management and marketing, I am still searching for that “perfect-fit job.” I started my first internship experience working for WECT the Wilmington NC NBC affiliate where I fully expected to be a coffee girl or paper pusher. I was delightfully surprised to learn that I was able to get my hands dirty and learn the ropes of the business. From shadowing news reporters to producing commercials, I left the experience fully confident that I was a network TV insider

Who knew six months ago that my path would collide again with Talk? While shadowing a reporter on one rainy morning, we found ourselves in a local public relations firm for a human-interest piece, highlighting the celebration of Take Your Dog to Work Day. We walked into a very cheerful office with pink walls and had a delightful encounter with the top dog Camden. The office atmosphere was so inviting and innovative, I instantly fell in love.

It was that human-interest piece that got my foot in the door at Talk. From that initial meeting and a few chance encounters over the six months following, I solidified my internship here. I can already tell from only one day here at Talk, I will learn valuable skills while having hands-on experience from seasoned veterans.

Here’s my confession: my name is Katie and I want to work in public relations. No, I do not want to be a party planner or be brought up on Bill O’ Rielly’s “No Spin Zone”, but I want help an organization build relationships with their publics so each party will be satisfied with the interaction. I have taken several classes that have taught me how to do PR, but it will be my third internship where I will learn how to take what I have learned in class and apply it to the “real world.”

I started my internship last Thursday and could immediately feel that I was going to learn from my experiences at Talk. I have been recruited to work the 2nd Annual Talkies, where I will learn how to judge the advertisements for more than just their entertainment value. Also, I accompanied Kirsty to the Carolina Canines headquarters to see the third service dog be placed with a wounded warrior. This is why I want to go into public relations. I want to use my services to promote organizations that deserve it by doing incredible things within the community. I want to help these organizations soar to new heights, and maybe gain a little experience along the way.

Talking to my classmates about what they are currently doing and what kind of job or internship they might be involved with is always interesting. What is more interesting to me is when people ask me what I do here at Talk. Telling them all of the things I get to do always gets the same response, “really?” Nobody can believe all the things that I get to do interning at Talk, particularly when they are stuck filing things and making copies.

I think a lot of internships lose focus on the point, and that is experience. People take internships for the experience they can use for building their resume, but when they go to write about what experience they have gotten, it is often difficult. The other day when I was working on my resume, I found it difficult to be concise incorporating all of the things I have learned and participated in. Writing pitches, marketing plans, press releases, blogs, events and other things for clients is something that has been so valuable to me. To not only be able to say I did these things on my resume, but to actually know that I did learn how to do it and could do it again is exactly why I wanted an internship.

I feel like I have gotten everything I could possibly get out of an internship at Talk, and couldn’t be happier. So, for any people in need of experience, and want an internship where you actually get it, give Talk a call.

It is becoming quite clear that interning at Talk is extremely valuable to my growth professionally, academically and personally.

A little more than a month ago I was at a Labor Day cookout with friends who live on the sound in the Wrightsville Beach area. It turned out that some of the people attending the cookout were business leaders in the community. As I introduced myself to some of the adults at the cookout, they all asked me the same question, “Do you have an internship yet?” When I responded that I was an intern at Talk Inc., it gave me instant credibility. Everyone seemed to be glad I was working for such a prominent figure in the community as Debbie Elliott.

A few weeks later I was skimming through the latest issue of “WILMA,” a women’s magazine I would rarely read outside of work. Thumbing through the pages, I saw a section the magazine calls, “Day Trip”, which is fairly self-explanatory. The feature for that particular month illustrated Southport, N.C. as a relaxing area with good food, good shopping and free parking. The piece was so convincing I wound up taking a day trip with a friend to experience the area, and it truly was beautiful. Without my internship and subsequent interest in exploring new media, I probably would have never thought to spend a day in Southport.

Shortly after that experience, I was in class at UNCW learning about a company called, “Honest Tea”, a beverage producer that has seen huge success in the Wilmington area. My professor was explaining to the class that her son’s fiancee was actually the director of marketing for the on-line based company. Almost immediately I wondered, “Do they use Word Press for their blog? Do they have a Facebook? Do they connect the tools through Twitter?” As she continued to tour me around the homepage, I noticed shortcuts to all three social media websites. I am sure it meant nothing to the rest of my classmates, but it was a significant experience for me. It demonstrated how my internship at Talk keeps me up-to-date on the latest branding and imaging strategies used in the field. It was a gratifying and reassuring experience to see that I was thinking on the same level as the director of marketing at a company doing so well.

It is evident that working at Talk has afforded me rare opportunities to network, experience and appreciate the local area, and gain practical knowledge for my career as well.

Just like whenever you break up with your girlfriend or boyfriend – all you can see are couples; ever since I started interning here at Talk, all I can see is clever marketing campaigns.

Even in the thing I love the most, NHL hockey - a sport that really does very little “good marketing,” I have picked up on little innovative things that franchises are trying to do in order to stay afloat in these harsh economic times.

The St. Louis Blues have come up with their own marketing scheme and they call it “The Blues Fan Bailout Plan.” Under this bailout plan, the Blues have started marketing three ways to help save their fans money while still being able to watch their favorite team.

“Fannie and Freddie Mortgage Saturdays” is the keystone to their plan. Every Saturday game for the remainder of the season, a fan randomly selected during the game will have their mortgage payment paid for the next four months by the Blues organization. Also, ticket prices for certain seating areas have also been decreased. Five-hundred of the lower level seats have had their prices permanently slashed in half to $25 and upper level seats can now be purchased for as little as $11.20.

Finally, one that I am most interested in is “Free Food Nights.” Several games for the remainder of the season will allow fans to eat for free. It is unclear yet if they will be able to decide what they eat, or if they’ll just be given a hotdog and a drink and sent on their way. Either way, free food just seems to taste better, and it’s a great savings considering the sky-high prices of food at sporting events.

Before interning at Talk, I don’t think I would have even cared to notice these marketing efforts, particularly since I’m not a St. Louis Blues fan. Either way, I think this is a step in a very good direction for the NHL. Especially considering their lack of solid marketing and fear of ticket sales drops with the current state of the economy. Maybe I’m just finally beginning to see things the way marketers do on a daily basis, but I know I have a new perspective on hockey.