In this week’s Baer Necessities blog post, we’d like to introduce our summer intern, Em von der Ruhr! She’s a senior at St. Norbert College majoring in communication and media studies with a minor in graphic design. During her time here at Baer Performance Marketing, she’s been developing social media content, writing blogs, designing eye-catching graphics, and more. Our interns are immersed in a fast-paced environment where they can work on real-world campaigns and build up a stellar portfolio. Read on to learn more about Em and her role within our team!
What are some of the most important things you’ve learned from this internship?
For me, the most important skills I have learned from this internship would be managing my time to meet deadlines for large writing and research projects and learning about the topics as I go. Many of the blogs I have written have been about different marketing and business practices and strategies. As a communication and media major, I have not always had prior knowledge on some of these topics, so I have learned to do research as I go about figuring out a formula for how to write up the information. This has also affected how I manage my time: I must make sure I am meeting the deadline while gathering enough research and putting it all together into a comprehensive and easy-to-understand post or document. It’s quite different from the way I am used to managing my time with school and projects for classes, given that I normally have more background knowledge on those topics.
What goals has the internship helped you accomplish?
Being an intern at Baer Performance Marketing has helped me achieve multiple goals: the first being an opportunity for me to refine my writing skills and discover how much I enjoy this type of work. It has also provided me with a chance to build my writing portfolio as well as my graphic design skills. I feel accomplished having my work posted on official sites and social media. This is very important to me as I enter my senior year of undergrad and am making decisions about what career I hope to pursue after graduation, or if I want to pursue graduate school.
How has your view of marketing changed since working at BPM?
It has changed in so many different ways I almost don’t know where to begin! I have learned so much about different marketing strategies and practices by writing blog posts and conducting research on different businesses to help them create strategies that allow their businesses to grow. Entering this internship, the only marketing knowledge I had came from a couple communication lectures that incorporated some basic marketing knowledge and anything I have discussed with my dad who teaches economics at St. Norbert.
What is your current dream job?
Currently, I am very drawn to media writing. I am open to just about any form of media writing, but if I were asked what niche topic I would enjoy writing about, it would be music. I love the arts and aesthetics and grew up in a very musical family. I would love to write blog posts and social media posts about up-and-coming artists or concerts and analyze music through words. I think music, like writing, is a beautiful and uniquely human way of communicating.
What are your hobbies? What do you do during your time away from school?
I am an avid reader. I particularly enjoy reading fictional novels. I am currently reading Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins Reid, and it is so beautifully written. I would have to say that thriller and horror books (as well as movies) are always my top choice. Since I was a toddler, I’ve loved all things spooky and related to Halloween. On any given day of the year, I would be able to tell you how many days it is until Halloween, so I take it pretty seriously (haha). I also really enjoy drawing and painting – it is so relaxing and a great outlet for me when life gets busy. I’ve been an artist and a runner my whole life; nothing beats outdoor running in the summer and fall.
What social media platform is your favorite and why?
I’d have to say Pinterest is probably my favorite at the moment. Like many other college-aged people, I do enjoy TikTok a fair amount, but something about the layout and role the aesthetics play in my Pinterest feed wins me over. I feel so inspired to paint, read, bake, and redecorate my living space every time I scroll through the app.
What is something interesting most people don’t know about you?
I actually really like to sing. I am not sure how good I am at it, but growing up, I performed in the Green Bay Girl Choir for five years. I’ve been singing since I could talk, and the amount of home family footage my parents have of toddler me just belting my heart out is a little embarrassing, haha. My dad tells me about how when I was 3 or 4, I would dance and headbang to the song “Cowboys From Hell” by Pantera. I was definitely a wild child.
What is your go-to karaoke song?
Absolutely “Mr. Brightside” by The Killers or anything by my favorite band PVRIS
What are your goals or plans after you graduate? Has participating in this internship refined these goals, or changed your path altogether?
Right now, I am still on the fence about what I will do after graduation. Having this internship is helping guide me toward my decision. I am currently looking into whether or not I will go to grad school after I graduate or if I will take a gap year first to gain more experience out in the career field. Being an intern at Baer has helped me further determine I am very interested in media writing and marketing.
Why should future students consider BPM’s internship program?
Being an intern at BPM is such a great experience to gain! I love coming into the office and having a new project to work on nearly every day. I have learned so much about how to deliver content to a specific audience, how to manage the time I have for any given research project, and I love how the variety of work here pushes me to think outside the box and try some of my own approaches. I think working as an intern here has put both my practical and creative skills to use, and I’ve learned how much I value that in a job.
What advice would you give to future BPM interns?
Come into work every day with an open mind! You never know what you might learn or what ideas you might have that could really take off. And have fun with it! Everyone in the office is flexible, supportive, and always willing to provide feedback. Overall, it’s a great environment to be in, and the feeling you get when you see your work getting published on blogs and social media pages is one of the most rewarding things.
The Baer Performance Marketing Internship Program is an amazing opportunity to get hands-on experience and build your résumé. Send this to someone who’s looking for an internship in the Green Bay area, or apply to be the next member of our team! Contact molly@baerpm.com for more information.
