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Author: Team DIGO

Intern Insights: A Day in the Life of a Strategy Intern

Today is a fairly busy day, so I plan to write on the go and cover my day in short snippets. Here goes:

8:40­ – I greet Luis, the doorman, as I hurry to get inside the air-conditioned luxuries of 220 East 3rd Street. Tip – don’t wear dark tones when you have a 1-mile walk to work and the temperature is already nearing 80 degrees at 8:30 a.m.

8:47 – I head to the agency kitchen to make a cup of iced coffee. After briefly catching up on some world news, I’m ready to start my day.

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9:00 – Though I am a strategy intern here, I have always been fascinated with the creative side of the business. A few weeks ago I got the chance to speak with Antonio Fragoso, who is one of the agency’s brightest copywriters. After a short discussion, we scheduled a lunch where we would sit down and he could share his creative process with me. With the approval of my strategy manager, Maddie, I began to ask Antonio and Art Director Katie Renfroe if there were any side projects I could help them out with. One thing I have noticed is that people at DiGo are open and inviting.

This morning I am in the process of writing manifestos for a particular concept that is being developed. Exciting stuff, but hard work nonetheless. One of the insights that Antonio shared with me is that while the creative process is fun, it can also be quite wearying. Often, coming up with the best concepts is the end result of hours of hard work. Eventually, genius does strike, it’s just a matter of getting there.

11:00 – I have a meeting with Megan Yoniak, who is the talent acquisition and HR manager here at DiGo, for the midsummer check-in. Megan, who’s always full of positive energy, enters the meeting with a smile and a coffee in hand. During the meeting, we evaluate how my internship experience has been. The purpose of the meeting is for her to find out how she and DiGo can make my experience as valuable and beneficial as possible, and it’s nice to know that this is a place where interns are cared for like that. They want me to learn and grow just as much as I do.

11:25 – Back to working on manifestos. I’m trying this new thing where I look at images and listen to music, hoping that it gets me in the creative mind-set to develop some inspiring concepts. One thing I’ve noticed is that all the creatives here have their own and special way they like to work, and this seems to be mine. My friends who follow me on Spotify are probably wondering why I’m listening to such funky music.

12:00 – I have a mini brief with the head of strategy (and my manager) Maddie. Her mind must

run at 100 miles per hour because it seems she is always zipping around from one project, meeting, or brief to another. She is constantly on the move and is always willing to help out. We discuss a couple of projects that are in the pipeline, and she gives me a definitive idea of what’s expected of me. For me, this is super helpful. I am one of those people who needs a “to-do list” to stay on track. Time to start researching!

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2:00 – Another meeting beckons! People are on the move, and the office is bustling. We meet with Ali Chastain, who is a behavioral strategist, and she briefs us on some research tasks that are coming up.

2:57­ – I start watching a video and researching about Blockchain – the world’s most popular bitcoin wallet. Although semi-controversial, the company is certainly disruptive and direct.

4:00 – After an hour, I feel like I have a good sense of Blockchain and its mission. While I’m definitely not done with the research portion, I feel like I’ve got a great start and can’t wait to learn more.

4:30 – It’s Thursday, and Thursdays at the agency mean beers on the beach starting at 4:30 p.m. I can’t express how cool it is to go to work every day and see a beach in the office. We raise a toast, say cheers, and then get back to work (I’m over 21, I promise!). Just like all the others before it, it’s been a terrific day here at DiMassimo Goldstein, and I can’t wait to see what tomorrow brings.

-Malhar Mali, Strategy Intern

 

Think In Tribes

The following post is an excerpt from Digital@Speed, authored by digital marketing guru Mark DiMassimo. Visit the official website here to download your free copy today.

If you need to understand and connect with people quickly, think tribally.

Everyone comes from somewhere, and often from multiple somewheres. Those places – schools, industries, departments, companies, clubs, states, countries – have cultures and languages all their own. So knowing the tribe can be the key to truly understanding the individual.

 

Giving Back With DiMassimo Goldstein’s Festival De Cans

This year’s Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity brought some 15,000 creative minds from the advertising world to the South of France for a week of self-indulgent celebration and free Rosé, in honor of the past year’s creative work.

Here at DiMassimo Goldstein, however, we view creativity in a different light. We measure our creative ideas not by the number of Lions we bring home, but by our capacity to inspire action. To produce creative work that goes beyond commercial intent, by helping people develop more empowering habits and lead better lives. Creativity, we believe, should be used to make actions rather than award-winning ads. The latter is simply the means to an end.

So while the rest of the industry was toasting to ‘creativity’ on the beaches of Cannes, we held our 2nd Annual Festival de Cans on our very own DiGo beach last Thursday. Just like the other Cannes, but with less emphasis on navel-gazing, and more on helping others less fortunate than us.

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Friends, family and acquaintances in New York were invited to bring a can of food to our office, in exchange for a can of beer, wine or soda on us. Not only did we make lasting memories with friends old and new, but we did so for a good cause: 83 cans were donated at the end of the night to St. Francis Food Pantries & Shelters, a local organization that provides food, clothing and shelter to those in need. We even built our own Cannes Lion last year using our collected cans, before donating them to a local food bank.

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Ayn Rand has said that, “A creative man is motivated by the desire to achieve, not by the desire to beat others.” Rather than using our creativity to win awards, we’ll continue to build brands that inspire action and influence positive change in ourselves and others. If you’d like to do the same, we’ll see you at next year’s 3rd Annual Festival de Cans. Who needs bottled Rosé, anyway.

-Chloe Evans, Integrated Marketing Intern

 

Celebrate The Messenger

The following post is an excerpt from Digital@Speed, authored by digital marketing guru Mark DiMassimo. Visit the official website here to download your free copy today.

I don’t shoot the messenger. Ever.

When someone brings up bad news, raises a controversial subject, or just tells the ugly truth in a meeting, I go out of my way to praise the messenger right there and then.

I want to make an example of them for everyone else. THIS is what I’m looking for. Honesty. Openness. Realness. Challenge.

If you don’t do this, you will hear less and less of the truth. And then where will you be?

 

Intern Insights: A Day In The Life Of An Operations Intern

I walk through the door of 220, my arms already stretching out for the up button on the elevator. As the golden, glistening doors glide open for me, I take a step into the enclosed space that will magically drop me off at the promised land all the way up to the treacherous heights of the…

Second floor.

So the day now commences. Walking through the tunnel of illuminated arrows guiding me to the reception, I routinely think I’ve been transported to some future version of “Follow the Yellow Brick Road – DiGo edition.” I emerge and see Sam, and I know I found my way for yet another day of adventure and learning. I walk closer to her to say hello, but the sound of Nick Jonas’ new album stops me short. I close my eyes. This my jam. Sam always knows just the right music to play that accommodates all employees, guests, and interns alike who breeze through the reception area.

I walk up to the ping pong table just a short sweep past the reception and channel my inner champion. And with full spirits, I head to my desk in the Creative Lounge, a comfy bungalow of colorful and stylistic chairs that vary in cushion thickness and lovability (directly correlated). I boot up my computer for the day. Dan, my computer named after its former master and fellow employee, sometimes is a bit slow. So I cheer it on as I help myself to a cup of coffee and chant “Go Dan Go!” inspired by my childhood favorite, “Go Diego, Go!” I remind myself to never lose my sense of curiosity, always ask questions, and push forward in all aspects of my work.

Once my computer is up, my screen populates with emails from my operations team. We set our objectives for the day – each of us emailing a list of five to seven main goals to accomplish.

I usually start with an ongoing summer long human resources project. In brief, it’s a bunch of Excel work. While many people begrudge the sound of that, my inner nerd has a strong affinity to this software program.

I start getting more emails as the people around me find more tasks for me to help with. Bertin, our finance coordinator, requests that I file some travel invoices and scan the documents. I’ve never used a scanner before. I walk up to the bulky machine looming oh so mysteriously in the corner. My heart is pulsating at a rapid speed as my hands start to push a myriad of buttons in a faulty order. Bertin sees the terror in my eyes and offers a helping hand. All is resolved and peace is restored. Invoicing is complete.

I meander back to my desk saying hello to the friendly faces around the office and resume my work on various operations projects, because soon I will have my meeting with my boss, Sydney. She’s the coolest gal on the block, and no one will argue that. With the tallest kicks in the game, I hear her walking toward the room where we are meeting for our weekly check in. As the Operations Manager, she makes sure everything runs smoothly, including my internship. We chat about our favorite brunch spots and after-work shenanigans before we bounce to business. She usually assigns me some new projects – both short term and long term.

So I begin to work on these from the late morning into early afternoon, but my stomach interrupts me around 1:00pm. I gather a #squad of other available interns and see if they want to grab lunch and sit in Madison Square Park for a few minutes. We venture out into the land of buildings and working professionals dressed in monotone suits (thank goodness for DiGo’s business casual dress code). We whisk down 23rd Street, passing by aromas of exquisite cuisines until we arrive at….

A salad place.

But it’s ok because we will be getting bagels at the office tomorrow so we should probably pursue a healthier option today anyway. As we eat our salads in the park, I look around as the sounds of the city and the banter of my fellow interns fills the air. Summer is a beautiful time of year indeed. Feeling refreshed and properly nourished, we trek back to the office for a full afternoon.

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The remainder of the day is spent completing various operations tasks and making progress on my larger projects. When I’ve had enough of working in solitude, I group email two of my ‘terns, Chloe and Hannah. We are planning DiGo’s 20th Anniversary Party – keep your fingers crossed that you get invited because it will be the party of the decade. We like to hit the DiGo beach to do our party planning – we do our best thinking here. The three of us envision the majesty and splendor of luxurious décor and the finest of fancy foods. If I could give more details here I would, but it must be kept as a guarded secret for the time being.

I take a lap around 5:00pm and grab one last cup of coffee.

The final sprint.

In the last hour, I wrap up my work to a good stopping point, chat with my fellow interns about their evening plans, and check in with boss one last time. Another day passes in which I have made stronger connections with those I just met mere weeks ago, formed valuable time management skills with the several projects I’m on, nurtured my caffeine addiction, and felt truly inspired.

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I felt inspired by the work ethic and natural flow of creativity harmoniously juxtaposed by a strong foundation – a structure spearheaded by the operations team. I felt inspired by the optimism of the office and the drive to move forward with every project in the works. I walk out a little less intimidated and more inspired by the grandeur, knowing that I am becoming a part of this company’s inspiration and core, along with all of my new interns and friends.

-Shelby Strattan, Operations Intern