Ben’s work experience week at tgi MEDIA
Back in November of 2016, my school (Hummersknott Academy) told our year that we would have a week of work experience at a business of your choice. At this time, and still now, I don’t really have a clear idea what I want to do as a job when I am older; however, I am interested in media and web development. I looked into many businesses, and also got rejected by many. One that caught my eye though was tgi MEDIA – a social media marketing company who manage businesses social media platforms and websites seemed a great place to spend a week of work placement at.
The first day I did feel a little nervous as it was my first day of working in an office, however, excited about working (and also missing a week of school). I was met at the door by Tori, the owner of the business. She was welcoming and helpful if I needed help with anything. There are three other people working in the office. David, Grace and Jenny. They were also welcoming and helpful.
On my first day, I was introduced to the daily tasks, which were managing each social media of designated clients. They also send out a newsletter to their clients and to people who have subscribed to it about once a month, and I was given the task of designing and writing the newsletter for this month. I enjoyed this task as I really like designing types of media like this and everyone in the office found the design good, which I and Tori were very pleased about.
The second day started attending a meeting between Tori and a worker at the Northern Echo. They discussed ways of advertising businesses and what each business provided and other local businesses. Marketing is also an interest of mine and it gave me a good insight of what the different ways of marketing.
After that, Tori showed me how they manage websites of clients, and taught me about SEO, which is what comes up when you search something on a search engine. She said that there was a website which needed their SEO to be altered, so I happily did that task. It was very interesting how these little things can affect a business’s online presence. At this point, I am feeling really comfortable in an office environment.
The third day I was asked to design two newsletters for two different businesses; write this blog which you are writing; finish off SEO of a website and post an Instagram story for clients of tgi MEDIA. It’s fair to say I had a busy day, however, I enjoyed the work. I really enjoyed designing the newsletters and developing my designing skills. Instagram stories were new to me, as I had never used this feature, so I learnt something new about a social media platform that I have used for about four years! I also was asked to create a Facebook banner for a client of tgi MEDIA. At this point, I am starting to really enjoy what I work I have set for me.
The fourth day we went to visit a client, which was very interesting. I saw how Tori helps her clients understand social media, answer the questions they may have and suggest creative ideas she has for her clients to improve their business. The client was a business who sells garden products, such as water features, garden materials and pond items. I enjoyed this experience. Later in the day, I was asked to do some market research for the company, finding out other estate agents and recruitment agencies around the local area. I also enjoyed researching businesses and seeing what they could do to improve upon their social media. My experience at tgi MEDIA so far has been very interesting and enjoyable.
On my last day, I went to see another client to discuss their branding, social media and website. The meeting went well and I had my first “meeting room experience”! Both of my client meetings have been an interesting experience and I have learnt a lot about how meetings are conducted and how to act in one. After Tori treated me and the others in the office to a pizza takeout from Al Forno, which was amazing as it is my favourite restaurant. My last day was very interesting and tasty!
I have thoroughly enjoyed my work experience at tgi MEDIA! I have learnt lots of useful things, such as: how social media marketing works, what being in an office is like, meeting clients and how businesses handle them and how to act in a meeting room! All the staff at tgi MEDIA were very helpful and made me feel welcome at the office. I’m really happy I chose to do my work experience at tgi MEDIA, and I would recommend them to students who would be doing a work experience in the future.
Thank you Tori and the tgi MEDIA team
Looking to build your brand on social media? Call 01325 468 481 or email info@tgimedia.co.uk to see how the team can manage your online presence.
Written by Ben Fawcett, Hummersknott Academy.