2022
Sales & Marketing
Over the summer of 2022, I spent my days in Blue Ash at ASI Signage. ASI is a national company privately owned here in Cincinnati. The company had never had an intern before, but I was excited for the opportunity to wear "multiple hats" and experience the signage industry. My roles working full-time included social media engagement, competitive analysis, content editing, and content creation.
Social media was my first task where I created "carousel" Instagram posts with multiple projects ASI had completed over the time we were absent on social. I used tagging, and hashtags, and even edited content using Adobe Lightroom and Photoshop. Examples are shown below.
My second plan to increase Instagram activity was to incorporate stories into our daily posting schedule. Motivation Monday's and Fail Fridays were implemented to remain present and engage viewers in a fun way. I had also scheduled out Instagram reels where team members would briefly introduce themselves and describe their role in the business. Because the original owner had recently sold to the current owner, new introductions were in order. Within this initial planning period, I created a Link Tree for the Instagram page, turned on "business insights", and reformatted the profile. At the end of my internship, I had increased traffic by 1,413%.
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On top of social media, I oversaw conducting a competitive analysis. I created a spreadsheet in Excel and analyzed over 70 indirect and direct competitors within the Cincinnati and Dayton markets. I then broke down the data I compiled and finished the report with only four major competitors. I enjoyed analyzing the various desirable features of signage agencies and even learned more about the community of Cincinnati through the experience. ASI and its competitors have created signage for places like The Cincinnati Zoo, The Red's Stadium, and even here at UC! I love driving past work ASI designed which is spotted all over the area.
During my time working at ASI, I was exposed to Adobe Illustrator, as project managers working around me often used the software. I received a LinkedIn certificate and was able to practice with the app during my free time in the office. I am thankful that this experience exposed me to AI as I began taking Graphic Design in the following fall semester. I have been able to create beautiful work and use it in my current position at The Kable Group.
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Overall, I loved this experience because the freedom gave me the ability to think creatively and gain exposure to new skills such as Illustrator. At the same time, I disliked the lack of structure and communication as I often found myself with unanswered questions, unimplemented plans, and not much comprehensive knowledge. Having little direction, it was challenging to increase Instagram insights as the customer base was an older, less tech-savvy generation. Despite it all, I had a positive impact on ASI’s Social Media presence and now know what aspects of a job I truly need to grow. I am grateful for the internship and extremely proud of the work I completed.