Over the summer, I worked for Nolen & Associates, a marketing agency in Atlanta, GA. While working there, I was able to be a "fly on the wall" and able to participate in almost everything going on in the agency. I worked on four major accounts for Nolen: Woodward Academy, Bruder Healthcare, HGOR, and MeadWestvaco.

In these accounts, I worked on the creative collateral with the two creative directors and account management. I was able to interact with the clients directly and meet their needs in a timely manner. Nolen did a great job of not treating you like an intern, you did not have to go and fetch the workers’ coffee or make all the copies-- you were one of the team members attempting to satisfy the customers and this created an awesome environment.

Going into the internship, I had my heart dead-set on being a graphic designer and doing creative only in a marketing agency. I had formed my own freelance company, Heiden Freelance (www.heidenfreelance.com) and enjoyed making the work for the clients directly. While working at Nolen, I became more familiar with the account side of marketing.

My boss, Pam Nolen, told me that she started out in Creative as a copywriter and made the switch to account management, and I possessed some of the most important skills that would make me very successful as an account manager. She loved some of my creative work, but being able to handle accounts was an extremely important skill to have. At the end of the time at Nolen, I loved working on the accounts and making the clients happy. According to Pam, my attitude and how I approach my work would help me to become very successful in any job that I would take.

Just last month, I interviewed and accepted a job with BBDO, the top advertising agency in Atlanta. I will be working on the AT&T mobile account. I feel that my internship gave me the mindset and skills needed to obtain a job at a highly prestigious company like BBDO.