Personal & Professional Lessons from a HaBO Inbound Marketing Intern

By: Matt Yuen

What is Half a Bubble Out? That is how many respond when I say where I interned. What do they do? What do you do? The real question is, as a young marketing and media arts student, what unique opportunities have I not had? 

I’ve seen the CEO star in a feral cat commercial, boxed several pounds of hay and made a once in a lifetime video. I did not have the chance to become deep sea scuba diving certified at Half a Bubble Out, but I got many other opportunities. 

I have had the chance to learn from a wide range of professionals who graciously encourage and sincerely care about my well-being over free labor.

On the surface I have learned about inbound marketing and how to apply that knowledge to actual companies that are trying to thrive. It was a great opportunity that has made learning about marketing in classes this semester dry and difficult.

I have learned many personal and professional lessons. Here are a few:

• A great work environment and happy employees do not happen by chance.
• Cheese and wine make ending the week sweeter. 
• Most of the time in life and business, there is always a chance for a win/win situation for all. 

Take a wild guess what my favorite part of my internship was! EW! I had a lot of fun making the Half a Bubble Out Inbound Marketing EW video. I don’t think I will ever hear the name “Gary” the same way for the rest of my life. I’m glad I was able to make a video that everyone had fun making and watching. 

When starting this internship, I just began my minor in marketing. I had no work experience in marketing. Having a basic foundation of inbound marketing through the certification process was the key to learning more about marketing as the internship progressed. I had the opportunity to help with actual Half a Bubble Out clients and use different parts of HubSpot. I helped transfer blogs, proofread emails, and match up URLs to name a few.

While it might not sound like much, I got the chance to connect the knowledge I had gained through inbound certification and use that language to understand what I was doing during those tasks.

One of the projects I had a chance to work on that flew under the radar were the HyProCure^® social media videos. I had a chance to use a skill I already had and apply my minimal knowledge of marketing to create video content that a real client could have used. I’m very thankful for that experience and the process it took to get to the end products.

What advice would I give to future interns at Half a Bubble Out? Here are some do’s and don’ts:

• Do show up to your interview in the nicest clothes a college student could own legally without stealing. It will get you a compliment from the boss. 
• Don’t show up late two days in a row two weeks into your internship.
• Do be honest if something is going on in life that is making your internship stressful. 
• Don’t lock yourself out of your apartment during your lunch break without your car keys or phone. 
• Do try to convince the staff that you can make a fun parody video to showcase company culture. 
• Don’t forget that this is an internship where you are here to learn. 
• Do enjoy the little moments.  
• Don’t ever say no to a wrap invite. You never know what might happen.

I think Half a Bubble Out does a great job educating interns while not forgetting what really matters in life. Through empathy, compassion, forgiveness and company culture, a chance to meet and work alongside team members of Half a Bubble Out will result in nothing less than a career shaping and life changing experience. 

I think one of the hardest things for anyone interning anywhere is not feeling valued. But if there was one thing I felt at Half a Bubble Out, it was valued. I felt my voice, my education, my experience, and my time were valued each and every day.

I do have one suggestion. I strongly believe interns would benefit from a deep sea scuba diving certification class. I can’t think of a more useful pairing with an inbound marketing certification.

Anyone who works at Half a Bubble Out has my sincerest respect. If I were to ever start up my own business, I would hire Half a Bubble Out in a heartbeat.