Focus Realty logo

Hi, my name is Olivia Freeman. I am currently a junior majoring in Strategic and Corporate Communication with a minor in Entrepreneurship. This past semester, I interned for a real estate development company, Focus Realty Services. My role here at Focus Realty was to work in social media marketing. Specifically pushing out social media content for multiple marketing campaigns. I found this social media marketing internship through networking. I never fully grasped the networking concept because I always thought it seemed so forward and aggressive. However, through my experience of getting this internship and my Business Communication class, I have learned how impactful networking is. 

Responsibilities

The main responsibilities for this position included pushing out Instagram content for the week, usually 5-7 posts a week and around 25 stories a month, curating one or more blog posts a week with Instagram stories to follow, matching the Facebook posts with the Instagram posts, and pushing out content on Pinterest about 5 times a week. These responsibilities required me to be proficient in graphic design tools such as Canva and WordPress, as well as creativity in developing themed content, especially during the holiday season. 

Connection to Courses

My communication courses were fundamental to my success during this internship. Specifically the skills I gained from my Message Design and Business Communication courses. In Business Communication, I learned how to craft professional emails, which I used daily to communicate effectively with my supervisor, ensuring clarity and professionalism in all interactions. Meanwhile, Message Design taught me audience analysis techniques that I applied when creating social media content. For example, there was a period of time when we were experiencing low

Here is what I see when working on blog posts!

engagement from our Instagram posts. I used these audience analysis techniques to tailor captions and posts to aim directly at our target audience of homebuyers, resulting in increased engagement and follower growth. In addition, my Interpersonal Communication course gave me the tools to remain open, honest, and create productive relationships with my supervisors. This helped create a collaborative work environment for me to succeed in my responsibilities.

Greatest Achievement

One of my biggest achievements during this internship was the holiday-themed marketing campaign I led. After a meeting with my supervisor, I was tasked with creating a unique holiday aesthetic that would stand out across Instagram, Facebook, and the company blog. I began diving into extensive research on trending themes, colors, and content strategies to design a cohesive campaign showcasing community activities and events near one of the company’s new developments. The campaign included vibrant Instagram stories, engaging posts, and a blog post highlighting family-friendly holiday activities. This campaign’s impact was evident in the increase in engagement as the blog post became one of our top-viewed pieces. It was very rewarding to see my hard work pay off!

Instagram theme for the holiday season!

Overall, my internship at Focus Realty Services was an incredibly rewarding experience that helped me grow both personally and professionally. I gained valuable skills in time management, graphic design, audience analysis, and professional communication, all of which will be very valuable for my future career. I am inspired to further develop these skills through additional coursework and hands-on projects. I am deeply grateful for this opportunity and excited to apply the lessons I have learned to future challenges and opportunities.