Hi, everyone. I'm Nicolette Finder. So I am a junior. I'm from Southampton, New York. I'm an anthropology major and a journalism media and public discourse minor. And this summer, I interned in the sales and marketing department for Hamptons Magazine. 

So Hamptons Magazine is one out of 11 Niche Media publications. So Niche Media is a publisher that publishes lifestyle magazines. So they celebrate art, culture, fashion, philanthropy, dining, real estate. And each magazine reflects uniquely on the city that it represents. 

So Hamptons Magazine is-- actually, the main New York publication is Gotham Magazine, which is based in New York City. So Hamptons Magazine is just a seasonal outlet. And so, that office is located in my hometown, Southampton, New York. So the magazine is 36 years old. It's seasonal, weekly, and a free publication that is put out on magazine stands throughout the Hamptons from Memorial Day to Labor Day. This year we had 12 issues. 

Since the magazine is free, the way we make money is by selling ads to people and businesses that want to advertise with us. So the focus of our magazine is really on real estate, interior design, fashion, jewelry, dining, entertainment-- things that people want to know about in an area. So they say the Hamptons is recognized as the preeminent voice of the Hamptons. So it really kind of connects the locals and all the summer vacationers we have in the summer. [INAUDIBLE]. 

So the team-- I worked with a very big team, but I really only worked with a few people. So our publisher, Deborah, she is always busy. She is running around. She's on the left. She is always on conference calls or meeting with clients or doing fancy lunches. And so, our editor in chief, Samantha Yates, is kind of similar-- that's her-- she was never really in the office, but we got to work with them at events. 

So I really worked with the directors of advertising, Victoria and Jim. They both worked on different ports of Long Island, so they have very different clients. And so, that was interesting to see. I worked with Jim on a lot of projects. I got to do event calendars with him. So I would find out what's happening on the north port, and write up little blurbs about them, and they were posted on the website. 

So our event marketing director, Joanna Tucker, she kind of organizes and hosts all the events that we do throughout the summer. So our events were generally posted when an issue was released or just for like, our top clients. Usually they were like style talks or Sunday brunches, we hosted a golf tournament. 

So our business development manager, Emma Behringer, I actually went to high school with her so that's kind of fun. She was really Deborah's assistant. But I worked on a special project with her this summer in developing a what's called "The List" of her magazine. So I got to edit the list, make sure there were no typos, and make sure there was no repeating names. And at the end of the summer, in the Labor Day issue, she published my name on the list, which was cool. I agreed to that. 

Our business development coordinator, Ali Winter, she was kind of my supervisor. I answered to her. She told us what to do. She kind of ran the office, so she just told us what to do every day. Our event marketing coordinators, Brittany Gold and Ali Wilson, I went to high school with them too-- they just worked for Joanna. And this summer, we had a group of ten interns. So we worked in the office two days a week and then events on the weekends. 

So I really kind of balanced two jobs this summer because they were very different. I worked in the office. It was a lot of just basic office tasks. But two fun things that I did in the office-- I got to work on a social media calendar. So as part of the package that clients buy-- they buy ad space on Facebook or Instagram so we got to develop the calendar for when we were going to post. 

And also, I got to work on an events calendar. And I did events from June to August. I wrote little blurbs about them, when they were, what they were, and that was published on the website, which was really cool. And so, at the events, we did the basic set up and clean up, but I also got to do social media coverage. We would take pictures of Deborah or Sam and the wine they were drinking and the clothes they were wearing and the jewelry they were wearing kind of just to market the sponsors of our events. 

And then photography-- I was asked to do photography a lot actually. And so, we would just match the names and the numbers and then they would publish on the [INAUDIBLE] magazine. So the events calendar-- I got to work on that. I did four events calendars. That's me on the list. Yeah. 

And also, these are pictures from our events. You know, clearly, it's all strategic. That's from the Hampton Classic and from a lot of other events we did. I took that picture and I got to post it on Instagram. So basically, part of my internship this summer was rooted in promoting our magazine through various social media platforms, but we really only use Facebook and Instagram. 

So social media is a part of promoting our magazine, specifically. It helped to advertise our feature stories, our cover stories, our cover stars promoting our events. So from the pictures, it's important we capture the sponsors of our events. It's part of their package, so they expect that we're going to advertise for them throughout the summer. It also kind of made me realize that a lot of social media is scripted, it's very strategic, and it's the interns that run the pages. We're kind of part of this now generation, so we know the whole, like, social media etiquette, when to post, what to post, what people are going to like. So we're controlling social media, we're controlling communication, and we're controlling how we advertise. 

And then another part of my internship was networking and those interpersonal connections. Much of my networking happened within the office. Like I said, like, the three people that I worked with closely, they were only 24, and I went to high school with two of them. So it was cool to hear their experience because they all went through the internship and then they all got jobs. So it was interesting to hear, you know, what my next steps are in getting a job in this field. 

And so, I also got to learn their style of professionalism, which was kind of unique, how they communicate with clients and how I could communicate with clients at events, and when I would answer calls or see them in the office. I also kind of learned that it's OK to ask for help. It's OK to be unsure of what is expected of me and ask. 

So, lastly, my expectation versus reality-- I thought this internship was going to be a little more structured. I thought I would come in every day and have a list of things I needed to get done and I would know, sitting at a desk, answering calls. But it really wasn't like that. I would come in some days and have one project and some days I would have six projects. So it really depended on the day. 

So there were also, like, three interns in the office every day. So some days they would-- you'd be doing nothing while they were working on a project. And that's kind of-- you're like, what do I do for all this time and I'm just sitting around. But we make it work. 

I also thought it was going to be more of a marketing internship. And I didn't know that I was going to get to work events, so that was really cool because that was my favorite part. I got to meet some cool people. I worked a golf classic. I worked a grand prix [INAUDIBLE]. So I got to meet a lot of cool people and see that whole world. 

So, really, just after spending my whole summer working for a local magazine, it taught that Mount Holyoke really has prepared me to communicate and work with people in a professional way and use my skills that I gained here. I think that, the future, I'd like to work for a bigger magazine and do a little more marketing. So that's kind of what I'm hoping for next summer. But I think it was a good first start. So, thank you.