The Beginning

It’s been a whirlwind. That’s the best way to describe my first month of agency life at the Hive. Well, technically, it’s almost like my second month since I was doing my Conestoga College co-op placement here when COVID-19 hit. Then suddenly, BAM!

✔ Co-op cancelled halfway through

✔Graduation cancelled

✔Awards cancelled 

Welcome to 2020.

I’m not complaining – I’m sad about graduation, but I’m incredibly excited and grateful for this opportunity. In a time when many people are facing some tough challenges, I was lucky enough to land my first gig.

Challenges and solutions 

So far, the greatest challenge I’ve found with working remotely is not what you might think. It’s not motivating myself to get to work while in the comfort of my home – it’s forcing myself to stop working when I’ve put my hours in. 

“One thing you learn very quickly about agency life is that the work never ends, so you need to block out your time and stick to your schedule as best you can.”

The team at Honeypot is great at communicating, and that’s the key. We use Slack, and it’s pretty awesome. We can create separate chat rooms for clients and projects – and clients can view and participate, which creates a nice sense of transparency; and, we can host virtual video meetings. I love our daily morning meetings, where we go over each person’s tasks for the day. It helps me prepare and gives me an overview of everything happening on the team. 

Life in the Trenches

Learning to keep up with the pace of agency life has been fun and challenging, and working with such a talented team has been incredibly rewarding and insightful. It’s amazing how much I’ve already learned. There’s so much more to digital marketing than what I was expecting. After 2 years of learning design principles and marketing strategies, it’s surprising that I still have so much to pick up.

 “I did so well in school that I didn’t expect to feel like a deer in the headlights – but I did.” 

I’m excited to take a deep dive into SEO and social media community management, two areas that were not heavily covered in my program. Learning how the backend works, how to read and construct analytics reports, and how to use those numbers as guides for strategy is fascinating. Machine learning blows me away – not in a Terminator sort of way, though. It’s crazy and amazing that it works so well.

Then there’s social media. It’s a beast – a fluid platform connecting the world and bringing communication to a new level. Learning how to build relationships and develop communities is exciting and a never-ending learning experience. Delicious sustenance for my curious brain and those warm feels when you connect with people is unmatched. 

My Insights as a New Digital Marketer 

Trends in digital marketing seem to be in constant flux. What matters right now is genuine transparency and value. That’s what people want from marketing. If we’re honest with ourselves, most people don’t like marketing and don’t think very highly of it.

Trust is a big issue. 

In the past and even now, unfortunately, marketers have used some pretty unethical and questionable tactics, to say it nicely. It’s an uphill battle, but so is all change. I’m excited to be part of a team that believes in a better way and is leading the charge to less pushy and deceptive strategies that have value for both the company and the consumer. Honeypot Marketing truly is a special ops digital marketing team, and I’m happy and grateful to be part of it.