Summertime at Launch is one of the best times of the year (if you can get past the heat) because that’s when we recruit the most talented interns to join our crew. It’s always a pleasure to nurture the next generation of our industry and watch their potential flourish, but this summer we got especially lucky with two star-studded creatives. Art director/designer intern Corinne Green and copywriter intern Morgan Martinez made a great team and blew us all away with their invaluable contributions on a wide range of projects. And as summer neared its end, we had to wave goodbye to Corinne and Morgan as they turned their focus toward completing their final year as undergrads. But before they left, we asked them to reflect on their time at Launch.
How did you find out about the Launch internship?
Corinne: I found out about the Launch internship through Connext, a networking/portfolio review event for Graphic Design majors at TCU. I got to chat with Caleb and Isaac and present my portfolio to them there.
Morgan: I found out about the Launch internship through Handshake and applied through that!
Was agency life what you expected?
Corinne: I feel like no one can totally prepare you for what agency life is like unless you are living it! I expected a fast paced, creative, and collaborative environment, and I think that was pretty accurate. Every agency has different clients, different processes, and different values, so it was all new and exciting to learn how Launch does it all.
Morgan: Agency life was different than I expected in a good way. I feel like I got an excellent grasp on what agency life is like this summer!
What was your favorite project you worked on this summer?
Corinne: One of my favorite projects to work on was a poster design for The Ashford Rise School and Touchdown Club of Dallas’s Rise Cup Classic, a golf tournament benefitting education for special needs children. I was able to illustrate elements and take a bit more creative freedom with this project, which was right up my alley.
Morgan: My favorite project this summer was the August Billboard Refresh for Park Place. I’m excited to see them go up!
How would you describe your daily routine?
Corinne: No two days were exactly the same at Launch. On an average day, I would head into the office, check my schedule, and get started on my work. Some days, we would have status meetings, creative check-ins, internal reviews, or client meetings to attend. Others were spent catching up on work and preparing it for presentation. On Wednesdays (some of the best days), lunch was on Launch, and we all ate and laughed together in the conference room. Thursday happy hours on the deck (before it got over 100 degrees) also made the tail-end of the week so fun!
Morgan: There was always something new to do, but my daily routine was typically grabbing a coffee in the morning and driving to the office on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday! After that, I would see if I had any meetings scheduled and/or tasks due, and I would research and write drafts for deadlines approaching.
What was your funniest memory?
Corinne: When Morgan and I (the two interns) both won LCR consecutively, and made it rain with all our ones.
Morgan: My funniest memory is playing Kiki or Booba/Sun or Moon on one of the Happy Hour Thursdays!
What advice would you give a future intern?
Corinne: Ask lots of questions! Questions don’t make you seem clueless, but rather interested and dedicated to learning from the people around you. Also, be very open to criticism and new ways of doing things– absorb all that you can from critiques and explanations, and don’t take anything personally!
Morgan: I would say don’t be afraid of the work and don’t be afraid to ask for help! Everyone is there to support you, and everyone believes in you.
What was the biggest takeaway from your internship?
Corinne: Being trusted to tackle bigger projects as an intern led me to an invaluable experience gaining knowledge and confidence working in an agency setting. I learned how to best collaborate with Morgan (my copywriter partner & fellow intern), ask the right questions during a creative briefing so the account manager can provide the best information, respectfully and promptly communicate with a creative team, and so much more. I feel very prepared to enter the workforce with the experience and mentorship provided by Launch.
Morgan: My biggest takeaway was that talking to others and seeing their work will expand your thinking, and you can always learn something new unexpectedly.
INTERNS SUM UP THEIR SUMMER
We believe in nurturing and inspiring the next generation of industry talent. That’s why every year, Launch seeks out the most promising advertising students and gives them a chance to put what they’re learning in the classroom into practice. So as summer draws to a close, we’re proud to recognize this year’s talented trio of interns. Art director/designer interns Bryce Johnson and Natalie Castillo and account service intern Lucy Galloway all made major contributions and came away with plenty of valuable experience. We asked them to share some of their highlights.
How did you find out about the Launch internship?
Bryce: Launch funds an art director scholarship for my school UNT. I was the winner selected, and it led to an intern position for the summer.
Lucy: I was browsing advertising agencies in Dallas and came across Launch and the internship position. I applied and, the next day, got a message that two Launchers were visiting UT for creative week. I loved talking to them, and knew that this would be a great experience and a great place to work. The rest is history.
Was agency life what you expected?
Natalie: Working at a smaller agency, I feel like things are a bit more personal. Whether it’s happy hour on Thursdays or hearing jokes randomly through the week, I don’t think I would have had quite the same experience at a bigger agency.
Lucy: Launch was ten times better than what I had expected out of agency life and what I have experienced in the past. It is such a creative and collaborative environment and I think that’s a main factor in producing great work.
What was your favorite project you worked on this summer?
Natalie: I really enjoyed the Rise School Round-Up poster and the agency social templates project.
Bryce: The Dallas Cowboys activation for Baylor Scott & White Health was a fun project where I was waaaaay out of my element.
How would you describe your daily routine?
Natalie: Since things were always changing or different assignments were coming up, I don’t think I had the exact same day twice, but I preferred it like that. There was always something new to do, so I was never bored.
Lucy: Wake up, walk to work (I live two blocks away), attend a few client calls in the morning, eat lunch, participate in internal reviews, work on our social platforms, update statuses, look for Wolfie (a wolf man action figure everyone takes turns hiding somewhere in the agency) and walk home!
What was your funniest memory?
Bryce: When I was spitballing with my partner in crime, Nat. I refuse to give our account director, Jason, any credit because his jokes are terrible, but our copywriter, Isaac, coming in with the rimshots always got a laugh out of me.
Lucy: There is always so much fun to be had in this office: Hawaiian shirt Thursdays, happy hours in the office on the balcony, going to Electric Shuffle, doing headstands for no reason, repotting the office plant. But I think my favorite is when they let me think (only for a few minutes) that I was being fired from being an intern. It was all in good fun and, needless to say, it ended happily with me being over the moon to become a full-time Launcher!
What advice would you give a future intern?
Natalie: Don’t beat yourself up. Being able to witness people’s out-of-the-box ideas would kind of discourage me, but I would remind myself that one day I could be on their level. It just takes experience to learn the ropes on how to come up with great ideas.
Lucy: If you are open to working and learning, Launch will give you all the tools you need to be a part of the team and work with clients on actual projects. I think this sets Launch’s internship apart from a lot of others. They understand that busy-work/made-up projects and assignments don’t really help anyone grow.
What was the biggest takeaway from your internship?
Natalie: One, go out to see work and expand your thinking. Two, enjoy your time. The people here are nice with great ideas, so LEARN from them.
Bryce: Great vibes, free food and too many dad jokes.
Interning at Launch: The Inside Scoop
Mentorship and learning are key to adapting and refining one’s skills in the advertising industry. At Launch, we are able to offer internships to young professionals and students who want to learn more about what working at an ad agency is like. Whether it’s creative, account services, copywriting, design, or another area of interest, Launch aims to see interns grow and achieve their goals throughout their time here. Several of our past interns have gone on to work full-time at Launch, as well. We interviewed current and past interns to get an insider perspective on experiences and work they have been involved in.
Megan Robertson, past Intern and current Account Executive
Megan is an Account Executive at Launch, previously interning in the Summer of 2020.
What led you to intern at Launch in the first place?
I was in the interview process my senior year and attended a career fair at SMU. I had the best conversation with the Launch team. I remember feeling an instant connection and sense of ease. I continued to meet more members of the Launch team via zoom interviews throughout the Spring and was offered a full-time account management internship after graduation.
What’s the most important lesson you learned while interning?
The most important lesson I learned while interning was how to adapt my communication style in the workplace. In advertising, you work with many people across multiple teams, brands, and clients. Learning someone’s preferred communication style is a game-changer. Taking the time to understand who might prefer phone calls to emails, or who prefers to chat before meetings vs. diving right into a presentation is crucial. Learning how to effectively communicate with different clients and team members facilitates greater collaboration and builds rapport more quickly.
How have you grown since your internship?
Interning at a smaller agency allows one to wear many different hats and interact with multiple clients. I’ve had the opportunity to reach beyond my account management duties and try my hand at social media content creation, new business development, consumer research, and Google Analytics. Each one of these challenges presents a chance to grow and flex different muscles. Trying new things has instilled a greater sense of confidence in my abilities as I have transitioned from an Intern and Assistant Account Executive to my current role as an Account Executive.
How would you describe the company culture?
The company culture at Launch is one of my favorite things about my job. The stereotypes you hear about ad agencies simply don’t apply to Launch. Everyone is kind, hard-working, and intelligent. It’s very much a work hard, play hard environment. Many of our team members have been with Launch for 5, 10, 15+ years! It’s a true testament to the amazing culture we have at Launch.
What’s a tip you would give to young professionals/new interns?
Be proactive!! Actively looking for ways to be helpful not only increases your value to the company but also allows you to learn new things you may not have experienced otherwise. Look beyond your to-do list and take initiative. You won’t regret it.
Isaac Swedlow, past Intern and current Copywriter
Isaac is a Copywriter and interned during the Summer of 2021.
What led you to intern at Launch in the first place?
I applied to the summer internship at Launch in 2020 right before the pandemic took off. I interviewed over Zoom and got to meet some of the lovely people on the team. Sadly, the creative internships were canceled that year and I was disappointed since I really liked everyone I talked to during my interview. That’s why I was so excited when I saw that Launch was bringing their internship back in 2021. I immediately reached out and sent them my website and resume, and I heard back in just a few days. I feel like I was drawn to Launch because I had missed out on the opportunity to intern there in the past, and I knew I would get great opportunities and be able to work with really amazing and talented people. I ended up getting the internship and the rest is history.
What’s the most important lesson you learned while interning?
The most important lesson I learned during my internship was to not be afraid to ask for help or advice. It doesn’t make you look unknowledgeable or inexperienced, instead it shows people that you are constantly trying to understand the world around you and get better at what you do. It’s a crucial lesson, especially in creative advertising which is such a collaborative field. It can lead to much better work and more fulfillment overall.
How have you grown since your internship?
One of the biggest ways I’ve grown since I began interning is being more comfortable presenting work and ideas, both at internal meetings and during client presentations. When I was in school, I presented work all the time to my professors and the rest of my class, and I got used to it quickly. It feels different though, presenting real work to an actual client. But that’s one of the coolest parts about the internship: I was trusted to present my own ideas to the client and speak for myself. It’s not really something you can learn in a classroom; you just have to learn by doing it. Having the opportunity to practice and develop my presentation skills really helped me grow over the course of my internship, and it’s helped me become a better creative.
How would you describe the company culture?
The company culture at Launch is wonderful. Everyone is friendly and mostly everyone is pretty funny (except Jason, who tries too hard). Besides that, you get the sense that everyone wants to see you succeed and grow, not only at work, but also in your personal life. Everyone feels very close to each other because a lot of them have been working together for a long time. As someone new, that’s one of the clearest signs to me that the culture here is exceptional. Everyone wants to stick around, and even some of the people that leave end up coming back. During my time at Launch I’ve never heard anyone say that they “feel more like a family than a company”. They don’t have to say that because you can just feel it. Also, they’ve got great taste in movies/TV shows. I’ve got a nice long list of recommendations to get through.
What’s a tip you would give to young professionals/new interns?
To any young professionals or new interns, I would say don’t be afraid to voice your opinion. You have the advantage of a fresh perspective that many people may not have if they’ve been in the industry for a while. It might take a new point of view like yours to find new solutions, or a new, more efficient way of doing things. Just because you’re less experienced doesn’t mean you’re wrong. Not to mention you’re probably more in tune with what will resonate with younger generations, which brands are increasingly trying to focus on. Even now, you can start shaping the industry into what you want it to be in the future.
Taya Caligiuri, current Account/Project Management Intern
Taya is a graduate student that is currently an Account Services intern at Launch.
What led you to intern at Launch in the first place?
I discovered Launch through a course in my graduate program. After hearing people from the team talk about the agency and the internship opportunities, I was interested in learning more later on and ended up applying! It seemed like it would be a great place to learn more about what working at an ad agency is like. Plus, the Uptown Dallas office location and company culture I witnessed from their presentation to my class were very unique and attractive. From what I saw then, I had a feeling that the agency aligned with my goals perfectly.
What’s the most important lesson you learned while interning?
The most important lesson I have learned so far is to be proactive. As an intern, I want to learn firsthand from industry professionals as much as I can. Everyone here is willing to mentor and I want to take advantage of that – I try to initiate conversations and go out of my way to see what is needed of me and learn whenever I can.
How have you grown since you began your internship?
While it has only been a month, I believe I have grown in my accountability and flexibility. Launch gives interns real work and values the insights that we can offer the team. I also am given a variety of projects and tasks. Owning my responsibilities while remaining flexible with the scope of work I am given has let me become even more helpful and efficient.
How would you describe the company culture?
Launch’s culture has been amazing to witness and participate in as a young professional. The team really wants to watch you succeed and grow. They are willing to go out of their way to answer questions and help you out. Being able to shadow and learn from these successful people has been very educational. It also is such a fun and engaging environment to be a part of. While the work these people do is extremely professional and serious most of the time, they don’t let it change who they are as people. It’s been so great to get to know the team and have fun in the office together.
What’s a tip you would give to young professionals/new interns?
Remain open to a variety of opportunities! It can be hard to try something out of your comfort zone, or something that you hadn’t previously imagined for yourself. If you are willing to apply to a job or internship in a new area or industry, it could lead you down a really interesting and successful path you never knew could happen!
