Currently studying Advertising at Temple University in Philadelphia, Charlie Clark spent six weeks with us at Creativebrief. Here, he explains what he got up to, snack-related learnings, and the overall differences between US and UK workplaces.

During the last two months of my ‘study abroad term’ in London, I was given the opportunity to ditch my textbooks, get out of the classroom, and into the “real world” as an intern at Creativebrief. With my university studies in the U.S. being centered around advertising and account management, my main goal for the internship was to see brand-agency relationship with my own eyes. I’ve learned plenty about the industry as a student, but never actually lived it!

I learned within the first week working at Creativebrief that I would get a much wider education on the industry. This meant being able to see first-hand how brands and agencies communicate and build meaningful relationships. Simply having the chance to immerse myself in the U.K. advertising industry is a extremely beneficial aspect of the internship process, that will make me a more competitive candidate in the U.S. job market after I graduate. Apparently only 1% of American college students are able to have an international internship experience, so I consider myself very fortunate to be a part of that small percentage.

The American office vs. the UK office

Over the course of my time at Creativebrief I tried to take note of the differences between British and American office culture, and compare my internship to my experiences working in the States. The biggest thing that stuck out to me was the company’s open office plan. Charlie, the managing director, ran the business only a few feet away from me, and always took some time to stop work and chat with the different teams at their tables throughout the day.

This setup differed from my previous internship in New York, where I was confined to a cubicle, kept my headphones in for eight hours, and barely spoke to my co-workers at all. I’ve also worked at companies with much more of a strict power dynamic, with the director having their own office room separated from the rest of the company. There were never any barriers to communication at Creativebrief, whether the conversation was about an agency renewal, or just about whether Wine Gum Sours were better than regular Wine Gums! It really seemed as if everyone at the company cared about each other, and about each others’ lives outside of work. This might have been one of the biggest differences I noticed. In the States, there's much more of a rigid work-life separation, you will rarely see coworkers who are actually friends outside of the 9 to 5.

My focus at Creativebrief

Simply getting away from the classroom and into an office was a huge learning experience, but there was also plenty of other hard and soft skills that I gained during my six short weeks as an intern. Sure, I learned how to use office tools like Hubspot, Excel, and Outlook, but what’s really important was the dialogue I was able to have with brands and agencies using Creativebrief’s platform, with help and encouragement from my coworkers. With Jimmy, Josh, and the rest of the Business Development team, I was able to work on some outreach, contacting agencies through email and phone and learning the delicate art of pitching the Creativebrief to new businesses. Alongside Steph and Sian from the Account Management team, I actually got to attend an agency meeting with Wax/On at their office in Covent Garden. Not only did I learn how to act in a meeting, but I also saw how Creativebrief’s account managers communicate with agencies to figure out how they can both enjoy a more beneficial relationship.

In my final week with Jess and David from the PR/Marketing team, I was challenged to use my research skills on a competitive analysis project, gathering insight on the social media usage and trends of our clients and competitors. This project taught me how important a tool social media is for marketing both brands and agencies, as well helping me form a better picture of Creativebrief’s place in the industry, and how they position themselves compared to other marketing platforms.

Having the opportunity to delve into each part of the company was an outstanding education that will help me both in the classroom next year, and in the job market after I graduate. More importantly was the generosity of the entire Creativebrief team. Being just an intern, the trust that everyone had in me to perform was a huge surprise. With their support I was able to get out of my comfort zone, try new things, and become an entirely more confident person. My six week internship at Creativebrief was short, but nonetheless an experience I will never forget.

You can find Charlie on LinkedIn here.