Hi, I'm Andrea Virrey and on the 19th of March 2018, I embarked on an enlightening and fun journey with igloohome!
I was one of the first Australian interns to work across borders with igloohome via QLC.io. It's a platform that connects Asian start-ups with a pool of university students.
While I’m not too unfamiliar with working with Singaporean start-ups, it was still a fresh and exciting experience. Working like this allowed me to extract new insights, and incorporate new ways of thinking.
Why the unconventional?
Photo credit: Anthill Magazine
There is a stark difference between working remotely and taking up an internship in Australia. For one, my colleagues in igloohome were young - which meant that I could relate to them easily. As opposed to an internship with a corporation, the median age would be much higher.
Secondly, igloohome provided room for flexibility and freedom. This is a huge difference from corporations that possess high levels of formality and regulations.
Lastly, igloohome has a flat chain of command. All colleagues treat one another as family. Whenever I was on a call with them, I’ll hear everyone laughing and enjoying their time together in the background.
My key takeaways
Although my time with them was brief (six weeks to be exact), it was nothing short of fun! Jam-packed with experiences that honed important skills, like research and analytical thinking; I also got to refine soft-skills like teamwork, creativity and business acumen.
Naturally, a fruitful internship comes with several key takeaways and here are mine:
Look at your competitors first
Photo credit: Cog Design
I learnt that competitors are also fighting for consumers’ mindshare. Having a unique selling proposition (USP) is important in any industry. Whether it be design, functionality or features of the product, you need to zoom in on what makes the product unique and base your marketing around that.
Keyword analysis - words are powerful
Photo Credit: Search Engine Land
I loved learning about keyword analysis, and how to utilise Google Keyword Planner/ Google Adwords to strengthen search engine optimisation. I believe it’s a skill that’s high in demand for many employers and agencies these days. I am very glad to have learnt it through igloohome. Understanding keywords and phrases in their respective cultural context proved to be crucial in this respect.
Expand your customer touchpoints, if you haven’t already
Photo credit: Rudra Marketing
Looking for new ways to reach customers, I found, was the fun part! Thinking of how you can leverage different forms of social media, blogs and the like could help to boost visibility. Although this is very much a pull strategy, if done right, it can help to attract the right customers.
It has been a great pleasure to work with yet another start-up, and I would always recommend anyone beginning their career to work for a start-up. With the flexibility they provide, you can rest assured that your ideas will be met with open minds and eager hearts.
Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of any agency of igloohome. Assumptions made in the article is not reflective of the position of any igloohome entity. If we have incorrectly used any media items belonging to anyone without the right accreditation, simply write to us at info@igloohome.co to request a takedown. Removals will be done within 24hrs of acknowledgement.
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