SHOULD YOU HIRE A CREATIVE STUDENT OR INTERN?

I'm sure many creative professionals see the trend of both start-up companies and established companies attempting to save money by hiring students or interns to handle the visual portion of their marketing. Let's explore this current trend.

Saving Costs
It's always a good idea to save costs when possible. However, the visual aspects of any solid marketing strategy should be of the highest standards if the marketing plan is to succeed. A good Creative Director or Art Director can guide an inexperienced creative person to success if that guidance is available. But the trend I'm seeing is that small-medium sized businesses have no Marketing or Creative Director and they are looking to hire an intern or student to take care of their creative needs for marketing.

Tech Before Technique
Many people demand certain types of cameras be used on their photo and video shoots. This is where things get very messy. There are so many "hot" camera models out there. Each professional, (not student) has invested into at least one of the popular brands if not more. Cameras can cost upwards of $3000 just for the camera body. The lenses can cost just as much if not more. Professionals have more than one camera and each will require a set of lenses. There is no such thing as "THE BEST CAMERA". Ignore the buzz words such as DSLR, 4k etc. Each professional has invested thousands of dollars into the camera of their choice and if their work is clearly top-notch, it doesn't matter which brand or model of camera they use. 4K is a hot term. Aside from the ability to show extreme detail in the video, 4k cannot be delivered as a standard resolution for social media marketing at this time. Most consumers see ads on their mobile devices. Even if a site like Facebook could deliver 4k video adverts, the mobile device is likely too small to take advantage of the 4k resolution to make any impact.

No True Marketing Plan
First, many business owners take on the roll of Marketing Director by simply telling a hired hand to create ads, shoot photos or videos. But, the plan may simply be something like this: "We need photos to create an ad" or "We need a video to promote our business". A true marketing plan will have much more involved. A student or intern will not have the expertise or experience to know otherwise. They'll simply do what the employer asks.

What Should Be Done
If you are willing to spend money on marketing/advertising, you need to spend that money wisely. This can break down to 2 things needed.
1. Prepare a marketing or advertising plan after researching the best possible way to make your advertising dollar effective. You'll need to know how to best reach the people that match your business' demographic.
2. You need to define 1 or 2 key hooks that will catch that demographic's attention. Only then can creative and effective ads or videos be created.

Is There a Place for Interns or Students
Yes, under proper supervision, on-the-job experience is the best way to learn. I hire students to help on shoots - but never to take my place at a shoot or editing. It's great way for young people to learn a solid work ethic and a trade. But remember, we all learn from making mistakes. Mistakes are often made by inexperienced individuals making the wrong choices. If you are a business owner, ask yourself the question. Do I want to put my hard earned marketing/advertising money into the hands of an individual that is still learning? Or, do I want to spend it on an experienced individual. It's your business, you want it to succeed. Remember that a person with a camera, software and a computer (tools) does not guarantee they have work experience.

About the author: Richard Cruz Jr. is the owner of RC Video Productions. We bring 20+ years of marketing and production experience to any size of business. Social Media Video Marketing is an ever changing industry. RC Video Productions is proud to offer the most up-to-date marketing strategies to their clients.