Exercising what I know and gaining confidence

This week at my internship I have had the opportunity to “exercise what I know”, that which I’ve spent the last 2 years learning in my degree and practising through my outlook into the design world. Branding is not only my passion but also where a lot of my knowledge lies when it comes to my field of practice and I have been able to use this knowledge and technique of understanding to carry out a brand audit.
It is my understanding that a brand audit takes an overlooked view, initially as an outsider, into how the brand presents itself to the consumer and then, more specifically how its internal strategy and management plays a role in how the brand operates. In order to answer the question: do these two things go hand in hand well enough to drive the brand forward and present its best self?
I started by looking into the competition, what are they doing, how are they doing it and is it successful? It is this type of understanding where I really see the effects of my degree coming into play. I am able to analyse both the aesthetic but also the business and strategy side. I chose 5 brands that have a model that aligns with our brand and compared & contrasted what they do well. By doing this I was able to see where we could push the thinking and produce content that puts our brand above the rest. This research concerned website content, social media output, copywriting and graphic design in order to understand what their main focus was and why they are succeeding in the field.
After an on-off week of researching and understanding, I presented my findings to the head of design and branding, the senior digital marketing manager and the brand operations manager. This was a nerve-racking experience, where initially I doubted my credibility and the deck I’d put together; but I realised its all about wavelength. I was considering the brand in a certain way and by presenting my findings in a way that told the story of my thinking allowed the meeting room to all be on the same page. After the presentation, we were able to brainstorm from the findings and decide where to take the project next. I came out with a strong sense of achievement and confidence in my ability in this field, after all, if I didn’t feel this way, my studies would have been worthless; it is rewarding to know I am capable of using my skills and knowledge within a real-life situation.
Next week myself and my team go on to present further work on this project to the group directors and make decisions on where to go next. There is more work to be done but I will be going into it with a prominent sense of self-belief and I feel like having that confidence undoubtedly boosts your findings.
(Featured image is a lovely piece of concerning having confidence in Shoreditch, why have should broccoli be just one colour!)