No pain, no gain…. The intern: part one.

Hi guys,

Well it has been a couple of days since I started my internship at Blast Communications, Port-Louis, Mauritius.  I have to admit that I struggled to find a quality PR placement opportunity but my determination finally paid off and I am fully enjoying this fantastic chance to enhance my communication skills through working and learning from quality PR professionals. I decided to complete my placement in Mauritius because I think it is more relevant for my career plans as I am considering to work back home after finishing university.

Blast Communications is a fully independent agency specialised in Public Relations, IMC and training. The company also offers its services to various organisations operating in countries of the Indian Ocean region.

During my first days I was assigned to the Media monitoring department. Not the most thrilling duties but it has a vital role and has to be done meticulously to satisfy the clients.

Through media monitoring, the clients benefit from the following:

• ·         Staying abreast of breaking news on selected topics, including dailies, weeklies, magazines, trade journals, wire services, government sites, message boards, and public discussion forums, Web sites, social media sites and influential blogs.
• ·         Access monitoring reports through daily e-mail alerts.
• ·          We gauge whether discussions about the brands or organisation are positive, negative or neutral so to be able to make adjustments to marketing messages.
• ·          We identify frequently discussed topics around brands or organisation and competitor's  to get a feel for what interests your target audience

 I acknowledge that this time consuming and wearisome but it is a fundamental tool. But this week I am looking forward to be part of the core PR team and learn more about PR practice in the small but growing Mauritian PR sector.

Enjoy your internships!