My First Client Meeting

Conference Room

A couple of weeks ago, I had the privilege of attending a real eBoost Consulting meeting with one of their clients.  My mentor, Johnny Chan, was the Meeting Facilitator.  He basically made sure that everyone stayed on track with the topic and moved the meeting along as efficiently as possible.  Marko Nikolic gave the main presentation to the clients about  SEO (Search Engine Optimization) recommendations for improving their website and evaluate their scheduling of completion.  AND…I (Ruthie) was the quiet intern that observed the entire meeting with a notepad and pen. =) I was very impressed to  witness the strategy behind SEO and all the work and research done by eBoost Consulting.

Before interning at eBoost Consulting, I never really knew the depth of “Search Engine Optimization.”  I was confused at first on why SEO was beneficial to a company’s website and how it worked.  For a quick understanding of what SEO is all about, “Search engine optimization (SEO) is the process of improving the volume or quality of traffic to  websites from search engines (Google, Yahoo, etc) via “organic” or un-paid search results.  Typically, the earlier (or higher) a site appears in the search results list, the more visitors it will receive from the search engine.”  If your curious to see how SEO is done The eBoost Way, check them out!!

I still have a lot to learn about digital marketing, especially about SEO.  I look forward to sharing my future experiances at eBoost with you, whether it be other client meetings  or my own rambling of gossip here in the office.  Shhh….only if you don’t tell.  Comments and/or suggestions are greatly appreciated!  Happy Monday!

Ruthie Sanchez

Fired up and ready to go!

It has been a couple of weeks now since I started the eBoost internship, and after completing such tasks as creating personas [Translation = fake people], my website’s wireframe and working on some business development projects Nick assigned, the learning curve keeps growing. And lo and behold, I am not talking about the art of learning how to brew coffee. As a matter of fact, coffee is ever-flowing in the office, and I could probably use some training on that too, I am sure, since it has been years since my last cup of freshly brewed coffee.  But the next step of the internship program is to work on your website; now, who said that creating a website from scratch was easy?

I have to admit though,I now know that those who are able to do it are geniuses! It took me 4 hours last Friday to figure it out and I still need to spend more time figuring it out….But I am fired up with the idea that I am going to get some expert advice and training on building my very own website versus just taking a class – fun fun fun.

This is what I like about eBoost, their interns get hands on experience because of the do-it-yourself and figure it out mentality that motivates us to try and give it our best.  You are taught some basics and then asked to apply them. You then find yourself either excelling at the assigned task(s) or going through the ’figuring it out’ process… At least some of them you will excel at. In my case, I am still figuring out the how-to’s of html, and the road to excelling at it is an ambition in the making.
After the website development, I am positive that the learning curve won’t stop growing and it will take more than the assigned 240 hours if I really want to keep learning. In the meantime, I will keep trying.                                                   

Fired up and ready to go!

Ashmina Aullybux

Meet the New Interns (Alpha Zeta Omega)…

Rock Star: Ashmina

Meet Ashmina: I am currently a marketing student at SDSU and aspiring world traveler….well, just a thought for now until I really decide to put that into practice.  On a more serious note, I do enjoy traveling, in fact, originally from Mauritius, (can you tell me from the top of your head where it is on a map?)  I have been in the U.S. for the past 5 years.  I also went to Paris, Brittany, Monaco and Maui – Hawaii.  Some of my favorite things to do, besides interning at eBoost Consulting, is going to the beach, eating ice cream and also eating in general, hiking, watching movies, and going out everywhere and anywhere – I am always up for a road trip!   =)

Why did I choose eBoost Consulting?: It is the best place to intern in San Diego, I have my own personal mentor [What's up Nick?], they trained me before my start date, I get to learn how to build my own website and most importantly, they care about what they do, have a laid back organizational culture, and are really passionate.

Rock Star: Ruthie

Meet Ruthie: I recently graduated from college in Northern California last June with a Bachelors degree in Marketing.  I absolutely love music, specifically singing and playing guitar.  I am so stoked to be back in San Diego close to my family and friends.  Besides interning for eBoost Consulting, I am “trying” to look for a part-time job. =)  I am also working on my parent’s family business website.  All of the new website building tools that I have been learning at eBoost Consulting is not only helping me better my skills, but also my parents business.  My most obsessive  secret hobby  (Shhh!..) has to be hands down… video games!  “Work hard, play hard!”

Why did I choose eBoost Consulting?: I realized quickly how important getting experience really was when looking for a full-time job after college.  So, the reason why I decided to apply for an internship with eBoost Consulting was to  gain experience in my field and further my marketing knowledge.  I noticed immediately at my interview and first week of orientation/training that everyong at eBoost Consulting was extremely nice and helpful.  I have been here exactly one month and I am still happy that I choose to intern for eBoost Consulting.

Rock Star: Trung

Meet Trung: I am a marketing student at San Diego State University, two short semesters away from graduating. I am interested in digital marketing, creating online businesses, and mobile development. I enjoy looking for needs and trying to develop ways to satisfy those needs. I also enjoy playing music (www.myspace.com/dabears) and skateboarding (www.theskatespot.com).

Why did I choose eBoost Consulting?: I  heard so many great things about the eBoost internship program and wanted to experience it for myself.  I wanted to learn more about digital marketing and how to effectively apply it to get results.

And a New Chapter Begins

So for my last blog as an eBoost Intern, I’d like to leave the new class with some lessons and tidbits that I have learned over the past 3 months.

Learn to be a “thinker”, not a “do-er”

One of the most valuble lessons is to learning how eBoost thinks and works.  I’ve personally learned a lot about the  importance of planning and knowing WHY you are executing.  Before I came to eBoost I was of the philosophy “throw it against the wall and see what sticks”.  I still have to fight that tendency, but after a couple painful lessons here, I’ve learned that the method of business wastes time and your competitors will demolish you.

Dave "Bad Fish" Wayman

Get a good nickname.

Everybody is going to get a nickname.  If you get one that you like, pretend you hate it, so it will stick.  You are particularly vulnerable to getting your honorary title during training time and your first couple weeks.  Watch yourself…especially around Megan and Amber

Prepare to feel overwhelmed and to be pushed by both your interns and consultants

When choosing interns, we were selecting not only on your invididual merits but also on how you could uniquely contribute to the  team.  You were chosen for talents that you have and your potential to teach these to your peers.  If you are feeling comfortable, you aren’t maximizing your time at eBoost, and trust me, those hours will go faster than you think.  Make the most of them.  Push your interns to reach their maximum potential, and they will do the same to you.

Have Fun

Its so cliche, but if you aren’t having fun at eBoost, something is wrong.  Talk to your mentor about it.  Don’t have fun ALL the time … but in general if you wake up dreading going to work, even with a hangover, you aren’t maximizing your time here.
Well, those are the only secrets I am going to reveal, the rest you will learn by yourselves, and I can’t wait to see what Alpha Iota is capable of and what you will accomplish (in my case, I will be especially be interested in where you take the Social Media aspect of the internship).

David Wayman

eBoost Intern (well… for the next 75 minutes)

Making Fake People

One of your first tasks as an eBoost Intern is making Personas.  Personas are fake people – potential customers for the product or service that you are selling to.  To give you an example, I decided to use the San Diego MTS Bus Route 1 as a company that I am fictitiously marketing for and am going to make Three  personas to demonstrate in a simplified version of what they are.

1) Sir Talks A Lot

Sir Talks a lot is a 65 year old man who uses the bus daily.  He fought in the Vietnam and Korean Wars and loves to chat with strangers on the bus.  He smells of cigarettes and booze and wears his bus pass like a badge of honor around his neck.

Goals: To ride around making new friends, impressing males with his war stories, and flirting/harassing Cute Girl.

Pain Points: Passengers who ignore him, Passengers who are listening to iPods, Passengers who take the aisle seat when the window seat is open.

Cute Girl

2) Cute Girl

Cute girl is a 23 year student of SDSU.  Her car recently broke down and she has to use the bus to get to class and her job.  She looks at the passengers with disgust and tries her best not to touch any part of the bus.

Goals: To arrive at school or work as soon as possible, to avoid having any of her friends see her get off the bus, maximize time sitting alone, avoid sitting next to Thinks He’s a Stud

Pain Points: Sitting next to Thinks He’s a Stud, Dirty seats, Passengers who talk to her, iPhone running out of batteries

3) Thinks He’s a Stud

Thinks He’s a Stud is a 25 year old intern of eBoost.  He takes the bus to work since he lives less than 2 miles away and hates dealing with parking.  He typically listens to his iPod, but if Sir Talks a Lot engages him in conversation he thoroughly enjoys hearing about stories about the enemy being mowed down with machine gun fire and well thrown grenades in service of country.  When going on the bus, he quickly scopes out to see if Cute Girl has an empty seat next to her, if not he will take an aisle seat to see the street numbers easier, so he doesn’t miss his stop and get off 10 blocks later when he has a meeting with his mentor at 10 AM.

Goals: Maximize time sitting next to Cute Girl, Getting to work on time to make Evan his coffee, Sitting on a seat without debris of vomit

Pain Points: No spaces next to Cute Girl, Cute Girl choosing to sit next to Sir Talks a lot instead of him, Having to wait more than 45 seconds for his bus to pick him up

As you can see, this is a great way to express your creativity; and if you don’t consider yourself a creative person, you will be within two weeks of being an eBoost Intern.

We are currently taking applications for our Internship Program, we invite you to apply, and watch our video to get an impression of our personality and what we do.

David Wayman

eBoost Intern

Field Trip

eBoost interns spend a lot of time in the orange room in front of a computer.  It can be a bit of burn after a while, and occasionally I just stand up and walk around outside for a few minutes to reset.

Sometimes, however, I have gotten my hands dirty.  You could almost call it a field trip.

eBoost wanted to build a little widget for a client to use as link bait.  It was a great idea and something that everyone has wanted at one point or another, but does not currently exist.  I can’t say too much until it comes out, but let’s say that it deals with something that almost everyone wears everyday: shoes.

The problem is that we needed data, and we quickly discovered that publically available data was unreliable.  We even contacted shoe manufacturers, and they did not have enough reliable data to help us out.  So, we took matters into our own hands.  I drove to our client’s warehouse equipped with a tailor’s measuring tape, calipers, a long list.  I wandered through the huge warehouse with thousands of shoes piled high looking for specific models and sizes.  It was overwhelming.

I pulled a shoe box off the shelves, the shoes out of the boxes, measured them to within a millimeter or two, and put them back.  Then I did it again.  And again.  And again.  I did this for 6 hours.  The guys in the warehouse thought I was crazy.

OnceI got back and started putting together some data, and it looked funny.  Things just didn’t add up, and at first it seemed that I completely messed up.  But as I dug a little deeper, with the help from some shoe manufacturers, I discovered that my data was correct.  Turns out, shoes are goofy.

But we needed more data, so I went back to the warehouse a few days later.  By this time, I was a shoe measuring expert, and I did the same amount of work in half the time.  And I got great data.

The result, I hope, will really help our client.   And it was nice to play around… I mean, ummm, work hard… in a big, hot warehouse for a couple days.

-David Twining

eBoost Intern

When Parents Join Facebook

Don't worry mom, thats a soda

We’ve all heard of how potential employers are examine our social media sites, but now we have another reason to watch what content we display.  I am beginning to see more and more parents are joining facebook (I friend them of course…I love embarassing my friends).  To help deal with this awkward situation,  I decided to write a survival guide for us Facebook veterans.

1) Immediately untag yourself from all undergraduate photos.

Best times of our life right?  Unfortunately for some of us (excluding me ) undergraduate pictures show our wild side.  I love seeing pictures of my friends shot-gunning beer, french kissing handles of liquor, and performing keg stands; however it MIGHT give mom and dad the wrong impression.  As much as it pains me to say – ladies, any Halloween pictures, have to get rid of them – Dad wont’ like.   He is also not going to like seeing his son dress as a Hooter’s waitress either – use your judgement.

Alternative: Re-edit your comments to:  “Playing Root Beer Pong”, “Drinking apple juice out of a Jameson bottle”, “Acting drunk for school play” etc.  Minimize alcohol references.

2)  Examine your choice of groups and pages

Good Choices:  “I spend all day at the library”, “4.o students unite!”, “I refuse to date until I am 30″, “Beer tastes bad!”

Bad Choices:  “Marijuana should be legal!”, “Let me see that thong!”, “I sleep through all my classes”, “Beer Pong!”

3)  Status Updates
Status updates should contain words like: “studying”, “working hard”, “value education”, etc.

Words to avoid: “Hungover”, “Just spent all my money”, “Cramming”, “Slept through my morning class…AGAIN”, “April 20th is NEXT WEEK!”.

You get the picture.

Sooner or later, you will have to face the inevitable… our parents are getting with the times and are going to infiltrate our social media sites.  Plan accordingly.

David Wayman

eBoost Intern

Coffee Does What???

As an intern at eBoost, I learned that many people in this office (cough..Evan…) are extremely addicted to coffee. I have recently fallen back into the terrible habit after barely keeping my eyes open due to lack of sleep. I went to target and purchased chocolate-flavored coffee, creamer and splenda for extra sweetness. Excited about my new purchase, I began to drink coffee every morning again until I was numb to the “buzz” that it normally gives you.

The other day I started thinking about coffee again and wondered if there are really side effects that cause damage to your body (and brain). After doing some research, I was surprised with my findings. As you may already know, coffee is addictive, it is a stimulant, it alters the mood and it is not good for weight loss (not to mention Bad Fish is jittering next to me as I write this…).

First, coffee causes problems psychologically. “Coffee fits neatly into the receptors for a brain chemical known as adenosine, which is partly responsible for calming you down. By interrupting the activity of adenosine, coffee makes you feel awake and wired.  The added stimulation and nervousness from the coffee makes you feel edgy at exactly the time that feeling calm would be a blessing due to the fluctuations in blood sugar.” (www.yourtotalhealth.com)

Second, coffee causes physiological problems by stimulating the adrenals, which are the glands responsible for stress hormones. Coffee constantly attacks these glands along with other factors such as sugar and stress. Avid coffee drinkers should monitor their intake because this can ultimately lead to a condition known as adrenal exhaustion.

Next, coffee plays havoc with your blood sugar. “The body treats a coffee jolt as a “stress response” much like the adrenals shooting a jolt of adrenaline into the system.  It signals the body to release sugar into the blood, to be used as fuel for the muscles. But nowadays, it just signals the release of sugar, which releases insulin. After only a couple of hours of jitteriness your blood sugar and energy levels are in the toilet and you’re reaching for more sugar or junk food to bring you back up”. (www.yourtotalhealth.com)

Other side effects include difficulty sleeping, suppression of appetite, stimulation of cravings later in the day, and secretion of minerals such as magnesium, potassium and sodium. Next time you brew that ‘cup of joe’, decide if coffee is worth inflicting these problems on your body and brain. Take care of the one you have because you will need it when you become an eBoost intern!

Heather Pimentel

Making an Amateur Video @ eBoost

Alpha Gamma Omega

One of the most fun/pull-your-hair-out projects is making a promotion video for the next intern class.  For those not familiar with the eBoost internship; it is the interns that select the next class (yes, that includes me), not the consultants.  We are the ones solely responsible for representing the eBoost intern brand and attracting qualified candidates; something in which previous classes have done an exceptional job at.

It took us over six weeks of planning, filming, and editing, but under the kick-ass leadership of Strawberry Shortcake, and brilliant creativity of “From Brazila” and “Show n Tell” we finally went live today – and we are proud.  Making this video taught me some things about myself and others:

1) The Value of Planning:

The biggest challenge in making this video was our different schedules.  It was amazingly difficult to get all of us in the office at the same time, so dividing the responsibilities beforehand was absolutely crucial for our success.  This was especially difficult for me, as when faced with a big task, I want to dive in immediately, get my hands dirty right away and see what works and fails.  Working with my mentor, and making this video has taught me how essential planning is.  When  something goes wrong (which it will), you are able to adjust quickly and still meet your deadline. Because of our planning we were able to overcome a couple hiccups and go live on our scheduled date.  If you are like me and are impatient and scared of big tasks, eBoost will retrain your mind to handle projects like this in a logical and calm manner.

2)  Relying on Others

Egos have no place at eBoost.  If you are weak and/or deficient in an area, you will seek help and assistance from fellow interns or consultants or everyone will fail.  I’ve learned that humility is an asset here, and pride really does come before the fall.  If you do have a big ego and are afraid to admit weakness, leave it at the door, or you won’t make it at eBoost.  Our team did an excellent job at delegating the appropriate responsibilities to those with strengths – however we all had to either assist or lead in tasks that we were weak in – resulting in all of us improving in some areas.  Some may argue that this lead to an inferior video – but at eBoost we are willing to lose a few battles (like a slightly less than optimal video) to win the war (having all the interns gain new skill sets for future endeavors)

3)  Don’t be Afraid

Before this video I had ZERO experience with creating or editing videos.  Throughout this project I had to do a significant amount of both.  The pre-eBoost Dave would have been full of panic and looked like a deer frozen in headlights about to be demolished by a mac truck.  However at eBoost, it is not that uncommon (actually its very common) to be assigned projects and tasks that you have little to no experience in.  Working with Windows Movie Maker was not my finest moment, but thanks to Shortcake’s mentoring, I was able to get enough guidance to edit and add sound to various clips.  I even started enjoying myself, which I hope is apparent in our finished project.  If you become an eBoost intern, you will learn to stop doubting yourself and to not be afraid.

If you are curious about what all this hard work led to, are interested in what the eBoost internship is like, or want to apply for our fall class, check out our video - and let us know what you think.

And for those who had a dirty thought from the title of this  … SHAME ON YOU!

David “Bad Fish” Wayman

eBoost Intern

Persistance.

I recently took a three and a half week vacation to my home town in NJ.  I was the best man in my friends wedding, participated in an awesome bachelor party (which will be blogged about later), and learned a very valuable lesson in persistence.

I was picked up from the airport by my good friend Phil and was driven to his house.  I was in a good mood, mostly from the free scotch I received on the plane for giving up my seat for a family, and we arrived at his condo after a twenty minute ride.  I was greeted warmly by his fiance, and not so warmly by his Yorky terrier, appropriately named Rocky.

Rocky decided right off the bat that he hated me and wanted me out of the premise immediately.  He tried to throw around his weight (all 7 lbs of it) by barking viciously at my feet.  I chuckled to myself and was trying to calculate in my mind how far he would fly if I decided to punt him like a football.  (Don’t worry PETA, I didn’t actually do it) Rocky was put in his crate for not treating the guest warmly, and I shortly went to bed, as I was on west coast time.

7 lbs of raw persistance

Both Phil and his fiance left the house at 6 am to go to their respective jobs (this is 3 am my time.).  This was too much for Rocky to handle and he started to bark in that annoying shrill, yet hilarious bark that tiny dogs have.  Here is a brief timeline of what took place.

6:00 am.  – Rocky starts barking.  Dave wakes up very groggy and feeling the scotch from the night before.

6:05 am. – Rocky is still barking and Dave patiently waits in his air mattress for Rocky to give up, so he can return to his dreams of Jessica Biel, homecooked meals, and vast wealth and power.

6:30 am. – Dave gives Rocky a nod of respect.  This little bugger knows what he wants.

7:15 am. – Dave gives up on Jessica Biel, puts his pillow over his head and patiently waits for Rocky’s voicebox to give out.

8:15 am. – Dave’s temper is starting to rise.  Rocky has kept the same pitch and same rhythm for 2 hours and 15 minutes now.

8:45 am. – Dave’s stomach decides it wants bannana nut cheerios.  Dave goes down and gives it some.

8:47 am. – Dave gets a bright idea.  Poor Rocky is hungry.  He finds the treats and goes back up stairs.

8:48 am. – Rocky’s barking doubles in volume when Dave enters room.  Swallows treats in between barks.

8:49 am. – Dave leaves.

10:30 am. – Dave tries using a calm voice explaining how is he the house owner’s best man and that he poses no threat.  Rocky is not convinced.

11:30 am. – Dave decides Rocky needs an outlet, grabs a leash and walks towards the crate.

11:31 am.  Dave’s fingers nearly get bitten off as he tries to open the crate.  Dave decides to drink a beer.

11:40 am. Barking continues, Dave momentarily loses his temper and calls Rocky a nasty name.  Dave decides to have another beer.

12:00 pm.  Rocky has hit the 6 hour mark without a break.  Dave is a feeling a little bit better from his third beer and decides this will be a great story to tell, takes pictures of Rocky with MacBook.  Rocky pauses for 10 seconds trying to decipher what the MacBook is.

12:38 pm.  Dave finally loses it.  He storms into the room and launches a barrage of common profanity at an animal that he has almost 170 lbs on.

12:39 pm.  Rocky realizes Dave means business.  Barking stops.  Dave’s barking continues and he starts to invent his own profane words.

12:40 pm.  Dave runs out of gas, glares at Rocky who retreats to the back of the crateand is silent the rest of the day.

Yeah, thats right SIX hours and FORTY minutes of straight barking.  He launched mental warfare at me.  We did make up nice when some other guests showed up at the house, and he even let me hold him.  Two days later when I left to go home, he ran outside, barked at me twice and ran back inside…  He never quit.

So my new role model for persistance isn’t a major sports figure, famous businessman, or even an eBoost consultant.  Its a 7 lb yorkie terrier who knew what he wanted.

Rock on Rocky.

Dave Wayman

eBoost Intern