My name is Bianca Diaz, and I have had the incredible opportunity to intern at Shedd Aquarium this summer! I am currently the digital marketing intern, working specifically with the marketing team at Shedd, but still collaborating and meeting with all members within the organization. Shedd Aquarium is a not-for-profit, with a mission to “spark compassion, curiosity, and conservation for the aquatic animal world”. Many see Shedd as a Chicago landmark due to its popularity and prominent location on the southern end of Lake Shore Drive. A walk around the aquarium will take you into a world of wonder and awe, as it is the home to over 30,000 animals!
During my workdays at Shedd, I am always on the move and socializing with others. Get a grasp of what I mean by walking through a typical day in the office!
I arrive at 9 a.m. and settle into my desk. After my arrival, I tend to group up with a few other marketing interns and head down to Caribbean Reef to grab content of all kinds of species for Shedd’s social channels. We walk around for about an hour, and then head back up to the office.
At about 10 a.m., I begin to join in on meetings relevant to the project I am currently working on. For example, a substantial part of my internship is assisting in revamping the e-commerce shop on the site. I meet, collaborate, and brainstorm with external and internal partners to bring the project to life. After an hour of meetings, I use the rest of my morning to review, extract, and analyze data from Google Analytics to determine what products and collections should be showcased in the new shop, and in what pages/categories. If I have time left, I hop onto a software Shedd uses to review requests for website changes from teams all around the organization. To keep everything up to date for the public, this helps keep track of certain pages, events, and programs on the Shedd site.
Nearing 12 p.m., the other interns and I head down to the terrace for lunch. We especially enjoy this part of our day, as we get to socialize about our current projects and teach each other more about the organization. The best part is getting to chat all while overlooking an amazing view of the city!
After lunch, the interns and I head back inside to take a seat in the Oceanarium, as we try our best to attend the aquatic presentations. The reason being, as marketers, it is important to learn more about the organization by attending experiences, such as presentations and events, in order to strategize what is working vs. what is not for target audiences. While the guests surrounding us are engaged in the amazing experience of aquatic animals engaging with our animal caretakers, we are taking notes on what can be improved from a marketing standpoint. For example, how can we better promote our newsletter during this show?
Around 2 p.m., I sit at my desk and finish up tasks that I began in the morning. 
During this time, I chat with my supervisor over Microsoft Teams about my projects, creating a game plan for the next day. Although I have my own responsibilities, I love learning about all projects going on at Shedd, so I stay in close touch with the marketing coordinator and join in on a meeting with her and an external partner about paid search! Overlooking marketing topics that I have learned about in my courses at DePaul come to life at a respected organization has been super valuable to me.
Towards 5:00 p.m., I begin to head out. I pass by many guests currently attending after the re-opening due to Covid-19. While Shedd has a capacity limit to ensure the safety of our guests and staff, it continues to strategically draw the public’s awareness and welcome them to visit. It is awesome seeing attendees excited and inspired through being able to look nature in the eye after spending such a long time indoors.
I am thrilled to see what opportunities I have yet to fulfill during my time at Shedd, and grateful for the knowledge I have gained thus far.
