Get to know Hanne Jaspers, a promising marketing student at PXL Hogeschool, who not only explored the world of market research during her internship at One Inch Whale, but also sharpened her own skills. Read on for a behind-the-scenes look at her adventure and her plans for the future.
From speed date to internship
There is no hiding the fact that One Inch Whale likes to support young talent and give them their own platform. In addition to hosting numerous guest lectures in colleges and universities, it annually commits to guiding students in their academic development. This year, that honour fell to PXL Hogeschool student Hanne Jaspers. As a final-year marketing student, she was immediately drawn to One Inch Whale during the PXL Handshake, an event where candidate trainees and companies get to know each other during a speed date.
Hanne: “One Inch Whale appealed to me because of the fun projects they had already done, such as the Cristal XTRA beer. It's very interesting to see what kind of impact market research can have on a brand. So I was keen to learn more about that. Meanwhile, I realise that market research is such an added value for a company, in fact no company can do without it, to do well in the market.”
Unleashing growth potential
This soon became clear to Hanne during the first weeks of her internship. For a number of projects, she got to roll up her sleeves right away. Yet that is not the only thing she was allowed to focus on; she was also able to hone her marketing skills.
Hanne: “The tasks here vary enormously, which creates a lot of variety. On the one hand, I am employed to help with the research projects. On the other hand, I help with the layout of newsletters, creating blog posts on the website and preparing social media content. With the necessary feedback each time, I went back to work, noticing that I have improved a lot of skills. Not just my soft skills, but all the more the hard skills with learning new tools and programmes.”
The journey of discovery
This was possible partly because of the huge commitment that was there from the very beginning of the internship. From day one, she was immersed in team meetings and planning meetings. A lot of info was given to her, but as a result she experienced rapid growth herself. Yet she realises that there is always growth potential.
I'm more than happy to fill my backpack of experience before entering real working life.
Hanne: “All the advice I get now, like feedback on my copywriting, for example, I take with me in my backpack of experience. And I am more than happy to fill it before I enter real working life. But first I will take this backpack with me to Brazil to load it with other experiences during a two-week school project directly after my internship period at One Inch Whale.”
Besides her commitment as a job student in a warehouse, travelling is her favourite hobby. So far, she kept travelling around within Europe, but as a true globetrotter in the making, she will soon be embarking on South America. We wish her all the best!