Lemonly-Intern-Rachel-First-Week-PhotoWeek one is in the books and what a wonderful journey this Lemonly internship has been so far! After being blown away by the impressive clientele, work ethic, company culture and talented staff I mentioned after day one, I’m definitely looking forward to what’s ahead.

For me, I like to learn by doing and diving in headfirst to new projects and learning experiences — and so far, I’ve had some awesome introductory assignments. During my first week, I’ve conducted research for an annual report using Google Analytic data, wrote a few blog posts and read a hefty amount helpful material. I also started writing copy for my first infographic project!

Becca Eisenhauer, Project Manager, helped me get organized and start writing an infographic about state parks in California. She explained how to get started and assemble lines of text for the designers, and examples of information that can be turned into sweet graphics and visuals.

It has been said that the early stages of an infographic aren’t pretty. At this step, you spend time acquiring data and writing the first draft of copy. I can now attest that the above statement is true since my first draft was quite ugly. 🙂

From what I understand so far, the copy needs to be direct, conversational and lean — no flabby text allowed. It’s important to think of how the design and copy can work together to support the story’s goal and purpose. Thinking of phrases that draw the eye throughout the entire piece helps unite it as a concise, cohesive whole.

The text for any infographic may start out as a cumbersome mess of stats and jumbled-up phrases, but I’ve always been told it’s ok to start with too much. A big part of writing I enjoy is revising sentences and chopping unimportant details. After all, a well-edited infographic is just as important as the well-designed one.

Becca and Morgan Hauck, Community/Project Manager, helped me edit and polish up the text, and we’re just about ready to hand it off to the design team!

As I develop an understanding of the efficient and effective design process here at Lemonly, it makes me excited to see the client-approved end product. Looking forward to more projects ahead!

 

Stay tuned!

– Rachel