Devan Perine interned at Anchor Advisors, Ltd. for the last four months. Initially I was hesitant about the value of an intern for my business, but it’s been a terrific experience; we got a lot accomplished and now I’m hooked!

1. Pick a Good One

I found Devan when she sent me a blind email asking if I’d be interested in an intern.  It just so happened that I was looking for an intern at that time, but still I was suspicious. I knew that if I took on an intern it needed to be the right one. After putting her through our extensive interview process we confirmed that she had tremendous potential, work ethic and drive.

2. Get Rid of Those Nagging To-Do’s

There were a number of things on my to-do list that had been there for more than 52 weeks. Yep, they were things I was for sure committed to, I know that they could help grow my business, but I never got them done.  One of the first things I did when Devan came on board was to turn those over to her!  She didn’t get them all done, but the ones she did get done have been terrific. And it’s roughly 100% more progress than I made in the last year!

3. Try Stuff (Inexpensively)

I wasn’t totally sure of Devan’s capabilities, she didn’t have much of a track record doing things that I needed done. So I threw a lot at her, and made sure to check in frequently so that I could redirect her if we weren’t making good progress.

There were some things that we got stuck on. She didn’t know how to get what I wanted, and I didn’t have time to train her. OK, move on to something else. Using this approach we hit on a couple of things that she did a terrific job on.

For several years I have thought about, and planned to create, video testimonials. Short videos that let our clients tell the story of the great stuff they achieved working with us. I gave Devan an inexpensive point and shoot video camera, an old tripod from my closet and a copy of iMovie and told her to shoot some testimonials. For a total investment of just a few hundred dollars I had a pretty swank Video testimonial (Check them out).

4. Once you find something that’s working, Ride it!

It turned out that Devan was great at creating the video testimonials. She was fast, got good content, and really knocked them out of the park. So in four months she created 7 videos.  The 5 we have released have already generated over 200 views. That was something that had been on my mind forever, and now it’s done and working!

5. She’s a keeper

Devan has been such an asset to Anchor Advisors we are finding a way to make sure that we continue to be able to get help from her. Not just on videos, but she’s taking a big role in a new product that we are working on. Just like with the videos, she’s knocking out pieces that have been on my to-do list for a long time.  Yipee!

This internship process has really sold me on having some inexpensive, hardworking, talent as part of the team, it’s moved us forward toward our goals and has freed me from a bunch of tasks that I just wasn’t getting done.

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Brad Farris is a small business advisor with Anchor Advisors, Ltd. in Chicago, Il. Since 2001 Anchor Advisors has been helping creative professional firms to grow, by helping them clarify their purpose, get the most from their people, keep their eye on key performance measures, and implement consistent processes. Brad is also the author of The Business Owner’s Champion: 6 Practices to Build your Nerve and your Business.