My Time Interning at SpacePortX by Manit

How do I describe being an intern at SpacePortX?

Well, my time at SpacePortX has been jam packed and amazing, from developing my social media marketing skills to networking with entrepreneurs in Manchester’s buzzing startup and tech community, to developing my startup IMPACT and to getting fully immersed in SpacePortX’s fun, relaxed, yet driven culture - it’s been a whirlwind of learning, laughing and getting stuff done!

Everyday there was something exciting to look forward to, whether it’s an event, getting to learn about a new startup, or meeting a new entrepreneur - you’re not tied to one desk and moving around is part of the fun at a co-working space like SpacePortX

I was given loads of tasks and responsibilities that made me feel empowered and quickly helped me to fit in to SpacePortX’s culture.

I came to SpacePortX initially wanting to develop my marketing skills, but I’ve developed so much more than that. I was given the task to handle SpacePortX’s social media channels including Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and I also started LinkedIn marketing. I had to find, create and curate content from several sources and I have also written several blogs and articles which really improved my style of writing that was Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) friendly.

Want to see some of the fun things I’ve put together? Check these out:

• 5 Reasons SpacePortX is the Place for Tech Startups
• Manchester Entrepreneurs Accelerates IMPACT
• Why We’re Supporting Manchester Social Entrepreneurs

Towards the second half of my internship, I was also given the responsibility to co-organise Silicon Drinkabout Manchester with Vim and Katrina which I was really happy to do. I was also responsible for handling Silicon Drinkabout Manchester’sTwitter account which challenged my time management and social media marketing skills as I was simultaneously managing social media accounts for SpacePortX, Silicon Drinkabout Manchester and my very own startup IMPACT through Tweetdeck! I was introduced to Tweetdeck at the beginning of this internship and this had made social media management on twitter very convenient as I could monitor several accounts and hashtags all in one screen!

Throughout my internship at SpacePortX, I met with Jamil Khalil, founder of Wakelet on several occasions, as he was a mentor for startups and that led me to learn more about the content curation platform and create a wakelet profile for both SpacePortX and IMPACT

Besides social media marketing, I was also responsible for keeping the SpacePortX website up to date with all the events and blogs. Another area that interning with SpacePortX allowed me to develop my skills in was in events management. For each event, I had to promote it through social media and had to prep the event space for it according to the style of the event - whether it was a networking event, a presentation, a combination of the two or even a party!

There was also one week where I was given the opportunity to run SpacePortX as a Community Manager when Vim went away for holiday. This was the biggest responsibility I had here at SpacePortX, which included all my social media and event management tasks I had before but on top of that I had to schedule in viewings for people who were interested in working and setting their startup at SpacePortX. I had to maintain the space, make sure all the post and deliveries were given to the right startups and book in meeting rooms and event space when people needed them. This not only gave me an insight to a managerial role but also got me fully immersed in the working culture and expectations at SpacePortX, which is something that I am very happy to have achieved.

I met Michelle Hua founder and director of Made With Glove whilst interning here at SpacePortX and, because I became interested in what she was trying to achieve, I helped her craft her personal website which was a very fun and exciting process. Michelle also helped me understand different forms of legal structures of a business with her experience as a lawyer and this really opened my eyes to all the specific legalities to be aware of when starting a startup. It’s all about knowledge sharing at SpacePortX, everyone here, is here to help. It’s an incredible environment to be a part of.

Even though all this involved a lot of hard work throughout the day, I had to make time for my own startup as well. Being at SpacePortX was the best place for me to be in because I made incredible connections that allowed me to develop and take IMPACT to the next level in terms of getting publicity and making IMPACT known to the Manchester tech and startup community. Receiving advice from different entrepreneurs at different stages of their business was really helpful and shaped the new look of the online store www.nowimpact.co.uk!

Okay… I know I may have made it seem that interning at SpacePortX is hard work but don’t forget that this is an awesome space to be at - there’s table tennis table, a dartboard, a foosball table, and of course very lovely people and every now and then I would go and spend my time playing darts or table tennis with other entrepreneurs and co-workers.

I really enjoyed interning here at SpacePortX and I can’t believe how fast time has flown and now I’m about to progress into my third and final year of my Management (Marketing) degree at the University of Manchester. (I also can’t believe how fast time has flown with University! :( ).

If you’re looking for an internship and are up to the task of handling social media channels and events management, feel free to contact Vim and she’ll introduce you to the Manchester’s wonderful tech and startup community!