Solve Challenges Agency Internship Programmes

Minneapolis agency Solve is using a unique approach to promote its summer internship and evaluate applicants. This week the agency posted custom, handwritten letters at key, on-campus locations of targeted universities to announce its program. The letters stress the importance of authentically connecting with people and refer to it as a founding principle of the fast-growing agency. Further, the letters outline an application process far different than competitors requiring prospects to condense resumes into 140 characters, create videos, funny gifs, fake campaigns and answer irrelevant, nonsensical questions. Solve is simply asking for a resume and cover letter...to be sent (via mail) to the agency.

“Regardless of constantly evolving platforms and technology, brand communication has always been about genuine connections,” says Ryan Murray, Solve Account Director and intern program leader. “This fundamental truth inspired our approach...we want to reach out to potential applicants in a personal, straightforward way and ask them to respond in kind, so we can actually get to know them,” Murray adds.

The announcement letters were individually hand-lettered on parchment paper and feature a Solve wax seal as their signature. Hanging in designated areas and bulletin boards on university campuses, the letters are the sole outbound communication of Solve’s intern program. The internship is open to students and recent graduates pursuing agency careers in account management, strategy and media planning. Applicant resumes and cover letters must arrive at Solve by March 24, 2014.