Exploring Finnish Happiness: Experiences from Digital Marketing Traineeship at Visit Finland
As a digital marketing trainee, Ann Dänner delved into the secrets of Finnish happiness and its global impact, through her journey, she uncovered valuable insights and strategies in the field of marketing.
How can a recent international graduate contribute to promoting Finland to travellers around the globe? This was the question I had the opportunity to explore during my one-year traineeship at Business Finland.
Designing and executing impactful global marketing campaigns that reach hundreds of thousands of people worldwide can seem like a complex challenge – but one that the International Marketing and PR team at Business Finland inspiringly masters.
A deep dive into travel marketing and happiness
When I moved from Germany to Finland in 2018, the Nordic country had just been named the happiest in the world. Intrigued by the secret behind Finnish happiness, I pursued an exchange semester and eventually a Master’s degree in Finland. Over time, I found my own sense of happiness here and developed a strong desire to stay and immerse myself in Finnish work life. The traineeship opportunity at Visit Finland was the perfect fit, allowing me to integrate into Finnish work culture while leveraging my international marketing experience to promote Finland to audiences in the global travel sector.
The traineeship was pivotal for my professional and personal growth. Although I had some experience in digital marketing before starting at Business Finland, I had little exposure to the travel industry at that point.
Thus, my role allowed me to leverage my international experience and marketing skills in a new context. The support of professional and inspiring colleagues at Visit Finland made my transition into the new field smooth and rewarding. From the start, I was entrusted with significant hands-on responsibilities, enabling me to contribute actively to Visit Finland's impactful global efforts, far exceeding my initial expectations of the traineeship.
Learning alongside world-class experts and campaigns
During my time with Visit Finland, I was engaged in various inspiring projects, particularly related to Visit Finland’s website and social media marketing. I developed expertise in a new content management system, created impactful digital content across multiple platforms, developed a content strategy for a social media channel revamp, and delved into search engine optimisation and analytics – all catering to thousands of potential travellers worldwide.
My traineeship allowed me to leverage my international experience and marketing skills.
Some of the most memorable traineeship experiences involved working on Visit Finland’s creative global image campaigns, such as the award-winning Find Your Inner Finn – Masterclass of Happiness, Vesku the Reindeer, and Helsinki Happiness Hacks campaigns. Throughout these projects, my active input was constantly considered and valued – from supporting the setup of campaign pages to content creation shared on Visit Finland’s social media and handling the travel arrangements for the 14 chosen Helsinki Happiness Hacks participants. I truly gained a 360-degree insight into Visit Finland’s inspiring work, enabling me to gain deep insights and develop a broad and strong expertise in the field of digital marketing.
Embracing the international environment
As a global organisation, the Business Finland traineeship provided a deep insight into promoting a country brand across various sectors around the world. Based on the international alignment, my primary working language was English, however, my work also allowed me to utilise my native German while deepening my Finnish language skills.
Although my Finnish language skills were somewhat basic at the beginning of my traineeship, my proficiency grew daily, enabling me to participate in meetings and converse more easily in Finnish toward the latter half – an especially rewarding experience.
Overall, my time as a digital marketing trainee at Visit Finland was a transformative journey that not only deepened my professional skills but also enriched my personal growth. My enthusiasm to learn and step out of my comfort zone alongside inspiring professionals allowed me to contribute to impactful global campaigns and marketing work while immersing myself even deeper in the Finnish way of life.
My traineeship experience has thereby not only solidified my passion for digital marketing but also strengthened my passion for Finland – a place I now proudly call home.