Having just graduated from the University of Texas (hook ‘em!) and with the final days of classes already under my belt, the past few weeks have been full of reflecting and looking back over the past semester. I can hardly believe that just a few months ago I was starting here at HMG, taking the reigns from their previous rockstar intern, Emily.  I feel like I’ve accomplished a TON and learned so much here, and I’m very grateful to have been part of the team this semester.
To wrap-up my time here, I wanted to share a few highlights from my experience as an intern and some of the projects that I’m most proud of.
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Hello! I’m Ryan Gardner – the new Social Media and Marketing Intern at HMG Creative. I’m currently a senior Advertising & Business Foundations student at The University of Texas at Austin, graduating this May.

I grew up in St. Louis, Missouri and then moved outside of Dallas about ten years ago. Living in the suburbs made me very interested in living in a city, so I packed up for school in fall 2012 and headed to Austin, gravitating toward the music scene here. I can’t imagine a better city to go to college in. In my spare time, I’m frequently at concerts, still exploring the city with friends, or relaxing indoors at BookPeople or Whole Foods.

In December I wrapped up a Graphic Design Internship at It’s Time Texas, an Austin non-profit focusing on promoting health and fitness. Previously, I’ve held internships in PR, marketing, social media, and graphic design. Once the holidays ended, I wanted to switch over to the marketing agency environment, making the position at HMG a perfect fit for me.

This semester, I’m looking forward to running the social media accounts, connecting with clients and publications, and writing. It’s only day one, but I’m excited for all the upcoming opportunities here! To learn more about me, feel free to connect with me on Twitter at @RyanGardnerC or by email at [email protected].

[UT image via consultyourcommunity.org]

This year there will be over 600 sessions at SXSW Interactive. The majority of the sessions were picked via users on the SXSW PanelPicker, with more than 3,000 ideas entered. The result is a variety of influential speakers in categories such as Art, Science, and Inspiration, Branding and Marketing, Content and Distribution, Fashion, Gaming, and Sports – and that’s just a short list. While there are many speakers we would love to hear, we’ve narrowed down a list of 5.

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SXSW is a lot of fun, but it can also be very exhausting, loud, and busy. Sometimes we all need a break from the festival to re-charge. To help out, we have a list of 10 things to do outside of SXSW while in Austin.

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April in Austin is one of the nicest months of the year. The weather is just perfect, making it a great time to go kayaking, hiking, biking, or cruising around the city with your windows down. Spring has officially set in, and to help you kick it off in the best way possible, we have a list of five fun things to do this month!

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Austin holds a special place in our hearts. Not only is it our stomping grounds, it’s a city full of culture, music, outdoor activities, delicious food, a booming economy, awesome people and great weather. People are flocking here from everywhere, and we’re not the first ones to notice. Austin has been number one on Forbe’s “America’s Fastest-Growing Cities” list for the past four years. With such a wide array of activities to do and places to see best paper writing service , it’s no wonder people want to live here so badly. In fact, we love Austin so much that we’ve compiled a list of some of our favorite things to do, see and eat in this incredible city.

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Hi! I’m Callie Musick, the new Social Media and Marketing Coordinator at HMG Creative. It’s Day 1, and I can’t wait to jump in to my new position here. A little about me – I’m currently a senior (enjoying my summer break) at the University of Texas at Austin and will be graduating this December with a B.S. in Advertising with an English minor. Born in North Pole, and raised in Anchorage, Alaska, texas I migrated south after high school and have been enjoying everything the beautiful city of Austin has to offer for the past 6 years. On weekends you can find me soaking up the sun and wakeboarding on Lake Travis, stand-up paddle boarding on Lake Austin, or jamming front row at a live concert downtown.

Recently, I completed an internship with local street art collective, SprATX, as their Social Media and Marketing Manager in which I immersed myself in the brand and the family of artists to build their startup’s online presence. Additionally, with my past training as a marketing manager in the retail industry, I’m excited to bring my real-world experience and variety of interests to the team here at HMG.

At this internship, I’m excited to gain experience working from the agency side of things, and build upon my creative marketing, networking, and writing skills.

I know I have big shoes to fill here, and I’m looking forward to carrying on what Emily has created!

Feel free to shoot me a tweet at @calliemusick or email me at callie[at]hmgcreative.com

Austin is an amazing city for many reasons: the abundance of sunny days, the live music history and artful culture, the friendly vibes from the locals, the plethora of breakfast taco choices … the list goes on and on. One of these reasons that especially stands out to us at HMG is the empathy that Austin residents have for others and the dedication to causes they’re passionate about. This city is a mecca for nonprofit organizations founded on selfless missions that benefit society in a large variety of ways. These entities play a strong role in shaping the culture of our city, and we believe they deserve a little extra recognition.

We’ve compiled a list of 15 of these organizations that were founded here in Austin and are doing some great things for our city and beyond.

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Most companies reach a point in their business lifetime when their web presence no longer accurately reflects their goals or identity. This can happen for a number of reasons – after early stages of quick growth and self-discovery, or even after having been around long enough to outgrow a site that had been with them from the beginning. No matter the time or reason, approaching this risk and overlooking it can be extremely detrimental for business, as a company’s online presence largely dictates the way they are viewed to prospective clients, and the world at-large.

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Being a team of creatives, it’s probably not surprising that we seek to find inspiration in any medium we can. The Internet and social media make that all too easy, especially with platforms like Instagram that bundle amazing content from all over the world into one place. Here’s the rundown on 10 of our favorite Instagram accounts to follow:

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