University of Illinois Research Park

Learning to convey a brand's value proposition through design, storytelling, and community.

TIMELINE

May 2025 - Aug 2025

TEAM

1 Lead, 8 Interns

ROLE

Communications and Social Media Intern

SKILLS

• Content strategy
• Newsletter and social media design
• Copywriting

Tools

• WordPress
• Canva
• Planable
• LinkedIn
• Instagram

BACKGROUND

University of Illinois Research Park (UIRP) is a hub for technology commercialization, inventive startups, and corporate innovation centers.

It's home to 120+ companies, over 2,000 people, and around 800 interns (myself included, at the time). It also houses more than 50 startups in EnterpriseWorks, an incubator that helps launch early-stage, research-driven tech ventures.

Our marketing team was small but mighty. As a communications and social media intern, I got a front-row seat to the university’s enterprising spirit — helping amplify UIRP's voice through digital storytelling, visual content, and redesigned communication channels that reached thousands of stakeholders, from students to corporate partners.

key accomplishments

Wrote, edited, and published 20+ social media posts

I helped translate complex technical achievements into accessible copy while maintaining a consistent brand voice across digital channels. Additionally, I monitored activity across 120+ companies to capture key stories happening at Research Park — ranging from intern milestones to startup progress — and collaborated with the multimedia team to curate a people-centered, visually cohesive feed.

Over the course of the summer, we:

Grew to 21.7k+ followers

Up 658 users from the previous month.

Generated 213.5k+ impressions

A 168% surge in content visibility compared to the month before.

Saw an 8%+ engagement rate

17,487 total interactions, marking a massive 267% jump from just a month ago.

Redesigned public-facing communications

Research Park's newsletters and social media reach tens of thousands, making them powerful tools for community engagement, promoting career opportunities, and celebrating the achievements of companies and startups. The redesign had three main objectives, with the overall goal of creating a more consistent and engaging user experience for our audience.

Objective 1

Build a standard layout system so the team can create newsletters faster with fewer errors.

Objective 2

Resize text and buttons to be easily readable on phones, where most of our audience opens emails and checks social media.

Objective 3

Remove inconsistent fonts, colors, and tones to ensure everything looks like a part of the UIRP brand identity.

general announcements newsletter

Before
After

Clearer hierarchy

Bold headers and increased spacing separate different topics, resulting in a more scannable email.

Mobile-first layout

A single-column layout stacks neatly on phone screens, preventing awkward text compression.

Distinct CTAs

Instead of links hidden in the text, large, distinct buttons are the main CTA, making it obvious where the user is supposed to click.

View the redesign on desktop

Before ↗ After ↗
Before
After

job board stories

Before
After

Safe zones

All text resides within the "safe zone" to ensure no content is obscured by Instagram's native UI elements.

Recognizeability

Bolder fonts and high-contrast colors ensure legibility, even when users are quickly tapping through stories.

Before
After
Before
After

Reduced clutter

Removed redundant and decorative elements (e.g., the Research Park logo) that competed with the UI, shifting focus to clear CTAs and people-centric imagery.

Compiled and wrote copy for the 2024-25 Year-in-Review

The Year-in-Review is a comprehensive annual publication that showcases innovations, community events, and accomplishments at Research Park. Collaborating with the graphic design, multimedia, and communications teams, I acted as the bridge between data and storytelling. My role was to compile complex technical achievements into accessible, human-centric narratives. View the full booklet ↗

• Synthesized data and narratives from 150+ events to showcase the intersection of agriculture, startups, and student innovation.

• Curated expert testimonials in finance, management, and professional development to add social proof and humanize the technical achievements of the park.


• Collaborated with cross-functional teams to articulate UIRP’s value proposition, undergoing multiple design iterations and feedback rounds.

• Enforced visual consistency across all spreads by aligning assets with UIRP's brand identity.


REFLECTION

Takeaways from my time at Research Park

→ Thinking outside of myself
I balanced creative autonomy with brand alignment, putting aside personal preferences to embrace feedback as a collaborative tool.
→ Communicating strategically
I learned how branding, structure, and consistency shape audience perception to communicate value through design and writing.
→ Adapting to constraints
I had to figure out proprietary and at times outdated software to build certain projects (e.g., the newsletter redesign), all while meeting deadlines and juggling projects.
Shoutout to the other interns! An office wall full of polaroids and many good-natured lunchtime debates later, I’ve learned that the team you work with truly makes all the difference.
UP NEXT

While you're here, check out some of my other work!

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The Daily Illini

Shaping how campus media tells stories of music, film, and literature

Let's keep in touch!

Email ↗LinkedIn ↗
Riddhima Patllollu - © 2026