As the back to school season is vastly approaching, millions of students are entering or returning to college in the fall with a vast amount of spending power. They will arrive on campus willing to spend on the latest gadgets, trends and clothing to prep for the upcoming year. Businesses should look make their brand visible and recognizable on campus by investing in campus advertising campaigns. Successful campaigns are attentive to the needs of this tech-savvy, on the go demographic that will easily dismiss the hundreds of advertisements they see daily. Here are some tips to obtain the most out of your campus marketing campaign.
Think beyond the banner mentality.
A business planning a campus campaign should prepare to engage, surprise, entertain and stir its targeted students. Reach beyond posting banners, print ads, and flyers around campus. Organize an interactive campaign that is centered in a populated hot spot on campus – the student services building, a campus square, outside the library, or in a quad. Theatrics and entertainment will attract a crowd and free food samples or freebies will engage students and set the vibe as casual, relaxed and cool.
Speak their language.
Marketing companies agree that to fully reach its target demographic, they must fully understand their target audience inside and out and craft their message and purpose accordingly. College students respond well to brands that are represented by one of them – which make a brand ambassador program an essential aspect of a campus campaign. Students feel more comfortable and more receptive to a company’s products or services when another student is representing and speaking about them. For a more extensive campaign, make sure to invest in brand ambassadors. To learn more about how to create a successful brand ambassador program, click here.
Try out contests and coupons, opposed to newer media.
A college marketing study conducted by Barnes and Noble found that students are not responsive to marketing over text messages and other new media. Email, TV, and coupon advertising were mainly preferable in order to obtain a quick response. This does not lessen the importance of brands on social media, as students utilize social media to connect with and receive updates on brands they associate with. However, students still enjoy print ads attached with coupons, and contests where they can compete with their fellow peers to receive a prize.
Do your research beforehand.
College students are exposed to thousands of advertising messages every day, and between their busy academic and social lives, it is second nature to filter out many of these advertisements. A successful ad campaign on a specific college location should be tailored to send a message that will be most successful and relevant to the college(s) your brand is looking to target. Research into what would make your ad campaign stand out among others and create a message that is crafted to the location and ideas that local college students stand for.
At OnCampus Advertising, we are here to make your campus advertising campaign the most successful it can be.
