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Marketing on college campuses is never easy, especially considering how different each individual campus can be. However, we at The Black Sheep are on over 60 campuses across the country, and we’ve found that some traits are common among all campuses. Knowing key mistakes to avoid can be a life saver and make a difference in the success of your marketing campaigns.
Blend in. If you are trying the exact same marketing tactics as every other company trying to target college students, you’re going to disappear in the crowd. The college market is a huge target for a variety of groups these days, and if you don’t want to be drowned out, you need to be open to trying different things. You need to be out of the box, whether it’s with unique events, collaterals that stand out or with swag every college student will want. Be bold, hire outgoing marketing managers, and don’t be afraid to try new things.
Target the wrong audience. College students can be a tricky group. They’re far more mature than high school students, but you don’t want to bore them with advertisements or promotions meant for an older audience. You can’t be juvenile, but you also don’t want to be too boring or old fashioned. You need to make sure that your swag, collaterals, and other marketing tools are tailored to them. College students have a discerning eye, and if you accidently market towards another audience and try to pass it off on them, they’re going to notice.
Ignore your marketing team. Odds are, you aren’t an expert on every college campus at which you’d like to market. No matter how much research you do, students are always going to know the ins and outs of a campus far better than anyone else. Listening to your marketing team is incredibly important, as they may know about opportunities you’d never otherwise hear about. Their opinions carry weight as they know far more about their school than you do. If they think something will or won’t work, take it into consideration. Ignoring them could be a big mistake, and you could end up doing a sloppy event when your team’s advice could have salvaged it. At The Black Sheep, we always consult our students in order to learn the most we can about a campus and craft great marketing strategies.
Be at the wrong place at the wrong time. Location and timing can be key when it comes to marketing on a college campus. If your marketing team is in the wrong place, or perhaps going at the wrong time, then their marketing efforts may be for naught. The library may be hopping around 7 pm during finals week, but during a normal week it may be deserted. A quad or union might be slammed during class time, but at night no one may be around. Even if you think a location might be a slam dunk, it may not be. Make sure to think about the factors that are relevant to college students, like time, weather, location, etc. Plan your events accordingly, and like we mentioned above, if your team advises a different day or time, it would wise to listen.
Be inflexible. Being inflexible can be a death sentence on a college campus. Things change all the time, from the weather to class schedules to which bar is the hottest spot. Even if you come up with a schedule of events that seems perfect, you need to be flexible in order to make the most of your marketing. If the weather is bad, move an event to another day. If your marketing captain tells you that a new bar is the hottest place on campus, consider moving or creating an event around it. If you’re too inflexible, you risk wasting resources, money, and the time of your team.
Each campus you market at is unique, but there are some common themes among all of them. No one wants to make mistakes during an important marketing campaign, so remember these tips and you’ll have a much higher chance for success.
