Student marketing requires actively engaging with student behaviours, interests, and beliefs, so to truly be effective you have to get stuck in and do the research! 

Push Promotions has provided staff to student events for over 10 years. For example, we have worked with Liverpool One, Benefit, and Vodbull. Read about these events here. We therefore have the experience and knowledge to supply promotional staff to your student marketing events and campaigns and help ensure their success.

We have previously published several articles about student marketing, for example, ‘Tips & Tricks For Student Marketing’ and ‘The Power Of Freshers’ Fair Promotion’. However, student marketing is constantly evolving, so here are 10 more strategies to effectively market to students:

1. Understand Your Audience

Students are a diverse group, so it’s crucial to understand their demographics, interests, and preferences. Therefore, you should conduct market research to gain insights into what motivates them, their buying behaviours, and where they spend their time online and offline. Moreover, Push can provide data capture staff to conduct this research on your behalf.

2. Engage on Social Media

Students are highly active on social media platforms like Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok, or Twitter. Therefore create engaging content that resonates with them and encourages sharing. Use visual content, videos, and user-generated content to capture their attention.

3. Offer Student Discounts and Promotions

Students often have limited budgets, so offering discounts and promotions specifically targeted at them can be highly effective. Partner with student organisations, universities, or student discount platforms to reach a wider audience. Consider distributing free samples or free branded goods to raise product and brand awareness. A simple mug with your logo on could sit in a student house for years and be seen by hundreds of students, therefore keeping your brand constantly in the back of their minds.

4. Utilise Influencer Marketing

Collaborate with student influencers or micro-influencers who have a strong following among your target audience. Influencers can create authentic content that resonates with students and helps increase brand awareness. Many universities or schools have ‘local celebrities’ (otherwise called a BNOC- Big Name On Campus), so find out how they are and use their popularity to raise your brand’s popularity.

5. Create Relevant Content

Develop content that provides value to students, whether it’s educational resources, lifestyle tips, or entertainment. Consider starting a blog, podcast, or YouTube channel focused on topics that interest students and subtly incorporate your brand into the content. 

6. Host Events and Experiences

Organise events, workshops, or experiential marketing campaigns on or near university campuses. These events provide opportunities for students to interact with your brand in person, fostering a sense of community and connection. The majority of brands focus on online marketing nowadays, however in-person marketing should not be underestimated. People miss in-person interaction! Push Promotions provides a wide range of promotional staff to in-person events and campaigns around the country.

7. Understanding of Student Culture

Your team should have a deep understanding of student culture, interests, and preferences. They should be able to tailor their marketing efforts to resonate with their peers and create meaningful connections. Having a true understanding of student culture means that conversations will be authentic and flow naturally, increasing the likelihood of your target audience actively engaging with the promotional team.

8. Networking Skills

Seek out students who have strong networking skills and can build relationships with other students, faculty members, or campus organisations. Networking allows your team to expand its reach and also leverage partnerships for promotional activities.

9. Flexibility and Adaptability

The student market can be dynamic and ever-changing. Your promotional team should be flexible and adaptable, able to pivot quickly in response to changing trends and circumstances. Tik-Tok trends and the Spotify (or Apple music if you prefer) charts change on a daily basis, so you don’t want to be caught peddling an out-dated fad.

7. Optimise for Mobile

Students are heavy mobile users, so ensure that your website, emails, and digital content are optimised for mobile devices. You should therefore make it easy for students to access information, browse products, and make purchases on their smartphones. Moreover, have links (e.g. QR codes) to your websites and social media easily accessible at any in-person event.

8. Partner with Student Organisations

Furthermore, collaborate with student clubs, organisations, and associations to reach a targeted audience of students with shared interests. Sponsorship, co-hosted events, and other partnerships can help increase brand visibility and credibility among students. Universities have hundreds of clubs focused on specific sports, interests and hobbies, so partner with the most relevant one to your product and focus your energy on promoting to them! For example, if you are a gaming company, consider partnering with a university ‘gaming’ or ‘computer’ society. A clothing brand may want to partner with a ‘fashion’ society or related course.

9. Use Student Ambassadors

Recruit enthusiastic students as brand ambassadors to promote your products or services on campus and online. Student ambassadors can leverage their networks to spread awareness, generate buzz, and also drive engagement. For more information about recruiting a student promotional team, see our article here. 

10. Be Authentic and Transparent

Finally, students value authenticity and transparency from brands. Be genuine in your communication, and demonstrate your commitment to issues that matter to them, such as sustainability, diversity, and social responsibility. Students are known for being political activists and passionate about their beliefs. It can be a tricky line to toe, but putting in the research and engaging effectively with your audience’s beliefs and passions can have a hugely beneficial impact on your brand.

By implementing these strategies and staying attuned to the evolving preferences of students, you can effectively market your products or services to this demographic. We hope this article has given you some food for thought, and has inspired your next student marketing event or campaign. Please get in touch with us here at Push Promotions for any of your promotional staffing needs. We can provide staff such as sales staff, product sampling staff, promotional models, and more.