Freebies, student discounts, and mailing lists. Freshers’ fairs provide companies with the perfect opportunity to promote themselves to thousands of expectant students and kickstart customer relationships.

But First Things First, What Actually Is A Freshers Fair?

Freshers’ fairs take place within universities at the start of the academic year, usually in late September. They are a great way for students to meet new people, engage with exciting clubs, and get to know their new city. But most importantly for you, students come here to discover the companies and brands available to them throughout their time at university (and beyond).

Companies usually occupy a stall from which they promote and sell their products and services. Brand ambassadors often work on these stands to spark conversations with students. Experiential marketing is usually used to stand out from the crowd and create meaningful memorable interactions with students. For example, competitions, games, photo opportunities, and more.

Why Should Your Company Even Care About A Freshers’ Fair?

Well for starters, there are approximately 2.8 million university students in the UK. They hail from all across the UK as well as internationally, and so have varying ages, interests, budgets, and backgrounds. Freshers’ fairs therefore provide companies with a unique opportunity to directly engage with and increase their customer base.

Statistically, students have a global spending value of approximately £200 billion! Some of that could be invested in you! Students attend a fresher’s fair to be sold something- whether that’s being sold to join the rugby or needlework club, sold to attend a mixer event at a local bar, or sold a uni gym membership. If your business promotes at a freshers’ fair, you have a ready-made audience willing to be convinced and sold something!

Offering free samples or branded goods is a great way to attract attention at a freshers’ fair and get your name out there! For example, how many students begin university life without bringing a pen for lecture notes or a mug for a cup of tea? A lot more than you would expect!

Therefore, distributing free pens or mugs with your logo branded on them can significantly boost brand awareness. Not only will it draw attention to your brand at the fair, but it will also contribute to increasing your exposure once the fair is over. Perhaps offer a freebie in exchange for subscribing to your mailing list to increase the chance of further sales and brand interaction

Moreover, university students love to post on social media, but what should that matter to you? Even more exposure of course! Freshers’ fairs are a hotspot for social media and if a student likes your product there is a high chance that they may post your product online to their hundreds, if not thousands, of followers.

Is Your Brand Freshers’ Fair Appropriate?

There are several questions you need to ask yourself before committing to student promotion:

• The first thing you need to ask yourself is, does your brand actually appeal to students? Is it directly related to university life or something that students will use regularly? Is it something they can use in their personal life, outside of university?

• Next, is the cost of your product accessible to students? Remember, although students statistically spend a lot, they are nearly always on a budget, relying on student loans and the infamous ‘bank of mum and dad’. A freshers event may bring your company exposure, but if your products are too expensive or not applicable to students, student promotion may not be worth the investment. A good way to evaluate the cost problem is to perhaps offer a student discount or a specific ‘freshers’’ discount. This will show that you care and are catering to students.

• Will universities allow you to promote at their fair? For example, if you are promoting products such as cigarettes, or services to enable gambling, then university guidelines may prevent your promotional activity. Moreover, if you are offering something in direct competition to the university, such as a gym membership, textbooks, or certain sports clubs, then again the university may not permit your promotion.
  

• Fresher events occur throughout the UK, with each university having different outlooks, characteristics, and students. So which university freshers’ fair/s should you promote at? Research which locations would suit your specific business. E.g. does your brand offer something to specific areas? Do you want to expand your brand to new areas? Are there direct competitors in this location? These are important to consider to get appropriate and effective exposure.

Practical Freshers’ Fair Considerations

Next, there are more practical considerations to consider. How big will your stall be? Will the stall be indoors or outdoors? If outdoors are you equipped for bad weather? Do you require a marquee? How will people be able to remember your brand? Will you have any handouts (leaflets, cards, etc) or freebies? What type of staffing will you require? 

You should therefore research and decide what services and staff numbers are required. Staff can truly make or break the success of a promotional activity. Push Promotions have successfully staffed events for companies such as Netflix, Sainsburys and Live Nation. Click here to read about others.

Moreover, have you considered safety? It is important to conduct a risk assessment and have trained staff who will be able to manage queues and create a safe environment. Remember the dreaded freshers’ flu? Maintaining good hygiene is especially important.

How Can Push Promotions Help You?

Push Promotions has experienced staff and suppliers that have supported freshers’ events for years and so can support you with all of the above. We can supply staff nationwide, including general promotional staff, product sampling staff, leafleting staff, and product demonstrators.

We have over 3000 staff members on our books and conduct regular interviews in major UK cities to keep this fresh and up-to-date. This means that we can often provide local staff for promotional events, thus saving you money on staff transport and accommodation costs. We have staff available with experience and skills in nearly every industry sector. So please inquire if you require a specific staff skill set or knowledge.

For more information check out our website or get a quick quote here.