With Spring Break coming to end on college campuses across the country and the warm weather just around the corner, now is the time to invest in reaching college students when they begin to spend their time outdoors and have a much more positive mindset.For most college students on campus around the country, the final days of winter are upon them and the warm spring air and sunshine is just around the corner.  Many students have just returned from spring break either from a warm tropical climate or just catching up with old friends from home while they spend time with their families.  Those marketers looking for ways to take advantage of this time frame should keep a couple things in mind:

• Outdoor Activity: It’s no secret that college students spend much of their free time, when the winter breaks, outdoors on campus. Whether it be on the Quad or other social areas where they can crack open a book to study, throw a Frisbee around or just hang out, the foot traffic on campus is about to see a huge spike.  Now would be an ideal time to utilize student brand ambassadors, street teams and event activations to reach these students.  This can take the form of product sampling, tabling in student unions or just simple engagement where ambassador can hand out a 4” x 6” post card outlining a promotion.
• Couponing: Now that the weather is nice, students may feel much more inclined to start going out to shop at stores around campus, going out to eat at nearby restaurants in close proximity to campus and with many students returning from home, the possibility of having disposable income they just received from mom and dad is much higher.  Take advantage of this situation and have student brand ambassadors pass out coupons with some kind of discount offer that can be redeemed at nearby locations.  This will surely help improve the foot traffic you receive and the coupon redemption will allow you track the success of the promotion with direct metrics.
• Event Activations: If you are a marketer who has been strongly considering an event activation on campus, via tabling in the student union or setting up a tent with prize giveaways, the time to do that is now. Conducting an event of this nature requires a partner who knows the in’s and out’s of the red tape and approvals required for this type of engagement from the school and student activities.  Allow us to help educate you in this process for the most efficient event on campus that will draw the most turnout.

Don’t be one of the advertisers left behind during this brief but important time frame on campus for effective marketing.  With so many brand focused on the “Back-to-School” time frame (and getting lost in the shuffle due to brand over-saturation) this upcoming time-frame often goes overlooked.  Once finals begin and students begin cramming, this brief yet lucrative time frame will come to an end.  Let us give you a free consultation and expand on how best to utilize this 3-4 week period!