It's not easy to create a marketing campaign for university students. There are many different factors that you have to consider which affect the way that college students spend their money. Most important is that they don't often have a lot of money to spend.

Before you spend money advertising to university demographic, make sure you do research that shows you have a product that college students want. This will make a big difference in the success of your campaign.

Some factors to consider when marketing to college students:

1. College students like things that are cheap or free. This isn't always a good thing when you create a marketing campaign for university demographic. However, you can still be successful with the right product.

2. Word of mouth advertising is important. College students don't trust marketers. They trust their friends. If possible, find a way to work word of mouth into your marketing campaign for college students.

3. If you do have a more expensive product, play to their desires when marketing to university kids. Many students will pay high prices for electronic goods or travel packages, among other things.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Talk to a marketing firm to create a marketing campaign for university kids

Marketing to college students isn't as easy as it may seem. Simply putting an ad in student publications probably won't get you very far. Instead, speak with firms that understand the college market for advice on getting started.

I recommend: Sundog has experience working with the college market and can design a campaign for radio, television or the Internet. Campus Party works exclusively with the college market and can help you with direct mailings or fliers to hand out at campuses.

Host a party as part of a marketing campaign for university students

College students like free things and once you give them something that they want, they are more likely to support your company. Giving something away creates a sense of obligation. Hosting or sponsoring a party or event on campus is a great way to get your product out there.

I recommend: Pro Motion helps you sponsor events to make your product known. SponsorAnything is another great resource if you want to become a sponsor. They match sponsors with events that need sponsoring, including college events. You may also want to speak directly to the event-planning department if there is a special college that you are interested in.

Hire students for marketing to college kids

Since word of mouth advertising is so popular among college students, many companies are starting to hire student ambassadors to help spread the word about their product. These ambassadors can hand out samples, talk the product up and even make sure that campus newspapers and magazines mention it in their articles. This is a great way to build buzz.

I recommend: RepNation helps facilitate on-campus word of mouth advertising. You can view potential reps online. Alternatively, recruit your own brand ambassadors through a website that focuses on college students, such as CollegeHelpers.com.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  College students are notoriously finicky about advertising. They don't trust many traditional forms of advertising. Incorporate alternative methods into your advertising campaign for university audience, such as guerrilla marketing tactics.

College students are more famous for skipping class than for being classy, more highly regarded as thrifty shoppers than as sophisticated consumers. Still, smart companies covet their attention, as well as their approval. Why? Because even though they may not make a lot of money, college students spend a ton of it. And they don’t just spend it on Ramen noodles, either. Instead, modern-day scholars are buying everything from electronics and entertainment to apparel and Spring Break vacations.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Profile your student targets

Not all students are created equal. The needs and buying habits of a student at a four-year university, for instance, will differ considerably from those of a student at a two-year college. Similarly, reaching students that live on campus will require different strategies than one might use to reach students who live off campus. As such, decide what type of student you want to reach with your product or service before you begin marketing it.

I recommend: Find out the demographics and psychographics of students in your area by browsing local campus profiles courtesy of The Princeton Review, College Board or Peterson’s.

Get online

College students are extremely media savvy. Their medium of choice, however, is definitely be the Internet. Modern-day college students grew up with the World Wide Web and spend hours at a time online studying, surfing the net and socializing with their friends. Smart marketers will log on not only to advertise to their young customers, but to interact with them, too.

I recommend: Interact with student customers online at social networking sites like Facebook, or at student-focused Web sites like Student.com and SparkNotes, which have student message boards. Or, consider purchasing online ads with sites like Campus Hook and STA Travel, which have an entirely student audience.

Turn campuses into ads

Enterprising marketers can literally decorate a college campus with their message. Use sidewalk chalk to create eye-catching ads on campus thoroughfares and post flyers on campus bulletin boards, where they’re sure to catch receptive students’ eyes.

I recommend: New Age Marketing is a marketing firm that focuses on the student market and has a dedicated “Campus Postering” service. Of course, you can design and print your own fliers at your local FedEx Kinko’s, too.

Buy ads in campus media

Every college has a newspaper, and many have student-run TV stations and magazines. Advertising in them is both an inexpensive and an effective way to reach college students.

I recommend: Contact campus newspapers directly to inquire about advertising opportunities; a listing of student papers nationwide is available in the Yahoo! Directory.

Sponsor student events

College students love a good party. Lending your support and your money to on-campus events can get you valuable exposure within your target market and can also build your reputation as a student-friendly business.

I recommend: Approach your local university to discuss sponsorship opportunities, or enlist a partner such as CampusParty—a college marketing firm that specializes in reaching students—to help you find worthwhile events.

Make students feel special

Businesses often ignore—or even reject—their student customers. Companies that make an extra effort not only to accommodate college students, but to cater to them—with special student discounts, services, etc.—can therefore easily lay claim to their cash.

I recommend: Alloy Media + Marketing’s 360 Youth Network is dedicated to helping companies make their student customers feel special with unique promotions such as exclusive movie screenings, product samples, etc.

Build buzz

College students talk. A lot. Companies can therefore initiate a storm of free marketing just by giving them something exciting and inventive to talk about.

I recommend: Companies like BzzAgent can help you put your product in front of students who will talk about it. Adding a tell-a-friend script to your Web site, such as those at Refer-a-Buddy.com and Bravenet, will make sure that they do.

Send both snail mail and email

College students change addresses often, but love to get mail nonetheless. Direct mail, then, is an easy and effective way to get them excited about your company. Don’t neglect students’ email inboxes, though, as most students check their email at least once daily.

I recommend: Before mailing, consider renting a list of student names and addresses from American Student List; doing so will help you reach the right people with the right message.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Students aren’t just students. Consider your college customers’ other attributes—race, gender and interests, for example—and target them through appropriate non-student media.
• •  Because they grew up in an ad-saturated world, college students are harder to reach with traditional advertising. They are more likely to respond to word of mouth, including recommendations from their friends.
• •  College students are “trial receptive,” meaning that they are open to new ideas and have yet to develop strong brand affiliations; as such, they are an ideal market for companies that want to color outside the lines.
• •  Remember that while the college market is incredibly stable and static, individual student consumers are moving targets, changing both attitudes and addresses frequently.
• •  Don’t just sell stuff to students; it won’t work. Instead, focus on building relationships with them.
• •  College students are trendsetters, often focused more deeply on their friends and family—and their cash—than on their studies. So even when they’re not making purchases, they’re influencing them.