Ball State

» Marketing Class Pays Off

By China at 8:26 AM

There was this project that we had to do a few weeks ago in my marketing class. We had to pick anywhere in the world (within reason) and then try to market it in a way that people in this kind of economy would still be able to afford it and would also be interested. Since so many families have to cut out vacations, it is a hard task to accomplish.

So for my project I made up an Amsterdam travel guide and focused it on traveling students and grads who are looking for somewhere to go after graduation (or over break or studying abroad) and tried to target what they would be interested in.

The first thing that I looked into was prices (God knows that Americans right now, let alone college students can't afford big trips) and tried to compare them. I looked into airline tickets to Amsterdam and which ones had connecting flights and what not and the most convenient times at the cheapest price and checked to see if student discounts applied.

I also found a website on Amsterdam cheap hotels which was a really good reference since it is so far from here. I compared prices again with the hotels. I also looked to see which ones were student friendly and had wireless internet access and gyms and whatnot (also at the best price) because these are all things I would want as a student traveling.

Location was definitely important as well. The hotel needed to be located somewhat near the airport (so that they could get there without a hassle) and near a way of travel like a bus or train stop or in the city so that there were things around like grocery shops and banks and so on. I tried to make the entire presentation how I would want it to be if someone were presenting to me about the topic. I thought since I am a college student (maybe looking to travel) what I would find appealing is what other students (the audience) would also find appealing.

I ended up getting a really good grade on the project and also learning a lot about marketing as well as traveling and looking for good deals. I can't wait to be able to travel after I graduate and this project has helped me know how to do it more wisely.