The Marketing in Action challenge is a realistic, semester-long learning experience for undergraduate students. Challenged to experiment with different marketing strategies and techniques, the engaging initiative requires them to develop strategic marketing plans and make tactical decisions in groups. Moreover, they have to develop a real consultancy project in the marketing department of an existing company, chosen by the program.
This past semester, from January until March 2021, second-year Bachelor in Business Administration students took on this dynamic subject, acting as real marketing consultants for Santander’s renowned artistic institution Centro Botín. Their task was to develop a strategic marketing plan to attract as many visitors as possible, beginning with an elevator pitch. Students were divided into groups by the professors and were tasked with presenting their proposals to the entire class, which then voted on the best one. The group that received the most votes went head-to-head with other classes from the same year to decide which projects would be presented virtually to the actual Centro Botín staff members.
“I enjoyed the idea of doing a project for a cultural and tourist center. Also, I liked that they gave us a chance to apply our marketing techniques and propose new, fresh ideas.”
Adrián Jon Pastor
“It was great having the opportunity to work with a real company and finally implement some of the content we’ve learned in class.”
Akshat Jethwani Shivani
This was an excellent opportunity to learn about different concepts and overcome the typical difficulties that the COVID-19 crisis has presented to real companies across the globe. Under normal circumstances, students would have had the opportunity to visit the Centro Botín in person and meet the staff there. While that was not possible this year, the dynamic and original learning methodology still enabled students to offer proposals to Centro Botín to help solve current issues, as well as come up with ideas for overall improvement.
“It was an important stepping stone towards a career, and a very interactive way of learning that truly helps students to know what working for a real firm is like.”
María Costa
“Overall, I enjoyed the Marketing in Action course, especially with the Centro Botín group project, as it gave students the opportunity to make a change in an existing business.”
Alexander Benning
The diverse nature of the teams, put together by professors rather than working in groups of existing friends, exposed participants to a wide range of ideas and solutions. This necessitated a rapid forging of working relationships, developing essential negotiation and collaboration skills for students to take forward into the real workplace.
“The Marketing in Action course provided a unique opportunity to work from a professional viewpoint. Alongside our teams, we were tasked with creative problem-solving that tested how we would choose to move forward. ”
Adham Elabd
“The Marketing in Action course was both challenging and creative. I feel that my team developed a very detailed marketing plan for the Centro Botín by providing highly innovative solutions. All in all, I would say that I truly learned a lot.”
Sofía Urueña Salán
Participant María Costa Moncho described the challenge as “an incredible learning opportunity.” She was in no doubt as to the value of the exercise: ”As well as the marketing skills and techniques themselves, the project taught us how to behave as professionals. Teamwork and the pooling of knowledge to come up with creative and ingenious ideas in order to achieve a greater goal for a real-life company were essential. In an encounter with real-life situations and problems, the various scenarios we confronted helped promote professional growth and relevant expertise.”
“Thanks to this course, I further developed my soft skills, as well as my knowledge of marketing and project management. Overall, it was an exciting and incredible experience.”
Alicia Chen
“The Centro Botín project was a great hands-on learning experience that allowed us to work on a real-life example.”
Oliver Nemeth
Through learning-by-doing initiatives such as Marketing in Action, students gain skills and experiences that cannot be taught in the classroom. Guided by experienced professors who offered advice and support to keep teams on track, participants were able to exercise their passion for marketing. It was also a chance for those who don’t yet know which field most interests them to experience a specific area. “It was an important stepping stone towards a career,” concluded María, “and a very interactive way of learning that truly helps students to know what working for a real firm is like.”
Congratulations to all the students who took part, and thanks to collaborative partner Centro Botín for their support.