Business students create interactive marketing plan for ReMar Review

Lea Long, Morgan Olson and Kelley Wright

An interactive marketing plan by Youngstown State University undergraduate business students Lea Long, Morgan Olson and Kelley Wright was selected as the winning team project by client ReMar Review and the Ohio Small Business Development Center (SBDC).

The project, in which student teams develop a strategic set of tactical recommendations in digital and social media marketing for a local business, is conducted every fall in Christina Saenger’s Interactive Marketing course in the Williamson College of Business Administration (WCBA).

Clients for the interactive marketing plan project are chosen via collaboration with the Ohio SBDC, which provides small businesses with management and education services and resources, and is housed in YSU’s WCBA.

Assistant Professor of Marketing Christina Saenger stated that the project’s goal is to “provide our students with hands-on experience developing and documenting a marketing strategy, and presenting their work to a business client.”

Olson, a senior Marketing Management major, enjoyed the project’s “relevancy to professional work applications,” while Wright, a senior Advertising and Public Relations major, said that, in addition to marketing planning, she also learned “time management … and improved my teamwork skills.” According to Long, a senior Marketing Management major, “working on a client project and knowing that our research and hard work will be utilized is very rewarding.”

This year’s client, ReMar Review in Warren, Ohio, is a provider of NCLEX test preparation services for aspiring nurses, attended the student presentations with their entire leadership team and marketing staff. CEO Regina Callion, RN MSN, said, “this was a valuable opportunity for our business. The research the students presented has created several new campaigns that will change the way we interact with our customers.”

“For some time now the SBDC has been very fortunate to participate in client class projects with the WCBA," said Patricia Veisz, Director of the Ohio SBDC at YSU. "They have provided terrific learning experiences for the students as well as the clients. Working with these actual companies provides a valuable dimension to business education in the classroom. I cannot begin to tell you how impressed I have been with the quality of the projects, the enthusiasm of the students, the presentation skills and professionalism they have displayed, and the tremendous benefit to our client companies.”

Long, Olson, and Wright earned Hootsuite’s Social Marketing Certification, which covers social media marketing and advertising. As the winning team the cost of the certification is paid by the WCBA. Said Long, “the certification definitely has value for me… (and) will also be a great addition to share on my resume.”