Turn classmates into customers - ready, set, start - marketing tips for student-owned businesses

Black Enterprise, Oct, 2002 by LaToya S. Foye

How do you think popular brand names such as Nike and Sean John gain wide recognition? It all begins with marketing. "Marketing is everything," says Nate Moreland, director of Youth Programs for the Oregon Association of Minority Entrepreneurs (OAME).

Once you've developed a product that will be of great benefit, you want the whole world to know. Marketing identifies the potential clientele, while introducing your service. The best place to start is among the people you spend most of your time with: classmates.

Three Menlo Park, California, high school students are proving that marketing is the foundation of every successful business. Varsity basketball players Marissa McGee, Chantelle Brown, and Sade Johnson collaborated to form the sportswear apparel company II Deep. Marissa, Chantelle, and Sade, all 16-years-old, originally came up with the idea after noticing the limited selection of sports apparel offered to women. "The sizes available were mostly larger, and fit for males," says Sade.

With financial support provided by BUILD (Businesses United in Investing, Lending and Development), a nonprofit organization that encourages young people to develop their own businesses, the entrepreneurial trio has been able to produce a sportswear line that is becoming a fast-growing fashion trend. BUILD provided II Deep with $250 as seed capital and later gave the company an additional grant of $1,500.

After a target market was identified, II Deep decided to extend the sports line to both males and females. With proper market research, II Deep is establishing itself as a lucrative venture. The gifts spent $150 in marketing and generated sales of more than $1000 in just the first quarter of 2002, which ended in March.

Through advertising agents such as banners, flyers, T-Shirts, and preorder forms, the gifts are promoting and selling their clothing. "We were able to host a basketball day camp, held at the school, where we were able to successfully sell our sportswear," says Sade. "We have also sold items at various basketball tournaments."

Sade defines marketing as a daily experience that brings new opportunities for exposure. She reminds entrepreneurs, "Don't get discouraged; don't reduce yourself to thinking that you can't do it." Marketing is a fulfilling experience, so don't miss out. Continue to perfect your business strategy, while giving your classmates something to talk about.

ATTENTION CUSTOMERS!

To properly market a business, Moreland of OAME suggests the following:

* Do market research. Find out what your target audience (i.e. students at school) needs, then tailor your product to fit your clients' age group and interests--not your own. Remember, customers come first.

* Create a market plan to advertise your product. The market plan should include inexpensive advertising techniques, such as business card distributions, flyers, and word of mouth to inform your peers that you are offering services or goods that will be of great benefit to them. Don't forget to ask school administrators and teachers to designate an appropriate time to distribute this information. Passing out flyers during homeroom is probably not a good idea. Also, figure out the quantity needed to make a profit and meet the demand (see "It's All About the Profits," this issue).

* Evaluate your strategies to measure your effectiveness. Ask customers what they do and don't like about your services. You may want to give out written surveys or just take verbal feedback. Through this step, you should find ways to improve your business.