Follett Seeks Ideas for $1 Million Marketing Campaign With the Return of Marketing Genius

OAK BROOK, Ill., Sept. 12, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Although college students are settling into their fall class schedule, Follett Higher Education Group is already looking for next summer's interns who can develop the best $1 million marketing idea. Now in its second year, the Marketing Genius competition challenges college students to create a national marketing campaign with a budget of $1 million for more than 800 Follett bookstores. The team named the winner of Marketing Genius will have the opportunity to put their campaign into action during a paid summer internship with the integrated marketing department at Follett's corporate headquarters.

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"At Follett, we're always looking for creative and innovative ways to reach and engage students," said Tom Christopher, President of Follett Higher Education Group. "Follett's Marketing Genius competition allows students to put to work their own unique insights, hone their marketing and creative skills and gain real-world experience."

Contestants are asked to create campaigns that showcase the benefits of the many choices students have in selecting their course materials, including new and used books, textbook rentals and digital formats. Follett is looking for programs that are executable across Follett-owned college bookstores and include both traditional media, as well as new ways of communicating with students in unexpected ways. Students who are interested in participating must register through the Marketing Genius website by Sept. 30, 2011.

Last year's Marketing Genius winners, Barron Biros and Drew Mailloux from Georgia State University, worked as interns and enjoyed many benefits incorporated into the program, including free housing, the opportunity to network with other professionals in the marketing field and the chance to put their own campaign into action.

They created in-store signage that has been used in Follett bookstores across the country and helped to create and execute Follett's current "must have that STASH" promotion.

"Follett's Marketing Genius competition provided a great opportunity for me to expand my ideas beyond the classroom into a real-world scenario," said Biros. "By creating the materials for the entry, it taught me what it really takes to develop a campaign from start to finish and it helped me build a portfolio of tangible work samples." Biros will continue contributing to the Follett team this fall.

Contest Details 

Completed marketing proposals are due Dec. 9, 2011. Teams that qualify for the presentation round will be notified and flown to Chicago on Feb. 19, 2012, to present on Feb. 20 to a panel of judges made up of marketing professionals from Follett Higher Education Group and its public relations and advertising agencies. Immediately following the presentations, Follett's Marketing Geniuses will be announced. 

For more information, visit www.rent-a-text.com/marketing-genius or contact Follett directly at [email protected]. 

About Follett Higher Education Group

Follett Higher Education Group of Oak Brook, Illinois, is the leading provider of bookstore services and the foremost supplier of used books in North America. Follett services five million students and over 400,000 faculty members through more than 850 stores. Follett also services more than 1,600 independent campus stores with its wholesale services, and has the most visited ecommerce collegiate website, efollett.com, that provides services and products through a network of more than 900 campus stores.

About Follett

Follett Corporation is a $2.7 billion, privately-held company that provides products, services and solutions to the educational marketplace. Follett Corporation was founded in 1873, and today is headquartered in River Grove, Illinois.

SOURCE Follett Higher Education Group