Listen to this articleWith Gen-Y being one of the most expensive and hard to reach demographics, creating unique and cost effective marketing campaigns is crucial for any business. For many brands, creating a campus ambassador program allows them to do just that.
University Beyond co-founder’s Doug Messer and Brendan Weinstein came to the same conclusion after working on their previous venture, DBFLY Watches. Messer and Weinstein created DBFLY during their junior year of High School, in which they were manufacturing and distributing interchangeable silicone watches.
University Beyond came to fruition after realizing creating a campus ambassador program was easier said than done. They struggled to reach potential ambassadors outside of their direct network, and once they on-boarded their initial group of students; they were forced to use email or social platforms for task management and communication.
The two decided to research how more established brands were running their programs. They soon realized that thousands of ambassador programs existed, yet there was no centralized way for students to find the programs and vice versa. They also found that brand’s were being forced to manage their programs in the same way they had Social platforms, email, weekly phone calls, etc.
“After speaking with several different brands, we realized the significant need for a centralized platform for employers to not only recruit, but manage their ambassadors as well.” Says Messer. Upon realizing the market opportunity for an ambassador-based platform, the two put DBFLY on hold and began their work on University Beyond.
“The University Beyond platform allows brands to post ambassador opportunities to our database of students, in addition to being provided an all-inclusive management dashboard,” says Messer.
The admin dashboard allows brands to assign and monitor student tasks, communicate via live chat, inbox, and videoconference, as well as invoicing and payment processing features. Employers also give their students graded feedback, allowing them to create a database of potential interns and future hires.
University Beyond recently closed its seed round of $300,000, lead by NJ based Venture Capital firm Innovation Garden. Launching this month, University Beyond has over 50 employers posting ambassador opportunities ranging from startups to fortune 500 brands. Students nationwide will have the opportunity to find and apply to programs from companies such as Iconix Brand Group, Pearson, REVOLT TV, and more.
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