Freshmen orientation is an exciting time on campus. The buildings are filled with excited freshmen ready to leave their nest and enter the academic world. Getting ready for orientation is a yearlong process, there is always room to grow and establish new activities. Follow these tips for a successful orientation season.
1. Establish Goals and Objectives
What are you looking to accomplish with freshmen orientation? Creating lifelong customers is a given but start to unpack the needs of your store. If you are trying to expand your fitness section, host fitness related events. Goals should be clear in order to implement and evaluate your efforts.
2. Facebook First
Often students create an incoming freshmen Facebook group, add your store to the group and advertise events, specials, or products.
3. Social Media Staffing
Get a few of your store staff who are active social media users to cover orientation weekend on Facebook or Snapchat. With Facebook Live, you can engage with campus in real Actively engage students providing instant feedback, include pictures, videos, or resources that your store can provide.
4. Find New Students
Acceptance letters have been sent out, so you’ve missed the opportunity of real-time connections with those who are celebrating their new status on social media. However, you can still find these students by using key words, including your university name and welcome them to your university and campus store.
5. Set the tone in Welcome and Registration.
From the moment students arrive on campus and into orientation your presence should be known. Sponsor a photo booth next to the registration table to draw attention to the campus store. Create a simple relevant hashtag that students can use throughout orientation weekend.
6. Incentivize Students
Incentivize, incentivize and you guessed it incentivize. Freshmen orientation is the perfect opportunity to create lifelong customers through a positive experience with your store. Do whatever it takes to get those students through the store’s doors. Draw students into your store with a contests, prizes, food, the sky is the limit.
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