Dear Participants,
Welcome to Cafe Abroad, an online community, print magazine and interactive study abroad resource. Im Dan Schwartzman, the 26-year-old founder of the company. Cafe Abroad like study abroad is about students. Two years ago when I started this company, I committed myself to serving study abroad students. Since 2006, Ive worked with hundreds of student writers and researchers. Motivating them to explore new frontiers, helping them to improve as journalists, and challenging them to grow as critical thinkers has been the most rewarding experience of my life. Together, I am proud to say that weve produced the largest student-generated study abroad resource on the Internet. Online, cafeabroad.com connects prospective, current, and returned study abroad students, in a forum for meaningful exchange. Daily updated reviews and events listings keep the site fresh and engaging. News stories and photo essays published weekly provide intelligent and original insights. Cafe Abroad InPRINT, the color magazine launched in 2007, captures study abroad from the students perspective like no other publication. With stories that range from hard-hitting to light-hearted, the magazine was widely embraced at more than 300 study abroad offices in its inaugural year. In 2008, I unveiled the Cafe Abroad Networking Solution, a platform that enables study abroad offices to harness our online technology. I believe this innovation will dramatically improve the dialogue between students and study abroad staff and has the power to transform the technological landscape of study abroad. In the coming year thanks to new ideas like the Cafe Abroad 2008 Campaign Competition Cafe Abroad will continue to expand its resources to better serve the entire study abroad community, both for the students who dream big dreams and the university staff who make study abroad possible.
The Campaign
Participants will create a nationwide integrated advertising and marketing campaign that will position Cafe Abroad as the leading interactive media resource in the study abroad community. The campaign will have a budget that will not exceed $20,000 and will be implemented from September 1, 2009 - August 31, 2010. Participants are encouraged to use all the information included in this document. It will act as a foundation for any decisions participants decide to integrate into the campaign. Cafe Abroad is not looking for one specific answer or overall promotion for its campaign. Strategically using Cafe Abroads current standing within the study abroad industry and tailoring an integrated plan for future success as the leading interactive media resource in the study abroad community is key to constructing a comprehensive campaign. Participants may include involvement with foreign companies, but please exclude any allotment of the campaign and budget to international students at this time. More information on current positioning, creative/logos and objectives will help guide you in your campaign.
Current Positioning
Positioning Tagline
Cafe Abroads current positioning is serving as an outlet for students who are studying abroad. Through Cafe Abroad, students are able to share their study abroad experiences through blogs, articles, event and review postings, photography and much more. Cafe Abroad - The student voice of study abroad Participants may use the above tagline for any part of their campaign. The variant, The student voice of study abroad, may also be used.
www.cafeabroad.com
Visitors per Quarter
13,937 10,087 7,498
Registered Users
Fall Spring Summer Total Users 400 2,300 Fall September 07, 2007 - December 06, 2007 Winter December 07, 2007 - March 06, 2008 Spring March 07, 2008 - June 06, 2008 Summer June 07, 2008 - September 06, 2008 1,900
9,875
Fall
Winter
Spring
Summer
19% Direct Traffic (55%) Referring Sites (26%) Search Engines (19%)
Direct (55%) Google - Organic (15%) Facebook (4%) Yahoo - Organic (3%) Cafe abroad (32%) www.cafeabroad.com (4%) cafeabroad.com (3%) cafeabroad (3%)
55%
Internships
Beginning Spring 2007, Cafe Abroad started to offer both paid and unpaid internships to students abroad. The internships allowed students the opportunity to intern for a company independent of their study abroad program. Students had the opportunity to work independently or in groups. The main responsibilities of all interns would be to update content on the website and add to this growing resource. Interns would receive weekly updates from Cafe Abroad and would serve as a point-person for their respective cities and countries. Besides the essential responsibilities of the internship, students were encouraged to think outside-the-box and create promotions, events and provide input on Cafe Abroad.
Institutional Subscriptions
Currently, Cafe Abroad is developing a new program for study abroad offices and students. This program will combine already existing Cafe Abroad products and services with new offerings. By combining its products and services, Cafe Abroad is hoping to better monetize its offerings. Unlike with many of Cafe Abroads products and services, the Institutional Subscriptions will not be broadly promoted. Cafe Abroad believes that exclusively associating the company with certain schools through the Institutional Subscription will provide for a better product and will allow for the opportunity to test different products and services. These core schools will become the foundation for the company in the future. Institutional Subscriptions will be positioned as the next step in study abroad. Working exclusively with a core group of study abroad offices and students, Cafe Abroad will be able to uniquely offer an academic and social experience that its competitors can not match.
Objectives
Overall Objectives
There are two overall objectives for the campaign: 1) To increase traffic on www.cafeabroad.com by 35%. 2) To increase use of products and services by the target by 15%.
Additional Objectives
Cafe Abroad would like participants to create two additional objectives for the campaign. 3) Create an objective that focuses on monetizing the Institutional Subscriptions. 4) Create an objective that focuses on brand awareness or promotions/partnerships.
Overview of Target
Study Abroad Community
1) 2) 3) 4) The study abroad community can be separated into four unique groups: Prospective, current and returned study abroad students University and college study abroad offices in the U.S. Third party study abroad program providers Study abroad directories, databases and media outlets
The main group of the study abroad community that Cafe Abroad targets. This group provides almost all of the traffic and readership, but almost none of the funding or revenue.
The second largest group of the study abroad community that Cafe Abroad targets. This group provides almost all of the funding and revenue through the use of products and services.
This group provides some of the funding and revenue through the use of products and services, but mostly through advertising.
Recommendation
Cafe Abroad would suggest focusing primarily on 1 & 2 for the majority of the campaign, but utilizing 3 & 4 for any potential promotions or partnerships.
Competition Schedule
10/02 10/15 11/21 11/26
Participants will receive the Cafe Abroad case study, official schedule and more information on the competition via email. Cafe Abroad 2008 Campaign Competition Private Network is available to join. Deadline for submission of the campaign via email. Top teams will be notified and will create a video presentation of their campaign.
12/01 12/05
Top team will be notified that they have won the Cafe Abroad 2008 Campaign Competition.