Applications to CIM’s global marketing competition now open to UK and international students

• The Pitch – Students set creative challenges designed to test their marketing skills
• Competition now open to both postgraduate and undergraduate students, with the Chartered Institute of Marketing partnering with Hays
• The top undergraduate and postgraduate teams will be invited to a live final on the 15th March 2024 to present their ideas to judges from across the industry

Applications to CIM’s 2023/24 global competition – The Pitch – are now open to UK and international marketing students until Friday 01 December. 

Following a successful trial of last year’s postgraduate competition, The Challenge, this year’s competition will now be open to both postgraduate and undergraduate students. Eligible undergraduate and postgraduate students can enter from universities across the world as long as they are studying for or have completed marketing degree, or a business degree containing a marketing module.

Now in its thirteenth year, the competition challenges aspiring marketers from across the globe to react to a real-life brief from a top global organisation. Finalists will then go head-to-head in the hope of impressing the panel of professional judges and showcasing their skills to potential employers. 

This year’s competition is in partnership with Hays, a global recruitment company which believes strongly in empowering people and organisations to achieve their marketing goals. With over 50 years of success and a workforce of over 10,000, the company is well placed to offer advice and expertise on the top issues faced today, to help the marketing industry and its professionals make the right decisions for tomorrow.  

There will be two separate competitions for undergraduate and postgraduate students. Both competitions will have their own challenges based on EveryYouth, a charity partnered with Hays, with each competition having its own final.

In today’s ever-changing economic climate, it has become increasingly vital for charities like EveryYouth to leverage effective marketing strategies that not only attract but also engage their target audience. Given the growing importance of online experiences, EveryYouth faces the challenge of ensuring a positive and captivating virtual environment to maximise user engagement.

The postgraduate participants will be challenged to develop a volunteer engagement marketing strategy for EveryYouth, a charity which exists to “help the most disadvantaged young people succeed in life.” Their strategies must be designed to attract and retain volunteers who are committed to the charity’s mission. They should consider the recruitment, training and retention of volunteers, as well as recognition and reward programs.

The undergraduate students will be asked to consider the current economic climate, and, armed with a budget of £5,000, devise a plan to help EveryYouth drive a positive online experience and increase donor engagement.

Discussing the launch of the competition, Clare Kemsley, managing director, Hays said:

“This year we’re really pleased to offer the opportunity for marketing students to come up with a volunteer and donor engagement marketing strategy that will truly provide support to EveryYouth, our charity partner. 

“It’s a fantastic opportunity for the next generation of marketers to showcase their skills, and put their learning into practice.”  

Successful teams will advance to the finals and be granted the chance to pitch their ideas and impress a panel of judges. There will be two separate finals of five teams each taking place on Friday 15 March 2024. The winning teams from both categories will be announced after the finals conclude. 

The competition is designed to develop employability skills to help participants stand out in a competitive job market, and enhance their CV. Work undertaken in The Pitch can also be used to complete one of the CIM Professional Certificate’s elective modules.

Discussing the competition and its significance, CIM’s director of qualifications and partnerships, Maggie Jones, commented:

“We’ve been running The Pitch competition for thirteen years now, and every year we continue to be inspired by the brilliant ideas presented by the participants. It truly is an industry full of individuals with huge potential, endless talent, and exciting new skills which we are very lucky to witness year on year during The Pitch. We are particularly excited for this year’s entries after opening the competition up to postgraduates as well as undergraduates, which will bring in an entirely new pool of participants and innovative ideas.

“Taking part in the competition is an excellent way to bolster a CV, stand out from the crowd in an even more competitive job market, and start your journey in the profession. There are also plenty of benefits and prizes for the teams who win, including a virtual one-hour session with our competition partner, Hays’ chief marketing officer, and a virtual CV writing and hints and tips workshop.”

Last year’s winners were team 007 Girls from Henley Business School, Anita Marcu, Scarlett Cassidy and Marie Oceane Bax De Keating. They impressed the panel with the diversity of their approach to engage their target market, including utilising influencers, holding giveaways and increasing social media engagement through ads. 

Reflecting on their experience, team 007 Girls said:

“We are so proud and honoured to have won The Pitch 2023. Throughout this process we have grown as individuals and a team, playing to our strengths, and overcoming challenges to produce a winning presentation. Pitching at the live final was a surreal experience as we saw 6 months of hard work finally come to life in front of the team of judges. 

We are delighted that our ideas and passion were recognised on the day. We are taking away a whole host of valuable skills from this experience including research and data analysis skills, communication and problem-solving and it’s given us a unique opportunity to hone our presentation and pitching skills. We would like to thank the CIM and WeAre8 for allowing us to use what we have learnt at university in a real-life case study, as well as Henley Business School who have supported us the entire way. The 007 Girls cannot wait to take what we have learnt into our future careers.”

The initiative has been so successful over the past thirteen years that it is recognised across the country and now integrated into the syllabuses of many UK universities. The Pitch is also part of a wider initiative that runs alongside the CIM Accredited Degree partnership programme, mapping marketing and business degrees against learning outcomes within CIM qualifications.