Second year students of the University of Twente's (UT) Business Administration programme are participating in the Google Online Marketing Challenge (GOMC) as part of an elective module entitled 'Digital Marketing for Networked Business'. The course introduces the students to all aspects of the modern digital marketing world such as Big Data, Social Media Marketing, the 'Internet of Things' and Neuromarketing. The University of Twente is the first Dutch university to participate in this competition.
The Challenge is organized once a year by Google and acquaints students with the practicalities of Search Engine Marketing and in particular Search Engine Advertising (also known as Pay-Per-Click). The students will work together in groups for a period of three weeks on a Google AdWords campaign for a company or non-profit organization. They will compete with more than 3,000 groups of students from around the world. The global winner gets a week-long visit to Google's head office in San Francisco. There are also prizes for regional winners and special categories.
Assessment
The groups are assessed on the basis of three elements. In the first place, Google has to approve the pre-campaign report. Google will also pay close attention to the Google benchmarks such as the CPC (Cost Per Click), CTR (Click Through Rate) and the conversion rate. Finally, the post-campaign will be assessed by an academic panel.
Advantages for companies
Google will finance the three-week campaign to an amount of US$250 per group. This means that the participating companies get a free three-week AdWords campaign, which will almost certainly guarantee new visitors and maybe even new customers. Sixteen organizations from Twente, Leeuwarden and Germany are participating. "We are connecting education and business practice," says lecturer Sjoerd de Vries. The students have by now received their instructions from one of Google's top partners in the Netherlands.
Looks good on your CV
Online advertising is a rapidly growing market. In 2014, it was worth US$140 billion in the US alone. Google has a substantial share of the total market, with sales worth US$45 billion in search advertising last year. "Specialists in this field in the Netherlands and abroad are in big demand. This Google Challenge will give the careers of these Business Administration students an extra impulse and will look good on their CV,” concludes Efthymios Constantinides (lecturer of Digital Marketing).
More information
For new students: Bachelor’s programme in International Business Administration
