Chi Alpha at Virginia Tech

Friends of mine developed and led a thriving Chi Alpha chapter at Virginia Tech. They asked me to help strengthen their marketing material, outreach collateral and fundraising strategies. Working in areas like this can be rewarding for two reasons. First, the work is meaningful and crucial. University life is a high pressure environment where cultures, hormones, expectations and emotions all collide. Having a solid relationship network that can help reinforce spiritual, mental and social health in students is beyond beneficial. This organization has quite literally helped save students' lives. Secondly, this is a blazing fast-paced market of sorts. Statistically, groups have a window of about 14 days to connect with a target market and multiple groups are competing for student membership - many of which are not beneficial. After the first week of move-in, the statistical window of new connections begins closing by the hour. Because of the fast-paced nature of this area, any marketing and outreach efforts one attempts can give very quick feedback. You usually find out fairly quickly whether something works or not. I worked with a passionate group of young leaders at Chi Alpha to setup multiple websites, streamline a few backend processes, produce promotional graphics, develop giveaway and signup strategies.