Concordia students offer free marketing services to Montreal's non-profits and businesses
Montreal's small businesses and non-profits can now access free marketing services thanks to a student-led group at Concordia University.
While corporations spend thousands on marketing reports, the Concordia Marketing Aid Clinic (CMAC) creates detailed reports on event marketing, search engine optimization (SEO), target audience reach and content creation — all without charging a penny.
Founded two years ago by Concordia University students, the CMAC initially wanted to support local businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Rivkah Groszman, president and co-founder of the CMAC, says her group also gives Concordia students valuable work experience before they graduate.
"I hope they learn how to analyze a real-life marketing situation and create solutions. By creating their own reports, templates and examples we suggest to our clients, they will have a chance to work on strategies and their actual implementation in theory," she said.
Last year, the group created 60-page marketing reports for Scratch Takes, a local video production service, and a youth-led non-profit called Medical Herstory.
Both got a detailed analysis of industry threats and opportunities, probability of success, consumer segments, and the four Ps of marketing: product, price, place, and promotion.
Two other applicants will receive a free marketing consultation in the new academic year, after sending in their client recruitment form by Aug. 28.
"We're all very passionate about giving back to our small businesses and non-profits because they’re really the backbone of Montreal culture and the Montreal community," Groszman added.
The group is funded by the Concordia Student Union (CSU) to make sure it can provide free tools to its clients and organize student events, but all of its members work voluntarily.
For Renee Belanger, a fourth-year marketing student at Concordia, being the vice president of events at the CMAC is an "engaging and exciting" opportunity.
"I want to work with small businesses. I think it's more personal and more down my alley," she said. "I like taking on bigger challenges, which I think is what small businesses allow you to do, and it feels more rewarding to see the results."
Belanger added that organizing events helps her expand her network, while the overall experience is a solid foundation for her future marketing career.
With the new application season well underway, a sample of the group's past consultation reports can be found on the CMAC website.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Canada to see warm summer, wildfire risks loom for some regions: forecast
Get ready to feel the heat, Canada. Weather experts are predicting more sunshine and warmer temperatures for the summer.
'It was hell': Israeli mother held hostage with her children describes 51 days in captivity
Hagar Brodutch, her three children and four-year-old neighbour were kidnapped by Hamas-led militants from their home in Kfar Aza, Israel on Oct. 7 and held for 51 days. They were released in November, but Brodutch says her thoughts are never far from those still being held in Gaza.
New COVID-19 subvariants become the dominant strains in Canada
More than four years after COVID-19 effectively shut down the world, two new variants of COVID-19 have become the dominant strains of the novel coronavirus in Canada.
3 Israeli soldiers killed in Rafah booby trap explosion, media say, as offensive widens
The Gaza health ministry called on Wednesday for ensuring safe pathways for the immediate entry of fuel and medical aid to Rafah and northern Gaza, according to a statement carried by Hamas media quoting spokesperson Ashraf Al-Qudra.
P.E.I. kiteboarder 'lucky to be alive' after shark attack in Turks and Caicos
A professional kiteboarder from P.E.I. says he has been seriously injured in a shark attack that occurred while he was snorkelling in the Turks and Caicos Islands last week.
'Unruly passenger' forces WestJet flight to make emergency landing in B.C.
A WestJet flight heading to Calgary had to make an emergency landing in northern B.C. Monday due to an incident involving an 'unruly passenger,' Mounties say.
Introducing peanut butter during infancy can help protect against a peanut allergy later on, new study finds
New evidence suggests that feeding children smooth peanut butter during infancy and early childhood can help reduce their risk of developing a peanut allergy even years later.
The double-level airplane seat is back. This time, there's a first-class version
It’s the airplane seat design that launched a thousand memes and kickstarted a media storm. And now the double-level seat is back – only this time, with a twist.
House of Commons Speaker Greg Fergus survives vote calling for his ouster
Greg Fergus survived a vote to oust him as House of Commons Speaker on Tuesday, but with close to half of MPs expressing a loss of confidence in him, he faces a precarious path forward in maintaining order in Parliament.