VIDEO: Athlone students to help 26 companies grow their digital reach

Students at the Technological University of the Shannon (TUS) in Athlone are to work with 26 Irish companies on projects designed to help grow their digital footprint and increase their competitiveness.

The projects, which pair students in TUS's BBs (Hons) in Digital Marketing and MSc in Digital Marketing with Irish brands across a variety of sectors, give students a chance to put their knowledge into practice through the development of tailor-made digital marketing strategies.

Companies participating in the initiative include Athlone Towncentre, Sugar Plum Sweetery, Mullingar; Athlone Golf Club; Forgotten Lady, Athlone; Athlone Community Radio; The Paint Shack, Athlone; Kilbeggan Races; Sidero; Sambrosa, Athlone; Athlone Arts and Tourism; Sheffield Jewellers; and Athlone Town FC.

Participating students cover a variety of practical and theoretical topics ahead of the project to support this process, among them social media marketing, strategy, analytics, SEO, paid advertising, e-commerce, and content creation.

"At this stage, our students are poised to apply the expertise they've acquired over their study in a real-world setting," explained Louise Murray, a senior lecturer at TUS who oversees the undergraduate component of the project.

The project is split into two phases, the first of which will see students liaise with their respective company to find out what their goals and objectives are; during this phase, students will research their host brand, the industry it's operating within, and undertake competitor analysis before making recommendations.

Early next year, in the second phase of the project, the students will begin working with their host company to implement their agreed upon bespoke digital marketing strategy.

The initiative is also outlined in this TUS Athlone video: