A kick-off party by Northwestern Cause Marketing Initiative brought graduate Integrated Marketing Communications students together Friday to offer marketing strategies to nonprofit organizations in Chicago and Evanston.
CMI is a graduate student-run committee that provides strategic marketing communications solutions for local nonprofits that enable them to further their community reach and deepen their social impact, CMI Program Director Jimmy He said.
The party, held in the McCormick Auditorium, started with introducing teams to their clients, marking the official launch of the partnership between graduate students and nonprofits. The groups spent the next hour discussing strategies and plans for the future collaboration.
For IMC graduate student Laura Salgado, CMI’s external communications director, the program was the reason she decided to pursue a graduate degree at Medill.
“After graduate school, everybody is busy with their career ambitions,” Salgado said. “But CMI is not only about working, it’s about volunteering and contributing for the cause.”
CMI is open to all IMC graduate students. However, the leadership and managing roles are competitive. Students work on brand strategy, communications insights, interactive marketing initiatives, data analysis and content strategy for their clients.
Chris Cahill, CMI’s faculty adviser, has worked with the initiative since 2011. Cahill said the program is entirely student-led, and the number of participating nonprofits rises every year.
“It is a great opportunity for students to develop some consulting experience and put into practice what they have learned in the classroom,” Cahill said.
At the party, CMI connected 84 marketing consultants and 20 nonprofit clients. Teams of three to five people will work together to support organizations advocating for environmental consciousness, children’s rights, domestic violence prevention and other social causes.
This year is Petina Dixon-Jenkins’ first in CMI. She is an executive director of Avery’s Helpful Hair Kits, her daughter’s hair care brand for foster children with textured curly hair.
Dixon-Jenkins’ team worked on data analysis and research to help promote her brand. They are creating a plan to promote Avery’s Helpful Hair Kits via current media trends.
Jonathan Kuester, director of the Historic Wagner Farm, is participating in the program for the second time. Last year, his CMI group created a five-year master plan and tracked the demographic information of the organization.
“I got more out of my CMI group than I do out of consultants,” Kirsten said. “They did the work so fast, and I was truly impressed.”
Email: miratrofymchuk2028@u.northwestern.edu
X: @myroslavatrofym
Email: dashadubininina2028@u.northwestern.edu
X: @darjushka_
Related Stories:
— Evanston environmental groups team up for an Earth Month Kickoff Party
— Fossil Free NU, Climate Action Evanston host lecture event on changing climate culture
