Marketing to GLOs

[GammaPhiBabe]

Ok, so my last thread about marketing to greeks didn't turn out the way I had hoped... (If you really want to read it, see "where do you buy your t-shirts" in the greek life forum...it got a little nasty). So I'm going to rephrase my question and try again.

Here's the situation: I work for an advertising agency which also has a division that sells promotional/imprinted items (like party favors--can huggers, coolers, cups, hats, etc.) and T-shirts. We are in a college town, so lately we have been getting some business from fraternities and sororities. Because we have a very low overhead and a good relationship with our suppliers, we are able to beat our competitors prices by several dollars per shirt. (I'm not saying this to brag or advertise, just stating the facts.) My boss has asked me, because I am the most recent college graduate and because I am a member of a GLO and a chapter advisor, to research how we can better market ourselves to the greek community. We already know that many "greek- friendly" businesses take advantage of college students because they order a high volume of shirts & favors and are often uneducated about the huge profit margins that the companies are making...sometimes 200% profit.

So...we want to know what is the best way to get our name out to the greek community here at the local University as well as other schools in the region. Also, what do you look for in a vendor... low prices? samples? freebies? a website? How do you make your decision about where to purchase your shirts & party favors? Do you favor a local company or do you go with a bigger, national company either on-line, by catalog or through a campus representative?

Any information you could give me would be most appreciated. Please note that I am not asking where I should buy shirts or advertising for my company (I didn't even mention our name here). Also, I am NOT a salesperson. I'm in the art department. So even if I were advertising, I don't make a commission. Just wanted to clarify that.

Thanks for reading and I am looking forward to hearing your opinions!

[squirrely girl]

man, if the freaking t-shirt vendors can simply get the order right, on time, and not charge us an arm and a leg....we're usually happy.

i think if you could get a couple of the fraternities and sororities on campus to start using you then word of mouth will start increasing your business. and word of mouth is more important than a good sales pitch.

as for getting ahold of specific people. try the recruitment chair, the purchasing coordinator, and the activities coordinator. at least in my chapter, these people bought the most shirts.

also, my chapter usually prefered to buy shirts locally because there was a contact person the whole time and you didn't have to cross your fingers as much. try to hit that point home.

marissa.

[GammaPhiBabe]

Oops. I meant to post this thread in "Greek Life." How did I manage to get it in "Chapter Operations"?

Can I delete this thread or move it to the right forum? Help!

[Kevin]

My chapter has always been very disloyal when it comes to t-shirt companies. That is -- until recently. We found a company here in town that charges around one-third less than who was the most recent 'favorite' t-shirt company and has the same quality level.

Price, the quality of the art department and the quality of customer service are all things that we look for. For me though a company must continually prove themselves to me in order to retain my business. They must work to build quality relationships. Some companies we've worked with have offered preferential pricing to those of us who paid for the orders on-time, etc.

That's pretty much a jumble of random factors that contribute to everything, hope that can in some way help you.

LHT
Kevin
MT 5
University of Central Oklahoma

[AXOLiz]

Are there any big campus events coming up? At my school, we have two big all-campus events, one per semester, and at the one in the spring, pretty much any organization can go and set up a booth for free. It draws a lot of attention from local businesses, who come to do contests and pass out free stuff. A couple new businesses did that at the last one, and now whenever I go, there's always students in there. Granted your campus is probably very different, but if there was someplace you could stand around on a busy day and hand out cheap stuff (cups, shirts, etc.), it might work. Or maybe send out flyers to whoever does the shirts at the various orgs advertising a contest, like whoever places an order will be put in a drawing for free/cheaper (insert product here).

When we pick who does t-shirts, we usually find a cute graphic in one of the many catalogs we get and go with whatever one it's in (unless they'll be outrageously expensive), so I think getting some samples of the work you can do, whether online or in a catalog, would definitely help. Anyhow, just my two cents.

[33girl]

If you know who the other primary vendors are, simply do a comparison with them (like our letter sweatshirt is $20, Dan's Greek Stuff charges $30). Give groups a dedicated rep if they make repeat orders (i.e. if Mary helped ASA last time, she works with them again). Also, offer a discount on future orders for referrals. If ZTA recommends you to DZ, and DZ says "we were referred by ZTA" ZTA gets 15% off their next order. If that is feasible.

[LeslieAGD]

I agree with a lot of what Marissa said.

Also, get in touch with the greek office/campus life office and see if you can set up a booth at certain events. Some company always comes to our fall Greek Forum/bbq and makes a HUGE profit.