UB’s 12th Annual Marketing Expo a Success!
UB’s marketing Expo took place in Belize City today. The expo provides an avenue for enterprising entrepreneurs to turn ideas and concepts into business opportunities. Hundreds gathered for the event where Boom Bam Belize, a group focusing on creating eco-friendly sound amplifiers from locally grown bamboo, took first place. Hipolito Novelo dropped by and has a report.
Hipolito Novelo, Reporting
Economic Growth and Development in a Changing Society was this year’s theme for UB’s Marketing Expo. The twelfth annual expo was held at the Civic in Belize City where thirty groups showcased their business ideas backed up by marketing strategies. Marketing Lecturer at the university says that the students were challenged to create a business idea and in the process learn what the real life challenges are.
Eda Arzu, Marketing Lecturer, University of Belize
“It definitely prepares them for the real life out there in the sense that these students start with a simple idea in the classroom where they brainstorm the possibility of what may work in our local market and also international market as well. So they do an intense research where they evaluate the possibility the growth within a period of time and see how they can extend line to their particular product or service.”
This year’s winner was Boom Bam Belize, a group focused on creating eco-friendly sound appliers made of one hundred percent bamboo.
Brenda Sanabria
Brenda Sanabria, Boom Bam Belize
“There is a dock here and you just put your phone in there and it echoes the sound. It is an eco friendly replacement for speakers that life spans are very short. We have to throw it afterwards, it becomes waste. This is our eco friendly option.”
Hipolito Novelo
“What has been the reaction of the visitors today?”
Brenda Sanabria
“The really like the look of it. They like the décor. They were skeptical at first because they thought that it would not work. So we tried it out and it worked.”
The students were also challenged to successfully market their products. Members of Golden Honey Fusion see their product being produced beyond the expo.
Jeanica Hilton
Jeanica Hilton, Golden Honey Fusion
“It just appeared to us naturally like why don’t we try something with honey like natural resource, something that would be good for the body. That is when we said we should infuse the honey with different things. When we did we liked the end results and that is why we went that specific direction.”
Hipolito Novelo
“How has the reaction from the visitors been?”
Jeanica Hilton
“Amazing. It has been good. Everyone is like this is good, we haven’t tried something like this before. It is nice.”
Hipolito Novelo
“Do you see the production of this honey beyond the expo?”
Jeanica Hilton
“Yes. We do but we are still working on it as a team.”
Members of Glow Envy share the same sentiments. The group produced four different facial masks. The group utilized the internet to market their product.
Samantha Cawich
Samantha Cawich, Glow Envy
“We opened an Instagram page. We also made a website page. We also marketed by posting on our social media, Whatsapp, Facebook, Instragam and Snapchat. Not only social but posting up flyers, telling friends and family members and they passing on the message.”
Ivan Tesecum
Ivan Tesecum, C.E.O., B.T.L.
“One of the most important things that they can realize is digital marketing, using social media as quick as possible at your finger tips. That is how they can interact. So at the end of the day they are able to not only be having a very small base that they can market but throughout the world where they can market over the internet. Access to the internet now enables them to not only think locally but also globally as to where they can take their product.”
Reporting for News Five, I am Hipolito Novelo.
