From Billboards To Branding: The Subtle Art Of Influencing Consumer Behavior

In today's fast-paced, interconnected world, marketing has become an essential tool for businesses to thrive and stand out in a crowded marketplace. Four PHS students – Zakiyah Castile, Lindsey Franks, Brayden Howell, and Delilah Wilken – recently had the opportunity to delve into the fascinating world of marketing through the Academy Experience Program, learning from industry experts Samantha Maschari and her team at Maschari Marketing.

Lindsey shared her initial goals for the experience: "I really wanted to learn if owning a business was the right path to take and a little bit of how to get started if I wanted to."

The program exceeded her expectations, offering hands-on learning opportunities that went beyond traditional classroom settings. "We were able to make our own commercial and make our own fake business and decide how we were going to put it out there and how to stay up on posting for the business and different ways to help support the community," Lindsey explained.

For Brayden, the experience provided valuable insights into the intricacies of marketing. "We made a marketing calendar for a month and tried to market for a company we made for the month, and it was interesting because it is what they actually do to market for these businesses around here like Chick-fil-A," he shared. This real-world application helped bridge the gap between theoretical concepts and practical implementation.

Delilah initially had reservations about the complexity of the business world. However, the welcoming and supportive environment created by Sam and her team quickly put her at ease. "The first time I met Sam, I was taken aback by how invested she was with us. She wanted to know about our backgrounds, our interests, our goals, and our ambitions," Delilah recalled. This personalized approach made the learning experience more engaging and relevant.

Zakiyah highlighted the importance of collaboration and teamwork during the program. "It was easy to talk to everyone and collaborate to figure out ways to collaborate, sponsor, or promote different things. Looking up holidays for social media posts and what would the picture and caption would become super easy for all of us. Especially when we 'created' a company, it was natural for use to come up with a name," Zakiyah shared.

Throughout the program, students gained valuable insights into the key components of successful marketing strategies. "I learned a lot about LSB's. LSB stands for leads, sales, and branding. These are extremely important because they are the main focus of a business," Delilah explained. "Thinking of how to generate LSB's made me realize how many components go into every decision a business makes."

The experience also challenged students to think creatively and overcome obstacles. "A challenge I encountered was sometimes my mind was on a block and it was hard to think about ways we could promote different things on social media, surveys, in person, and contests," Zakiyah admitted. However, the collaborative nature of the program allowed students to learn from each other and find innovative solutions.

For many participants, the Academy Experience Program sparked a passion for marketing and inspired them to pursue related careers or projects. "It made me want to take more marketing classes and I thought it was very interesting and I would like to get to know more about it and become better at marketing because I think it is a good skill and I can use it in a job later in life," Brayden shared.

Lindsey echoed this sentiment, stating, "It made me look into colleges and to try and figure out what field I want to go into in the future. This showed me how much Sam enjoys her job being a business owner and it proved to me that this is really what I want to pursue and do for the rest of my life. It made me realize that I want to go to college for either business or accounting and hopefully own my own business someday."

As the students reflect on their experiences, they offer valuable advice to future participants. "I would advise students visiting with Maschari Marketing to be curious and ask questions. Sam and Andrea are extremely knowledgeable and are willing to aid and advise in any way that they can. Their willingness to foster and motivate our ideas is something that not many others would do, and that is what I appreciate most about them," Delilah shared.

Zakiyah added, "The advice I'd give is to make the most out of this experience because now you're saving money rather than going to college and wasting your time and money on something you don't like. You have months or two semesters to figure out what you want to do for your future, so don't stress about it. Go into your experience with a positive mindset even if you figure out that's not what to do."

Sam Maschari added, "This is a program that could have only been wished for when I was in high school. Every student we have had the pleasure of working with has been open-minded, curious, and far exceeded any of our expectations. It is amazing to watch and learn from all of these young minds and exciting to know they are the future of this world and going to do amazing things. More now than ever because they all had an opportunity to get a glimpse into what their career path could be." 

Through the Academy Experience Program, PHS continues to provide students with unique opportunities to explore potential career paths, gain practical skills, and learn from industry professionals. As these four students discovered, the world of marketing is a dynamic and exciting field that offers endless possibilities for creativity, collaboration, and growth