Some people rely on luck in hopes that their dreams will become a reality. James Bittner, a current Marketing student, took a different route- determination, and grit to get him there.

    Last Fall, he took a chance on the third annual Barracuda Bowl Competition put on by the VT Marketing Department. James came up with a marketing campaign for Coca-Cola centered around gaming and VT students. With it, he wowed the judges, a panel that was made up of Coca-Cola Marketing Executives and the VT Marketing Advisory Board. He took home the W out of ninety other proposals.

    Part of his prize was a fully-paid-for trip to Coca-Cola Headquarters in Atlanta last week to meet with their International Head of Gaming and other Executives. They discussed the real-life version of his campaign that he will be executing at VT. “It was surreal”, says James. “I spent time in their in-house filming studio, virtual reality room, and social media hub. Because of it, I have a deeper understanding of strategies they use to implement and monitor campaigns. Their campus is a very open, high-tech, and collaborative environment and you can feel the sense of community.”

    James is now in a full-speed-ahead mode as his Coca-Cola gaming event will take place at VT on April 13th. The event is named Game-Day at Virginia Tech. It will include a Super Smash Bros tournament, as well as other casual games. It will be free to participate and there will be a plethora of prizes given away!

    James summed up his Barracuda Bowl experience this way: “The competition promised real-world marketing experience and that’s exactly what I’ve gotten out of it. I was given a budget and certain amount of time to execute a plan and prove results. I’ve been networking and managing a team in preparations for the event. They don't teach you how to do that in a classroom.” He hopes that other Marketing students will take advantage of this competition in the future!

 

Follow our social media pages for updates on the gaming event.

 

James & Head of Gaming at Coca-Cola

 

 

Article Written by Ashlin Webster