Student Ambassador Sean Maroni created a giant triangular whiteboard as an interactive promotional tool for North Carolina State University’s Entrepreneurship Initiative.

Originally posted on NCIIA’s Student Ambassadors blog

Flyers and Facebook events are some of the usual suspects when it comes to campus event promotional methods…but giant whiteboards?

Sean Maroni, an NCIIA/Epicenter Student Ambassador from North Carolina State University, found a creative way to reach out to fellow students during an event in September. With the goal of raising awareness about the NC State University Entrepreneurship Initiative, Maroni created a triangular whiteboard structure and planted it in the center of campus during the 125th Anniversary Campus Festival, Packapalooza, an all-day street festival capping off the university’s welcome week.

As organizers of the Entrepreneurship Initiative, Sean and his team found the physical “hook” very effective in catching the attention of passers-by, including Randy Woodson, Chancellor of NC State.

And the results? “We gave them an expo marker and told them to be as creative as they like,” Maroni said.

Visitors drew pictures, wrote messages to friends and jotted down ideas. They also interacted with Entrepreneurship Initiative team members, who walked around the eBoard and talked about the organization during the activity.

Maroni’s team collected contact information through an email signup sheet taped to each side of the board. Thanks to the group’s creative solution to sparking interest in their organization, Maroni said they collected information from more than 45 percent of the visitors with whom they interacted, gathering about 120 email addresses total.

To spread the word beyond the campus event, the team encouraged visitors to Twitpic or Instagram their contribution to @ncsuei #eBoard.

“The eBoard was successful in my opinion because it was unique and interactive,” Maroni said. “People really liked getting the chance to add something new to it, and to read all the other contributions. The most important thing is to have volunteers around the board engaging with people, and using the board as a conversation starter. If you set up a booth and hand out flyers, people might remember your organization. If you get them creating, thinking, and smiling, they definitely will.”



How to Build an eBoard

by Sean Maroni

The eBoard is a rectangular prism structure made from three identical panels. Each panel consists of a large 4-by-8-foot whiteboard and wood frame. The frames are constructed using angle cuts joined with corner braces. Two lift-off hinges allow it to be put together and taken down very quickly. Expo markers rest in holes drilled into the sides of the frame. The panels can lay flat and be stored in a 4-by-8-by-1-foot space. The panels fit in a pickup truck, and are reusable. Warning: the eBoard is not weatherproof, so this is not something you want to leave out in the rain. 

Part Count Store Price 8 ft 2x4 9 Home Depot $22 12 ft 2x4 1 Home Depot $5 L Brackets 36 Home Depot $45 3x3 Lift-off Hinges 6 McMaster-Carr $35 4x8 Whiteboard 3 Home Depot $42 Wood Screws 200 Home Depot $10     Total $159

 

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