Author: Sebastian Benad
Images: Julia Neubauer / S. Benad

On July 10, 2024, the final of the Online Marketing Challenge (OMC) 2024 took place in Dresden. Two teams from Zittau/Görlitz University of Applied Sciences (HSZG), consisting of International Business Communication students, competed against six other teams from Leipzig University. The competition, which has been organized by the SEPT Competence Center at Leipzig University and the Internationalization Offensive Saxony (IOSAX) since 2017, offered students the opportunity to apply their theoretical knowledge to real-life projects. The teams from the HSZG achieved outstanding results, demonstrating the strength of their practice-oriented education.

HSZG students worked together with renowned practice partners in OMC 2024 to develop innovative marketing strategies. The German Center for Astrophysics (DZA), a pioneering research center in Görlitz, is part of a large-scale project to promote structural change in Lausitz. It will become an international center for astrophysical research and digitization and serve as an important hub for processing astronomical data streams from global observatories. As part of the OMC, the aim of the HSZG team was to establish a network in Eastern Europe and the Baltic States in order to strengthen scientific cooperation and technology transfer in these regions.

The second HSZG team worked together with the boutique hotel "Insel der Sinne", which is located on the idyllic Berzdorfer See near Görlitz. The hotel is known for its exclusive location and extensive wellness facilities. The students' task was to develop a marketing strategy for the hotel's entry into the Polish market. The focus was on designing an emotional and experience-oriented campaign that emphasized the hotel's special recreational offers and was geared towards the needs of the Polish target group.

At the OMC final on July 10, 2024 in Dresden, the teams presented their concepts to a jury of experts from the fields of marketing, international business development and online communication. The HSZG's "Island of the Senses" team took second place with an impressive strategy for the Polish market. The jury particularly praised the creative implementation and the adaptation to the target group.

The DZA team was also convincing and achieved a good place, with their focus on successful network development in Eastern Europe and the Baltic states.

Participation in the Online Marketing Challenge 2024 is an impressive example of practice-oriented learning at the Faculty of Managerial and Cultural Studies (FMK) at the HSZG. The International Business Communication students gained valuable practical experience through their projects and developed interdisciplinary skills that optimally prepare them for the challenges in a dynamic professional field.

The OMC also showed how important international cooperation and networks are for the development of companies and research institutions. The students' ability to think strategically and find creative solutions is a direct result of the training at the FMK, which focuses on practical relevance and the promotion of independent action.

By participating in projects such as the Online Marketing Challenge, the FMK actively promotes the practical application of theoretical knowledge and prepares students for the challenges in dynamic professional fields.