Every year Lahti University of Applied Sciences (LUAS) sends a great
number of its students abroad for an international week. Every year the
students return to Finland with a fistful of great experiences. These are the
experiences from Haag, the third biggest city in the Netherlands.
I and three other students
from LUAS decided to go to Haag this spring. Before the trip we were given a
preliminary assignment. Our task was to study and analyze the Finnish beer
market and breweries. Since there are
just three major companies with only a few brands in the Finnish markets, the
assignment was quite clear. So, we did an informal presentation with some
humorous advertisements.
When we arrived at the central
train station in Haag, the welcome was really friendly. The Action Team, a
group of Dutch students involved in the project, guided us to our hotel and
gave us some useful advice. I have to say that the Action Team was really
awesome the whole week. I hope that the students arranging the International
Week here in Finland will reach the same level.
When we had met other students
and the teachers, it was time to start the actual work. Our assignment was to
create a mood board and a billboard for the new Heineken cider called Jilzz.
This had to be linked with the marketing strategy which we also planned. The
task was done in small groups, and it was a kind of a competition.
Before we began to work, we
took part in the Heineken Experience. It is a visit to Heineken's brewery in Amsterdam. We learned
about the history of the company, followed the journey of the beer from the
fields to the glass and saw a great number of Heineken ads from the past
decades. It took almost three hours to finish the experience, but I think that
there would have been even more to see and do.
After the trip we knew the
basics such as the values, the mission, the vision and Heineken's products. But
of course we wanted to know more about the specific product, Jilzz. That’s why
the Marketing Manager of the company gave us a two hour presentation. It was
mainly about what they had already done, and our task was to create something
totally different.
There were eight groups of
four students. First each group decided its own idea and a target group for the
product. After this we created the mood board. It should describe the feeling,
a mood, which the product represents. This was not that easy, since you had to
have a specific, creative, mind setting on for the task. After hours of work,
there were eight mood boards to present. The teachers and experts gave us
feedback and also tips for the coming task. The final assignment was to create
a billboard for the product. And the guideline was not to do something thad had
already been done but to do something totally new. There were some fabulous
things such as puzzles, holograms, stories and trees on buildings, just to
mention a few. The best ones were awarded, and the winner’s billboard was sent
to the Marketing Manager.
All in all the week gave a lot
for the students. We learned something new about marketing, but especially we
learned how to work in an international group.
Text: Henri Veijola
Photo: Henri Veijola
Photo: Henri Veijola
