Brazil120 players participate in TNO's Marketing & Sales game
Last month, 120 participants from 6 countries came together virtually to play The Next Organization’s Marketing & Sales game. A roundup of the event and the experience for participants.
The game was organised among marketing students at the Copenhagen Business School, with the two-fold objective of developing feasible, value-adding ideas while also pushing students’ knowledge of marketing and sales to the next level. Played over two days, the game had 120 participants, including professionals from marketing and other creative industries.
Originally designed to be played on-premise, the game was adapted to an online version – via a dedicated online portal – in light of the cricumstances and social distancing norms. Groups of three to six participants competed in the game over several rounds, each introduced by expert hosts via a plenary session online.
The host laid down the theory and concept that formed the theme for each round, following which participants worked in a team to ‘crack’ the round – solve a real-life case with a creative solution. Teams were assessed qualitatively and quantitatively judging their hard and soft skills, and were given personalised feedback at the end of the round.
The game eventually culminated in a Dragon’s Den style pitch to a panel of three experts, and the team with the best performance and solution won. Judging by the response, the game appears to have been a huge success among students.
“It was a very nice opportunity to get an insight into marketing and the steps that should be taken when choosing a target segment according to the product and the market. I also appreciated The Next Organization facilitators’ engagement in the game, as well as their feedback,” wrote one student in a testimonial.
“A great experience that allows you to apply strategic knowledge on a practical realistic case! And a great team that guides you through it!” wrote another participant. Some were even left hungry for more, with one student writing that the game was “really interesting and should be done more often!”
Future of marketing
Netherlands-headquartered consultancy The Next Organization first launched the game last year, starting as an in-house experiment and subsequently using it with clients. At the time, Strategic Marketing Consultant at the firm Yasin Sahhar described it as “a great success,” with big names such as Jaguar Land Rover making use of its advantages.
Few can contest the value of marketing in a firm’s success today – a realisation that has prompted many businesses to up their investments in marketing, in part to cater to a changing consumer landscape. As they do so, Sahhar suggests that the game creates a safe learning environment for marketing professionals to experiment and solve real-life solutions.
“In the game participants address challenges that are present within a company. This win-win situation ensures that participants can develop themselves and organisational challenges can be solved,” he said. This was the third time in a row that the Copenhagen Business School invited The Next Organization to facilitate the game, signaling that others share Sahhar’s views on the game’s value.
