Current Students and Staff

A Loughborough Students’ Union training programme is looking to support, advise and train local businesses in the benefits of social media marketing.

With reports of falling footfall and declining trade in high streets throughout the UK, social media has become an essential component of any company’s marketing strategy; helping to mobilise customer engagement and drive business growth.

The ‘Switch On Stand Out’ training programme, developed by Loughborough Students’ Union Enterprise Hub, gives local businesses the opportunity to get up-to-date information and grow their understanding of using social media as a marketing tool.

To date the programme has benefited more than 80 local businesses and, with the support of Charnwood Borough Council and Love Loughborough, this year’s initiative aims to help many more and shape a strong and lasting local economy.

From 1-2-1 consultancy sessions with students to informative workshops, it is hoped independent and multi-national businesses across Charnwood will take advantage of the free programme and develop their social media platforms.

This year also sees the introduction of three ‘Social Media Uncovered’ networking evenings, taking place on Thursday 1 February, Tuesday 13 March and Wednesday 2 May, in Cognito, in the Student’s Union.

Switch On Stand Out is now in its fifth year. One local business owner that took part in a previous year’s programme said: “It was great to engage with a younger person’s perspective and to talk to someone who looked more critically at the business from the outside.”

Another commented: “Our student was very helpful and enthusiastic. Getting a younger perspective and learning new tricks was great.”

One of the students that took part in the 2017 programme said the greatest benefit from the programme is “the satisfaction of helping a local business.”

For more information on how you can sign-up or to find out what the programme has on offer, email Emma Bishop at: Emmabishop@lsu.co.uk