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What is The Pitch?

The Pitch is back, and the challenge has been set, but have you got what it takes to impress our panel of industry leaders?

The Pitch is a nationwide competition designed to recognise and reward the marketing talent of
the future.

Each year we task undergraduate marketing and business students in their second or third year
of university, with a real-life marketing challenge. This Challenge is set by a leading global brand which provides students with the opportunity, in teams of two or three, to apply their learning from their degrees. The top 10 teams will have the opportunity to pitch their ideas and demonstrate their ability in front of true business professionals in March 2021 at the live final, this year being delivered virtually.

We are delighted to announce that our sponsor for 2021 is innovative relentless pioneers, Samsung.

19 March 2021

Virtual live final date

 

Registration deadline:

04 December 2020

Marketing presentation submission deadline:

22 January 2021

Register now

Testimonials

The Challenge

“Samsung’s mobile devices, such as foldable mobile phones, tablets, headphones and watches, are at the cutting edge of portable technology. How can we use this innovation to communicate our ‘relentless pioneer’ brand DNA to Generation Z?”

Prizes

  • 1st Prize

    • Winner of The Pitch 2021 and our ‘Marketers of the Future’ award
    • One of the latest products from the Samsung mobile device range
    • One-year complimentary CIM membership for each team member

  • 2nd Prize

    • One of the latest products from the Samsung mobile device range
    • One-year complimentary CIM membership for each team member

  • 3rd Prize

    • One-year complimentary CIM membership for each team member

  • All finalists

    • Specially produced finalist certificates

What to expect

The best people to tell you about The Pitch are our previous student teams, judges and sponsors. Click here to read their experiences and gain an insight into what’s in store this year.

Registration

Entries for The Pitch 2021 are now open. To register, please select the correct option below and complete the required form. All entries must be received by 04 December 2020.

University

Students

Testimonials

  • Thomas Cooper and Adam Dickson

    Winners of The Pitch 2020

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    Thomas Cooper and Adam Dickson (Winners of The Pitch 2020)

    “While we might not be able to celebrate in person, we are so pleased to have been awarded this year’s title. Both of us jumped at the chance to put into practice many of the theories and marketing techniques that we’ve been studying since starting University. And now to be recognised for our thinking by a panel of respected marketing professionals is the confidence boost we needed, as we start to apply for graduate jobs.”

  • Evie Johnson

    Winner of The Pitch 2017

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    Evie Johnson (Winner of the Pitch 2017)

    “Graduates can’t afford to take a back seat in marketing and as placements become more and more common, they need to find other ways to have an edge. I think The Pitch is a great start and it’s good fun. The money has come in really handy for my relocation too”.

  • Sam Willan

    Marketing Manager, StudentUniverse

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    Sam Willian (Marketing Manager, StudentUniverse)

    "Partnering with the CIM for The Pitch, as sponsors in 2017 and as a judge in 2018 has been a hugely valuable experience for StudentUniverse. Hearing fresh, innovative ideas from talented young marketers, who are also right in our target demographic allowed us to gain unique brand insights, that continue to inform our marketing strategy and campaigns. Be prepared for an honest critique of your brand's shortcomings but with twice as many ideas on how to overcome them. 

    It also allowed us to develop some great collaborative working relationships with students who had been part of the campaign. Siobhan Glover, who was runner up in 2017, and her partner went on to set up and run an Instagram account @backpacksandbeyond. We recently worked with as part of a partnership campaign with Visit Victoria, who approached to help position the state as a student backpacker destination. We knew Siobhan and Andy were perfect candidates for the job, to get off the beaten track and show us everything the state had to offer through Instagram stories and their own authentic approach to influencer marketing. We had the added bonus of them already knowing the StudentUniverse brand through The Pitch - it certainly won't be the last time we work with them. 

    Being a part of this initiative has also led to us reviewing our hiring policy, and as a business will be looking to bring in marketing staff at a graduate level for the first time. The future of marketing is in safe hands!" 

  • Sarah Wood

    Marketing Director, Wilkinson Sword

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    Sarah Wood (Marketing Director, Wilkinson Sword)

    “It’s been a revelatory day for me. According to the returning judges, the standard of the pitches was higher than ever before. For me, the level of professionalism was there – some of the ideas were better than we might expect from an agency. The pitches that really worked well were insightful and used targeted market research, with considerations of our audience, to go the extra mile. Those were the concepts I can see us using in the future”.

Contact us

For more information, please contact: thepitch@cim.co.uk

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