Undergraduates

• Debunk at least three common misconceptions about AI
• Show how AI is already solving real business problems
• Position IBM as a clear, confident and credible voice in AI
• Stay within a total campaign budget of £400,000

Your team must design a six-month digital campaign that includes:

• A campaign strapline and central message
• A creative concept including tone of voice and visual direction
• A content strategy with at least three content types (e.g. short video, infographic, podcast, quiz)
• A clear distribution and media plan with budget allocation
• An approach to involving experts or influencers
• A phased delivery timeline
• SMART objectives and performance measures
• Your entire campaign must be delivered within a £400,000 budget

Your campaign should target UK-based decision-makers who are not AI specialists but are expected to engage with AI in a business context. This includes:

• Entrepreneurs and business owners in start-ups and SMEs
• Founders and leadership teams in fast-growing businesses
• Marketing, digital or innovation leads in smaller organisations
• Professionals in larger organisations who influence or make strategic decisions about AI adoption.

These individuals are likely to be curious about AI but cautious about its cost, complexity or trustworthiness. Your campaign should speak directly to their needs, using accessible language and relevant examples.

Your marketing campaign must be delivered within a total budget of £400,000.

Considerations for where to allocate your budget:

• Campaign proposition and development – Defining the central message and creative approach
• Content production – Video, podcasts, graphics, copy, audio or interactive formats
• Paid media – Targeted promotion across relevant digital channels (e.g. LinkedIn, YouTube, Facebook etc.)
• Influencers and expert contributors – External or internal voices that build credibility and clarity
• Content management and delivery – Scheduling, platform use and in-campaign optimisation
• Tracking and reporting – Tools or resource to monitor performance against SMART objectives.

You should demonstrate how spend is prioritised to deliver maximum clarity, reach and impact. Consider which activities are most likely to engage your audience and support IBM’s reputation as a trusted voice in AI.

You may select and frame your own, but examples include:

• “AI will replace humans in the workplace”
• “AI is only for big tech companies”
• “AI is too risky to use responsibly”
• “We don’t have the data or budget to use AI”
• “AI is a black box - we can’t trust what it does”

Your campaign should offer IBM’s voice of clarity, reassurance and expertise - paired with a strong visual identity and accessible tone

Some things to consider

• Focus on clarity - your audience is unlikely to be technical
• Choose content formats that explain complex ideas simply
• Prioritise trusted channels where business decision-makers engage
• Use experts or influencers to reinforce IBM’s credibility
• Address real concerns around cost, control, ethics and relevance
• Build a timeline that shows how your campaign grows momentum over six months
• Make sure your tone is informative, credible and accessible.

Presentation format

All marketing presentations must be produced in a PowerPoint presentation with audio and submitted to thepitch@cim.co.uk via www.wetransfer.com by Monday 26th January 2026. Late entries will not be accepted.

Marketing presentation submission guidelines

Your campaign presentation must include the following:

• Campaign concept – A clear central idea and message.
• Target audience – Who you are targeting and why they matter.
• Creative direction – Tone of voice, visual style and examples of content formats.
• Content and distribution plan – What content will be produced, how it will be delivered, and where it will appear, including paid media channels.
• Expert involvement – Who will support the campaign and how their input adds credibility.
• Budget breakdown – How the £400,000 budget will be allocated.
• Timeline – Key phases of the six-month campaign.
• Measurement – SMART objectives and how you will track success.

You must also include a one-page judges’ summary as your final slide, using the template provided. Each section must be completed using size 10 Calibri font.

Presentation slide requirements and file naming

What to include on your title slide. Your presentation must have a clear and accurate title slide. The following information must be included:

1. Team name
2. Full names of all students in your team
3. University name
4. Indicate whether you are Undergraduate (UG) or Postgraduate (PG)

Please ensure that ALL this information is included on your presentation title slide to ensure the successful processing of your presentation.

How to label your files

All submitted documents (including your presentation and any supplementary files) must be clearly named using this format:

• [Team Name]_[University Name]_[UG or PG].pptx/pdf
• Example: BrightMarketers_Universityname_UG.pptx
• Avoid generic filenames such as “FinalDraft” or “Pitch2026”, we receive many entries, and unclear file names can cause delays.

Recording and Audio

The presentation will need to be recorded, so the judges can see the presentation and also hear you present your slides.

Once you have finished creating your presentation, to record in Microsoft PowerPoint, you will need to:

1. Click the ‘slide show’ tab at the top of the window.
2. Click ‘record slide show’.
3. When you are ready, click the ‘red dot recording symbol’ in the top left-hand corner to begin your recording.
4. As you talk through your slides, you can move through them using the arrows on your keyboard.
5. When you are finished, you stop the recording by clicking the ‘stop’ button in the top left-hand corner of the window.
6. Then hit ‘escape’ on your keyboard to return to the original PowerPoint screen.

Please save and submit your presentation in standard Microsoft PowerPoint format, using Microsoft fonts and ensure any videos used are embedded into your PowerPoint presentation.

Presentation time

Students have 15 minutes for their marketing presentation. Candidates must comply with the recommended presentation time with a margin of 10%. There is no restriction on word count or how many slides are used in the presentation.

Presentation summary

After successfully registering for The Pitch, you’ll receive a Judge’s Summary. This document outlines exactly what your marketing presentation will be assessed against.

A blank Judge’s Summary template will also be provided. Using this template, each student team must complete a brief outline for every section and insert the completed summary as the final slide of their presentation.

Please note:

• The Judges’ Summary must not exceed one page
• Use Calibri font, size 10

Bibliography

All sources, methodologies and applications used to develop the marketing presentation, must be identified and acknowledged through Harvard Referencing in a bibliography.

Appendices

Appendices should only be included where necessary and should be used to accommodate tables and diagrams to support/illustrate the main body of the presentation. No marks are awarded for work included in the appendices, and these should not be used as alternative locations for work that should appear in the main presentation. Appendices should not include published secondary information, such as annual reports and company literature.

Plagiarism

Plagiarism involves presenting work, excerpts, ideas or passages of another author without appropriate referencing and attribution. Collusion occurs when two or more teams submit work which is so alike in ideas, content, wording and/or structure that the similarity goes beyond what might have been mere coincidence. Plagiarism and collusion are serious offences and any teams found to be sharing their own work, copying another team’s work, quoting work from another source without recognising and disclosing that source, or using agencies that provide assignment writing services will be penalised and their presentation may be declared null and void.

IBM Resources

You may refer to IBM’s public materials and Al resources, including:

• IBM Consulting Advantage
• IBM: Explore our AI solutions
• IBM: Marketing and Sales, CMO
• New IBM study: How business leaders can harness the power of gen AI to drive sustainable IT transformation.

Mintel research pack

Here you’ll find a range of market research resources developed by Mintel. If you wish to use the resources, you will need to ensure the source is clearly referenced in your bibliography.

Insert Mintel UG research pack