<aside> 💡 An annual conference held by AIESEC Canada for student leaders across the country.
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Role
Organizing Committee VP of Marketing
Skills Involved
Project management, brand management, digital marketing, content strategy, print/digital design
Project Timeline
Jan 2020 - Jan 2021
Tools
Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, Hopin, Salesforce
AIESEC National Congress is an intense five day conference where 250+ of Canada's youth leaders come together to join in national strategic planning. Every year, over 26 universities in Canada participate in youth leadership training through AIESEC Canada, by developing practical skills in challenging environments.
This conference is traditionally held in-person, however the emergence of COVID-19 caused an abrupt transition from in-person to virtual, resulting in significant changes to the event format.
My role was to design the look and feel of the conference, develop marketing plans, and generate interest for both potential sponsors and the AIESEC Canada community.
Our organizing committee wanted to create a theme that would resonate with the entrepreneurial spirit of AIESEC members. For design we wanted to present a youthful, future-facing look that would reflect the power of youth leaders across Canada. I went with a lighter color palette with gradients to convey a youthful, futuristic modern look for the conference.
After many iterations we settled on ‘The Entrepreneurial Playground’, a space where a person or organization has free reign to grow, explore, and develop as they please.
Design Moodboard
Final Conference Theme
The official Partnership Package, developed to secure sponsors and communicate the benefits of working with our event
An official Facebook and Instagram page were utilized to promote the conference. Instagram was used for the first time in National Congress’ history, and the account grew to 300+ followers in less than a month. In addition, the organizing committee reached out to local AIESEC committees across Canada to communicate and promote the event.
Due to the nature of COVID-19, we only used digital marketing methods to promote. We worked to communicate benefits of the conference to both potential sponsors as well as university students across Canada by emphasizing the intangible benefits of attending and engaging with likeminded individuals. A focus on increasing engagement throughout the event days was done through creating engaging content and showcasing experiences from past and present attendees of AIESEC conferences.
A sample of posts & stories designed
After the event wrapped up, we ended up with:
Overall our team learned a lot about running a conference from start to finish. While COVID-19 threw a wrench in our original plans, we came to understand the importance of being flexible. The transition to virtual allowed for us to engage with our delegates in new ways, and set the blueprint for future AIESEC Canada conferences.