PROGRAM HIGHLIGHT:

International Marketing: Brazil Virtual Experience

featuring the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and Weloop

THE problem

“Comprehending the market opportunities and expansion of a startup from Brazil into the international market.”

The program was developed in a partnership between Campus b and University of Nebraska-Lincoln, offered to undergraduate students (business and related fields) from the US and Brazil. The group had the opportunity of working together on a case competition hosted by the Brazilian company Weloop, a platform that enables the sale of second-hand clothing among people (peer-to-peer) and facilitates the connection between its users and some service providers.

THE SOLUTION

Understanding of the priority features to launch Weloop MVP (Minimal Viable Product), based on a complete market analysis, and a roadmap for future features and tools.

The main goal of the program was to understand marketing issues in international business, analyzing the influence of international institutions, culture, stage of development, and geography, following the methodology of Project Based Learning. To support the construction of their investigation, students participated in lectures about business in Brazil, consumer behavior, social issues, and also about theoretical marketing concepts. Since they were developing a real problem from a real Brazilian company, they had talks with other stakeholders that nurtured their knowledge and made possible the development of a feasible solution to Weloop.

" I worked with Campus b on a different virtual study abroad focused on Latin America during the spring semester of 2021, and it went very well. However, the virtual study abroad that we just did between the University of Nebraska - Lincoln and Campus b during the Maymester was even better. The chemistry between all of the professors, the students (American, international, and Brazilian), and Campus b's team was almost magical. All of the logistics, activities, cases, and final project with a "live" client were super relevant to our objective and seamless, and I know that without the support and service provided by Campus b, this 3 week intensive, virtual study abroad to Brazil would have been very difficult to manage and pull off. Campus b works so closely with the professors and the class content and curriculum, and because of this, all aspects of the program were well organized and had a high impact on all of the parties involved. I give them a STRONG recommendation for any faculty that want to customize a truly unique experience."

Prof. Matthew JordanDirector of the Center for Global Business Studies at St. Mary's University in San Antonio

“Working with Campus B on a virtual class on Brazil Business and Culture was successful beyond my expectations. I wanted an opportunity for our students to get to work with and know Brazilian students as well as take part in experiential learning doing a practicum with a business partner in Brazil. All of these outcome goals for our students were met and exceeded. In many ways our students from UNL in the class got more out of the class than if they had actually visited Brazil. The people we worked with at Campus B are professional and flexible to make the experience work for all the students and still meet the learning outcomes. I will work with Campus B anytime on an education abroad experience for our students.”

Seven students from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln chose to be with us during this three-week course, to expand their international business perspective. To join them, campus b selected six Brazilian students from different parts of the country, who contributed with their local knowledge, academic and professional experience.

Case Competition

7 students from UNL and 6 Brazilian students

“The Nebraska-Lincoln and Campus B program was a fantastic experience, having students with a global perspective and a diversity of cultures, from the United States to Brazil, China, Oman, India, and other countries, contributing in an unmeasurable value to understand business strategies and how to relate with a plural team. An impressive result in a short period, a consequence of a group of fabulous students, professors, and the CampusB team. Since the initial organization of the deliverables for the students, the weekly meetings and group conversations, the support given, and the openness in discussions of ideas and objectives all contributed to a final presentation with professional and detailed insights on the business, market, marketing, and project roadmap. No other consultancy can provide such a rich experience for everyone involved, not only from what we experienced but also from the connections created.”

Background

Professors Rob Simon (UNL), Matthew Jordan (St. Mary’s University) and Rodrigo Ferreira (campus b) gave them support and mentoring through their journey, guaranteeing their achievement of the final proposal. Finally, since we believe the cultural aspect always comes hand-in-hand with the development of any international project, workshops like Capoeira and integration activities among the students were crucial to create bonding, empathy and collaboration in the teams.

The Results

During those 3-weeks, the following concept and practices were explored:

Full Immersion in an intercultural environment

Besides having students from the US and Brazil, the program also had the participation of students from other countries like Nepal, Oman and China. This exposition to different cultures and beliefs created empathy, curiosity and openness among them. A group so diverse enabled the growth of a holistic analysis, discussing and listening to different opinions and expanding their global perspective.

Personal Development

Besides learning about academic concepts, the daily engagement of the students enlarged the impact of the experience. The integration activities gave them the opportunity to share their personal lives, journeys and experiences. When they listened to each other, it allowed them to create a bond as a team and also be empathetic towards each other.

Global Citizenship Awareness

Weloop purpose is something really contemporary. They explore and emphasize the thriving need of rethinking our habits and actions with the world and environment. That said, to find a solution to the case, students had to exercise their global consciousness, having in their discourses and their ideas, the principles of sustainable development. Circular economy, recycling and reusing were predominant concepts during the project development.

“One of the most interesting things was to realize how fast the students developed the capability to connect themselves in high-performance teams. The relatively short time and the number of simultaneous activities that they had to manage gave them that sense of real business life that is the ultimate desire of every project-based education program. With the right support from the professors and Campus B they were able to organize themselves very quickly and in the end provide the customer with relevant information. I believe these learning experiences prove the point that business education can get much more from the students when they are challenged in a relevant way. At the same time, it shows what a huge potential can be unleashed from students all around the world to help them become leaders that can impact society positively.”

"I am glad to have had this amazing opportunity in my life! Thank you all! I have really appreciated the Program and the people involved!"

"Thank you for the opportunity! Thank you very much indeed, it will be extremely important for my career and for a future exchange I intend to do with college!"

“I enjoyed learning about Brazil’s culture, I can’t wait to visit it soon"

“My best memories are getting to know more about Brazil itself, having the foreigners' perspective about it. And making new friends. I really loved this experience, and hope to have other opportunities to work and study with Campus B and UNL soon.”

“I loved this experience, it is once-in-a-lifetime - I am so grateful to Campus B and our professors for facilitating this program, and I hope to visit Brazil someday and experience your amazing culture!"

Written by:

Pamela Camarano and Gabriela Elias

Campus b Team

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