Street teams are a highly-effective grassroots strategy, and one of the “Core 5” products we recommend all student media offices include in their media kits. 

Street teams include the distribution of materials (flyers, posters, stickers, etc...) on campus. For both national and local buyers, street teams are a great way to reach a large subset of your campus in a short amount of time. And once you have a street team set up, you can also use it to promote your own organization by distributing print editions or other items.

What is a street team?

At its core, street teams are a high-impact, in-person advertising opportunity. Student media offices distribute promotional materials to engage directly with their peers on campus.

Street teams usually take one of three formats:

• Passing out flyers hand-to-hand in high-traffic areas on campus like central quads, dining halls or main walkways.
• Hanging posters in high-visibility places like class buildings or residence halls.
• Handing out print editions or other items your student media office creates directly to students.

We’ll talk more about the recommended structure and pricing of street teams further along in this guide.

Why are street teams impactful?

There are many reasons why both national and local buyers appreciate the reach and impact of street teams, but street teams are also a strong fit for student media offices and can have an impact on your organization overall, too.

It’s valuable for student media staff, whether they’re journalism or business students, to get out from behind the computer screen and engage directly with their campus community. 

These activations…

• Bring awareness to student media. Students are encouraged to engage with their campus’ student media office in a fun way and can create opportunities for personal connections.
• Enhance readership and engagement. You can also use a street team activation to distribute print editions, promote digital content and drive traffic to student media websites, social channels and e-newsletters.
• Boost ad revenue. A well-executed street team campaign can increase visibility for advertisers, demonstrating reach and engagement, which helps sell more ads. (Street teams activations are included on almost every national flytedesk campaign.)
• Allow for direct peer-to-peer marketing. Students are more likely to engage with content when it’s promoted by their peers rather than traditional marketing methods.
• Establish a campus presence. Street teams represent student media at campus events, ensuring visibility and brand recognition.
• Provide real-world experience to staff. For students participating on the team, it’s an opportunity to build marketing, promotional and sales skills that will be valuable for careers in media and marketing.

What you need to get started

All you need to get started is one to two reliable students to participate in the distribution of materials. (And some tape!)

Encourage advertisers to provide the materials themselves, whether that looks like flyers, posters, stickers, coasters or a combination of many items.

Some publishers may reserve designated space or tables on campus for street team activations, but this often isn’t necessary to get started.

‍What if my school prohibits flyer and poster distribution?

That’s OK! You can also try to distribute items off-campus in nearby locations where students visit frequently, like local restaurants, bars, bookstores or apartment complexes. Connect with local business partners to see what opportunities might be available. 

(In most cases, national buyers will accept verifications from these off-campus locations.)

You can also reach out to your Flytedesk account manager if you have questions or need to get creative.

‍What if we don’t have the bandwidth?

One of the best parts about street team activations is the flexibility. Here are some tips for getting creative when your team is small or busy:

• Make the distribution a part of your day-to-day routine like walking to class or going to the dining hall. 
• Dedicate time usually used for a regular team meeting to distributing materials.
• Pass out materials during pre-existing tabling events.
• Recruit people you trust to participate. Street teams can consist of people outside of your usual staff. For national campaigns, flytedesk can coordinate directly with a non-staff contractor if necessary.

How do I recruit staff?

Hanging up posters or distributing flyers can be a great way for students to make a little extra money, or it can be part of an existing staff member’s responsibilities. Here are a few strategies to recruit staff to participate in street team activations:

• Include it as part of a marketing team’s existing responsibilities.
• Hire or designate promotions manager to support street team activations and other marketing opportunities.
• Send a full-staff email out to seek volunteers.
• Open the ask to editorial students as well as business students.
• Offer an incentive or bonus to the student who can hang the most posters or distribute the most flyers by a certain time.
• Make it a team outing and send people out in pairs.

What do I pay them?

There are two options when it comes to paying students for street team work; it may also depend on what your university or payroll system allows or requires. You could agree to a flat rate for all street team events based on the price you charge, or you could pay a normal hourly rate for the time it takes the students to complete the work. 

Generally, it takes about two hours to complete a street team activation.

If it’s hard to recruit students to help, increasing the rate they’re paid will help.

How to price street teams

The short answer: We recommend pricing your street teams by event (one round of distributing flyers or one round of hanging posters). This is the simplest way to price for both national and local buyers.

Below is a chart that might be helpful to get started. We recommend pricing street team events the same for both local and national buyers.

How to sell it 

Once you have a street team program set up, you might be wondering where to get started when it comes to selling it to local buyers. We have a few pieces of advice. 

Present it as an opportunity to reach students where they are — on campus. Remember, while university departments and organizations can hang posters on campus, local businesses can’t so easily do that. You can position yourself as their gateway to reaching students where they spend the most of their day.

Use your verification photos as proof of concept. Make sure you include your street team offering in your media kit, and include verification photos from past events — even if you were distributing materials for a national buyer or your own student media office — to show the local clients what it looks like.

Offer to distribute items they already have. This might be menus, coupons, stickers or other items the business already has. These would be novel items to students unfamiliar with the business, and it would save money for your local clients.

Get creative. Design a flyer or poster as a sample that your client could easily approve and start distributing.

Incorporate QR codes. These are not only easy ways to send a student exactly where your client wants them, but the codes also allow you to track engagement and provide analytics to the client.

‍Include street teams as an add-on product or a bundle offering. If you’re new to offering street teams to local clients, adding an event as a bonus or at a low cost can be a great way to introduce them.

What’s next?

Ready to start offering street teams to national and local buyers? It’s as easy as finding a team of students and selling your first street team event.

Reach out to Flytedesk your account manager today if we can help you get started.