For a small fee, Coop can fly the coop.
The familiar mascot of Saginaw Valley State University — officially named Coop the Cardinal as part of a Battle of the Valleys fundraiser in 2011 — has received a new look and a new mission: to raise awareness of the University and its programs.
As SVSU students and alumni, we are all familiar with our beloved Coop. You can see Coop standing at 6’3” and dressed in a pair of tennis shoes, shorts and a jersey. His natural habitat is football and basketball games, as well as numerous activities around campus. As of last year, Coop is now accompanied by Scarlett and Coop’s No. 1 Fan — each displaying a brand new costume. However, what most do not know is that the three are available for personal events, thanks to the students of Gary Clark’s Marketing Principles class (MKT 331).
Clark is a marketing professor in the College of Business & Management at SVSU who strongly believes experience is the best way for students to learn. During the 2016 winter semester, my colleagues and I are taking on a unique consulting project in Clark’s MKT 331 class designed to develop a marketing plan for the SVSU mascots.
Associate Director of Student Life Jason Schoenmeyer and Associate Dean of Student Life and Leadership Bryan Crainer shared with our class their plans for Coop. Schoenmeyer and Crainer say that after Coop got his makeover, it has become important for him to be known and sent out into the community.
Fees for the appearances have yet to be set, but Crainer and Schoenmeyer said the mascots would have to get at least $20 an hour to break even. The money raised would go to Student Life to help pay the 12 students who act as Coop, Scarlet or Coop’s No. 1 Fan. These students go through a training program. Coop also comes with a handler who is trained and paid.
When asked what kind of events Coop would attend, Schoenmeyer and Crainer were open to any ideas. Some possible events include local 5K races, alumni picnics, high school graduation parties, open houses, parades, RSO events, wedding receptions and community events.
SVSU is now faced with a good problem: the demand for its mascots to attend outside programs exceeded its current marketing budget. Now with a new marketing strategy, Student Life can capitalize on this new revenue source, which will increase the brand awareness of the mascots.
Next semester, SVSU plans to hire three new enthusiastic students who will be reemployed as one of the mascots and its handlers.
Throughout the semester, my colleagues and I will be identifying the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats faced by the Cardinal Mascot program. With this analysis, we will be able to evaluate and develop recommendations for each mascot to increase their brand awareness.
Clark is one of the best professors I have had at SVSU. With this mascot marketing project, I now have hands-on experience to talk about during a job interview and apply to my career. Entering the class, I expected a long syllabus with exam dates and deadlines; instead, I got placed into a consulting team with five students who are equally excited about the project. My most important takeaway from this project is how serious SVSU is about rebranding itself. A class project like this gives us an opportunity to contribute to the rebranding of the school and that alone has made all of the difference.
I think more courses in the College of Business & Management should take this approach to give its students an edge in the job market. Employers value hands-on experience projects more than they value lecture-based courses. More SVSU professors should adapt Clark’s approach to teaching, providing students with practical projects to complete to gain real experience.
In order to have Coop, Scarlet or Coop’s No. 1 Fan at an event, submit a form on orgsync.com. Please email studentlife@svsu.edu for more information, or contact Crainer at (989) 964-4091 or email becraine@svsu.edu.
Classmate Melissa Ellison contributed to the article.
