NEWS
Students present heritage campaigns reproduced in innovative modern models Social Marketing Campaigns at University of Bahrain Renew Heritage With Youthful Ideas
Sakhir – University of Bahrain (Ali Sabbaq)
12 December 2023
The Social Marketing Exhibition at the University of Bahrain presented Folklore in a new light, proposing several ideas to digitize heritage, employ technology in preserving it, and present it in a new youthful style.
The Department of Media, Tourism and Arts at the Faculty of Arts organized the eleventh edition of the Social Marketing Exhibition, in which Bachelor of Media students apply the practical skills of public relations, through organized media campaigns, On Monday, December 11, 2023.
The Exhibition, which included six student campaigns, was titled “Convergence” in reference to the convergence of times between ancient and modern generations, as the exhibition presents innovative ideas related to the digitization of folklore, and its invocation with new formulas and ideas, commensurate with the modern era.
Dr. Abdulaziz Mohammed Bulaileh, Dean of the College of Arts at the University, praised the keenness of media students to organize disciplined social marketing campaigns, combining theories and ideas, to market social ideas related to Bahraini heritage.
Dr. Abdulaziz Bulaileh opened the Exhibition – which was held on campus in Sakhir – and listened to a summary of the exhibits from the students, who excelled in expressing the campaigns and mentioning their purposes, in the presence of several professors, and a large gathering of students.
A delegation from the Ministry of Youth Affairs, headed by Yousif Faud Almuharraqi, Assistant Undersecretary for Support and Initiatives at the Ministry, also participated in the student Exhibition.
The dean noted that the Exhibition contains heritage exhibits, which have been reproduced in innovative modern templates, such as: popular games, fronds reproduced as artificial silk, marketing the Aqal industry, and old fashion.
He stressed that such events highlight the importance of students being trained to develop businesses and products, which qualify them and prepare them to establish their own projects, to become entrepreneurs in the near future.
For her part, Dr. Layla Al-Saqer, Professor of the Public Relations Course, pointed out that “the campaigns for this chapter were diverse in terms of ideas, but they all revolve around the idea of renewing the popular heritage, namely: the “Hazawi” campaign, which aims to digitize oral heritage, and revive the stories of ancestors, where they used the podcast application to document this legacy on the lips of grandparents, focusing on involving young people in this work, to preserve the cultural and historical heritage of Bahraini society, and transfer it to new generations in a modern and innovative way.”
She said: “Another campaign is the Raza campaign, which aims to encourage young people to revive the heritage of Bahraini dress with youthful touches. And the “Sabq” campaign, which employs technology to revive popular sports and consolidate ancestral hobbies by introducing young people to old sports and changing their perception of popular sports.”
Dr. Al Saqer continued: “As for the Zad campaign, it focuses on motivating young people to create small projects, inspired by the relationship of the Bahraini person with agriculture. While the “Anas” campaign encouraged the new generation to practice and develop traditional crafts and games related to Bahraini heritage in an innovative way, and to benefit from them and employ them, while the “Adhaq” campaign focused on paying attention to palm and its innovative products, and organizing programs that enhance youth participation in the development of palm uses.”
During the experience of preparing a social marketing campaign, students practice: planned research, cooperation with sponsors, development of a strategic marketing plan, which they apply practically, through social media platforms, and the creation of an interactive exhibition based on direct personal communication with the target audience.
