Camp Connect
New York City ~ May to August 2020
Founder and CEO
When my summer internship was cancelled due to Covid-19, I took it as an opportunity to start my own company. Camp Connect was a virtual camp for middle school children - offering one week long courses in STEM, design, and storytelling. In early May 2020, I assembled a team of 25 college students and for the rest of the summer, ran the company including developing courses, marketing to parents, and managing finances. By the end of the summer, we had 120 campers enrolled, developed 16 unique courses, and had a team of 32 college students working at the company.
Check out Our Website and Our Facebook page for more videos and information on Camp Connect!
THE IDEA
My three primary goals for Camp Connect were...
Create a fun, engaging camp for middle schoolers that makes for a memorable summer
Provide parents with an affordable summer program for their kids
Lead a team of college students in a fulfilling, collaborative start-up experience
THE TEAM
While I had a vision for the company, I wanted to leave room for collaborators to contribute and make Camp Connect their own. I quickly knew the people to reach out to. I assembled an incredibly talented group of friends from middle school, high school, and college. There was a wide range of people - some who liked teaching, others who I believed would be great at marketing. Check out the About Us page on our website to learn more about each team member!
Our first company meeting on May 18th
After I pitched the idea of the camp, everyone was very eager to get to work! I setup sub-teams for people to join: course development, social media, finance, legal, school partnerships, financial aid, website.
REMOTE LEADING
The first week of development was a blast, but very difficult. I was jumping between Zooms for 12 hours straight, working with each sub-team and making sure progress was being made. I knew that I could not sustain the level of oversight on each of the teams, so at our second company meeting I made improvements to our workflow.
- Deliverables: Given the amount of brainstorming that must occur, it is crucial that each team is taking meeting notes and uploading them to the Google Drive. In these notes, clear items should be assigned to each person and when they should be completed by.
- Ownership: If you are assigned a task or are leading a group, it is your responsibility to see it through. With work being remote, no one is looking over your shoulder, so if we are to succeed you have to hold yourself accountable.
- Be Creative: No one is an expert, so don't be shy about contributing. Everyone on the team is here because they can problem solve, so apply yourself!
Most of my leadership philosophy comes from my time as a Stage Manager in high school. I was responsible for leading teams of hundreds of performers and technicians, all fellow classmates. The most important point I learned is to LEAD FROM AMONG, NOT ABOVE! I applied this everyday at Camp Connect, looking to motivate my team and always being open to feedback.
MARKETING
The primary goal of the marketing division was to enroll new campers. We developed several tactics...
- First we needed a brand image that would dictate how we presented ourselves. "We are a cool, passionate group of college students from top schools across the country"
- We built our own website, focusing on making a concise overview of the camp and establishing credibility for the team behind it
- All the team members reached out to friends and family
- I reached out to my former middle school teachers who allowed me to present Camp Connect at a PTA meeting with 80+ parents
- We sent flyers and our website link to PTAs, principals, and teachers at middle schools
- We contacted press outlets and were featured in TimeOut NY and Good Morning America
- I budgeted out money for advertisement. We primarily utilized Google, Instagram, and Facebook to boost brand awareness
Besides the above tactics, we pursued many more, but what I believe made us standout was our video content. With my background in film, I directed numerous promotional videos throughout the summer that introduced a new courses and showcased the team...
Our First Video
Mid-Summer Remake
COURSE DEVELOPMENT
Throughout the summer we developed 16 unique courses for our campers. Every two weeks we rolled out a four new courses to keep campers interested and re-enrolling. Here are some of the videos we created for the courses (click to play)...
Cinematography
Entrepreneurship
Medical Science
Computer Science
3D Graphics
Music Production
The Great Debate
Photoshop
Architecture
Acting
Epidemiology
Coding
THE HIGHLIGHTS
Camp Connect was an amazing experience! From the first company meeting in May to our last in August, I have grown as a leader. I was able to apply myself to the fullest - my video skills in marketing, my teaching experience, my leadership background from stage management. Above all my personal growth, nothing could top the end of each week of Camp Connect when we assembled all the campers for a camp-wide presentation. Seeing each camper present their project, whether it be a funky beat, a floor plan, or a piece of fashion, brought such joy to myself and the team. We were able to give these kids a summer that will stick with them forever. I couldn't be more proud of the team and what we were able to accomplish!
What I learned from Camp Connect...
Marketing is key - convincing your customers to be just as passionate about your product as your are is a serious challenge. Marketing is a constant active effort that requires a strong understanding of your customers and your product
Listen to your customers - feedback is crucial for improving the company and keeping customers engaged. Talking to parents and kids on the phone gave me valuable information on how Camp Connect should progress
Believe in your team - as a leader, it is important that you trust your team members to accomplish tasks without your oversight. Independence will allow team members to apply themselves creatively, becoming collaborators rather than employees
