You Won the Attention. Now What?

Youth marketers spend huge amounts of time, budget and energy trying to win attention through paid media, social platforms, partnerships, creators, events and campaigns. But what happens once a young person arrives somewhere the brand actually controls?

In this fast-paced, quiz-led session, Nathan Monk from Prospectus Plus uses university recruitment as a case study for a wider youth marketing challenge: the underused power of owned media. Drawing on SMRS MediaMapper insight and Prospectus Plus’ 2025 secret shopper research across 57 UK universities, the session explores the gap between what young people expect from digital experiences and what they often receive.

The session will look at why university websites remain such a critical trust environment, why the online prospectus is an overlooked owned asset, and why too many “digital” prospectuses still behave like static print. It will challenge the idea that a PDF is enough, arguing instead that modern prospectus experiences should be adaptive, measurable and useful.

You'll get practical lessons on personalisation, content relevance, live information, early intent data and the role of print in a digital-first journey.

Attendees will leave with a sharper understanding of how owned media can turn attention into action, how student-facing experiences can generate useful behavioural insight, and why the best youth marketing does not stop at reach. It makes the moments you control work harder.