Let talented Master Business Administration students conduct real market research to sharpen your company's branding strategy.
✅ Key points of the challenge
Teams per challenge: 1-2 teams
Students per team: 4-5 students
Duration: November-January
Course: International brand management
Programme: Master of Business Administration, specialization in Marketing
No. of hours spent per team: 150 hours
Deliverables: Presentation, advisory report, and an implementation plan
Company time investment: 10-16 hours in total (e.g. weekly (short) meetings, interviews, final presentation, etc.)
Matching fee: €950,- (ex tax, charged by Master Challenge (NOT the university))
💡 Context
During this challenge, teams of master students will help you strengthen your brand in a way that directly contributes to your short- and long-term commercial success. They approach your challenge from a strategic branding standpoint — scanning your brand using both internal and external information and delivering concrete recommendations.
What makes this valuable:
The teams go beyond desk research.
They assess your current branding and positioning strategy.
They conduct consumer interviews or surveys to understand how your target audience actually perceives your brand.
They map your competitive landscape to see how rivals position themselves, and how that compares to your current positioning.
All insights are grounded in state-of-the-art academic literature, ensuring recommendations are both practically relevant and rigorously supported.
This challenge is especially well-suited for B2C companies, and is particularly relevant if you are a startup or scale-up building your brand, a company considering a rebrand or repositioning, or a business that has recently added a new product line to its offering.
This analysis will give you the data and strategic direction to make better, more confident decisions about your brand.
📑 Main deliverables and challenge examples
The main deliverables:
Final presentation of findings and recommendations.
Advisory report including brand and market analysis, research insights, and strategic recommendations.
Actionable implementation plan outlining concrete steps for execution.
Some examples 👇
Brand Perception & Competitive Positioning
How is our brand currently perceived by consumers, and how does that perception compare to our key competitors?
Brand Strategy for Growth
As we scale, how can we build a brand that supports our growth ambitions, resonates with our target audience, and differentiates us in the market?
Brand Consistency & Governance
We have implemented multiple marketing and branding initiatives. How can we ensure they remain aligned and contribute to a consistent brand experience across all touchpoints?
Brand Architecture & Portfolio Management
We have introduced a new product line. How should it be positioned within our existing brand portfolio to strengthen, rather than dilute, our brand equity?
Repositioning for New Audiences
We want to engage a new customer segment. How should we evolve or reposition our brand to connect with this audience while staying true to our core identity?
Brand-Customer Connection
How can we build a stronger emotional and functional connection between our brand and our target audience?
And much more…
❗️Please note that we are looking for challenges related to strategic brand management rather than purely marketing communication or execution. While communication and activation may be part of the challenge, the primary focus should be on long-term branding decisions and their business implications.
Strategic brand management involves developing, maintaining, and executing an integrated, consistent, and long-term approach to branding a company, product, or service. Its goal is to shape how stakeholders perceive the offering, create meaningful differentiation, and build sustainable brand value over time.
🏢 Requirements for participating
Any company or organisation (startup, scale-up, corporate, incubator, NGO) with at least 5–7 people working full time
Not limited to a specific industry or sector
A challenge that requires a strategic branding lens — not just marketing execution. Strategic branding is about long-term developments in brand values and brand image, with implications for marketing and communication
Preference for B2C companies — where consumer perception and brand equity are central to commercial success
Especially relevant for:
startups scaling up
companies considering a rebranding or repositioning
businesses that have added a new product/service line
business that have merged with or acquired another company
💰 Costs
To help facilitate this challenge, Master Challenge charges a fee of €950,– (ex tax).
Please note: you will only be charged when matched to one or more teams.
📨 How to apply
You can submit the challenge directly through the website. Provide a title that summarises the challenge. Subsequently, briefly elaborate on your challenge. See link for a template you could use: https://link.masterchallenge.me/challenge-template or use the challenge generator: https://masterchallenge.me/challenge-generato
🗓 Planning
October 1: Deadline for submitting your challenge
October 10: Confirmation if your challenge is approved by the lecturer
October 26, 10:30 (online): Meeting with the lecturer and participating companies
November 2-4: Matching phase
November 2: Students form teams
November 3: Team submit challenge preference
November 4: Companies submit team preference
November 4 (end of the day): Matches are announced
November 5–11: Kick-off meeting between teams and companies
November 21: Draft Brand Audit Document handed in
December 15 afternoon: Final presentations at Radboud University (20-minute slots per team; private follow-up meetings can be scheduled afterwards). We invite company representatives to attend and hear the students' recommendations firsthand and set up a discussion meeting after the presentation.
January 20, 2027: Final Brand Audit Documents delivered
Questions? Want to discuss your challenge before submitting? Feel free to schedule a call 👉 here
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