In marketing, we talk a lot about loyalty and retention. But that is no longer enough. The ultimate goal is to foster customer citizenship behaviour: when people feel such a deep connection to a brand that they willingly defend it, promote it, help others engage with it and even forgive its occasional missteps, because they believe in its long-term value and purpose.
Over the past few years, I have become increasingly interested in applying this idea to higher education. What happens when students see themselves not only as recipients of a degree, but as committed participants in a shared institutional journey? What if they leave us not just as alumni, but as ambassadors?
Improving the student experience from the inside can be worth a million marketing campaigns to the outside. And when this happens, everyone benefits: the university, employers and, most importantly, the students themselves.
A community, not a transaction
University marketing teams often devote significant effort to attracting students in today’s competitive global landscape. But what happens after they enrol and when they graduate matters just as much.
If students believe their university has invested in their growth, academically, personally and socially, they will invest back. This might mean defending the university when it is misunderstood, providing constructive feedback to help it improve or recommending future applicants to join.
None of this can be demanded. It must be earned.
- Market orientation must be an institution-wide endeavour
- Amplify the authentic student voice in university marketing
- From island to screen: marketing the campus experience to future students
I often tell my students: “Think of your university as your family. When issues arise, you handle them within the family, because its reputation will always be connected to yours.”
We need to prioritise personalised support services, such as mentoring and career advice, and create transparent feedback channels that can improve based on student input. Building robust alumni networks and fostering strong faculty-student relationships can further enhance the sense of community and belonging, making students more likely to invest back in their university’s success.
The building blocks of citizenship
Research in this area, including my own, shows that student citizenship behaviour is strongly influenced by three main drivers:
- Service quality: academic and non-academic
- Brand and institutional image
- Shared values, especially social responsibility.
All too often, institutions focus only on the first point, and then only a portion of it. We work hard on teaching quality, but can forget that everyday interactions with administration, career services, athletics or health services shape student perceptions just as much.
If registration is painful, campus life is poor or services are unresponsive, that undermines even the strongest academic programmes. Students judge the whole experience.
At my university, our campus life is one of our greatest advantages. We are a fully residential institution with dozens of clubs and leadership opportunities. Every club has a faculty adviser. Students train, compete, perform, debate. They feel the university is theirs.
Clubs, like Hand in Hand, Mindful Living, Design for Change and Rotaract, among others, offer diverse opportunities for personal development and community engagement. The Hand in Hand club, as an example, focuses on community service, involving students in projects that promote local development, sustainability and education in the Ifrane region.
Additionally, students can create their own clubs, whether related to academics, culture or recreation, with the university providing support and funding for recognised initiatives. These clubs not only help students develop leadership skills and gain experience but also foster a sense of community and belonging.
That feeling is the foundation of citizenship.
Strengthening student citizenship requires that all services, from registration to career support, are efficient, responsive and aligned with the university’s values. Building a cohesive campus experience, where students feel supported academically and socially, can significantly enhance their sense of belonging and responsibility. By fostering an environment where students engage and participate in shared activities, we can cultivate a strong culture of citizenship.
Pride comes from purpose
Citizenship strengthens further when students understand and support the mission of their university.
Through our Azrou Centre, only 20 kilometres from campus, faculty and students provide free training and consulting for local cooperatives and small businesses. All of our undergraduates complete at least 40 hours of service learning – they tutor schoolchildren, they introduce basic digital tools to local shopkeepers and they support community development, not as charity, but as part of their education.
From the perspective of the local community, the presence of the Azrou Centre also strengthens the connection between the university and the surrounding region, fostering a sense of collaboration and shared responsibility for regional growth.
The symbiotic relationship between the university’s students, faculty and the local community through the Azrou Centre demonstrates how academic institutions can be integral to the success of local businesses and cooperatives, while also providing students with valuable learning experiences.
Loyalty grounded in purpose endures.
When students shape the institution
True citizenship means participation in shaping the future, not just consuming the present.
When building our new strategic plan, we invited our students to join, provide feedback and help when needed. They support our admissions team by speaking authentically with prospective applicants. And when alumni told us that Morocco urgently needed expertise in digital marketing, we listened. Their survey responses directly inspired our master’s in digital marketing and analytics.
That programme exists because our graduates asked for it. Their ownership of the idea has already made them powerful ambassadors.
Inviting students to provide feedback and contribute to key university initiatives (ie, from strategic planning to programme development) fosters a sense of ownership and pride. By listening to their needs, universities can create relevant, impactful programs that resonate with both current students and future generations.
Success outside the classroom amplifies loyalty
Students also need support to represent their university beyond campus. That might mean excused absences for competitions, coaching for conferences or funding to present research.
This year one of our undergraduates won the award of the best research paper in an IEEE conference. Two other undergraduate business students won the award of the second-best research paper in an international Scopus-indexed conference, all of them competing with scholars and PhD candidates.
Their success strengthened not just the brand of the university, but their own professional identity.
Four ways any university can build true customer citizens
For university staff wanting to do something similar in their own institutions, I offer four recommendations:
1. Value academic and non-academic services equally
Every touchpoint matters. Registration, residence life, student clubs and athletics all contribute to whether students feel valued.
2. Celebrate achievements internally first
Students should hear the good news before the outside world does. Let them take pride in one another, and share the story enthusiastically.
3. Give students a real voice in decision-making
Involve them in admissions, planning and programme development. When they help build the institution, they fight to protect it.
4. Support participation in competitions and research
Make it easy for students to represent the university well beyond the classroom. Their wins are your wins.
A lifelong relationship
When introducing this concept to students, the goal is not to encourage blind loyalty or silence in the face of legitimate concerns. Rather, true citizenship embodies constructive criticism, honesty and a collective commitment to progress and improvement.
But I believe deeply that if a university demonstrates care for its students, their learning, their well-being, their futures and their values, that loyalty will come naturally.
A diploma marks the end of studies. It should never mark the end of belonging. Our students carry our name for life. When they do so with pride, confidence and a sense of shared purpose, they become our greatest ambassadors, and our greatest legacy.
Youssef Chetioui is assistant vice-president for academic research and associate professor of marketing at Al Akhawayn University.
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