BU Students Showcase Creator Potential at TikTok Marketing Competition, Applying Academic Knowledge to Real-World Content Creation
Five Awards Won at DigiLife Branding Content Challenge Season 3
Congratulations to two student teams for their outstanding achievements at the DigiLife Branding Content Challenge Season 3, a marketing content creation competition on TikTok that gave university students nationwide the opportunity to collaborate with leading brands — covering marketing planning, content production, and brand communication on digital platforms, all built around real-world business challenges.
Team 1: “Cha-Nee Jing” — comprising Noppawit Khoonsanit, School of Business Administration, Marketing Program and Tatiyaporn Thonglueang, School of Humanities and Tourism Management, English Program won 4 awards: Grand Prize, Creative Content Award, Gen AI Content Award, and Popular Award, under the advisory of A.Yaowaluk Aekphitoon Instructor School of Business Administration.
Team 2: “Iknow” — comprising Panisara Suntorn, Natnicha Chalermkwanchai, and Suparporn Wutthisak, School of Business Administration, Marketing Program — won 1st Runner-up (2nd place), also under the advisory of A.Yaowaluk Aekphitoon Instructor School of Business Administration.
The standout performance came from Team Cha-Nee Jing, which won 4 awards for content created for Carebeau hair styling spray — reflecting strong creative thinking, digital technology use, and understanding of online consumer behavior. The team explained that this competition marked their return after previously winning a Top Seller award for highest sales, but feeling their content lacked distinctiveness. This year, they began by analyzing the strengths and weaknesses of their earlier work before developing a new concept focused on building content identity rather than direct selling — emphasizing a strong hook in the first three seconds, natural storytelling, and audience engagement to drive attention and brand recall.
A key highlight was their use of Generative AI in video production through the concept “Land of Beautiful Hair,” blending real footage with AI-generated visuals, with voiceover and editing done entirely in-house. The team also incorporated regional dialect and Isaan identity into their storytelling to stand out — earning strong audience engagement and adoption by the brand for further use. As the team put it: “What matters in content creation today isn’t just views or likes — it’s creating real value for the brand that drives actual purchase decisions.”
Team Iknow achieved 1st Runner-up (2nd place) creating content for Dreamy fruit tea, in their second time competing. Members shared that last year’s competition was a valuable lesson, since they had limited marketing and branding foundations at the time — motivating them to return after gaining more knowledge through coursework and university activities, and to build experience for future careers. This time, the team began with in-depth product research — features, target audience, and brand communication guidelines — combined with analysis of trending TikTok content, before storyboarding and dividing responsibilities for filming, editing, and publishing.
Over the two-week competition period, the team produced 5 clips, focusing on a bright, natural presentation style that wove the product into everyday life rather than direct advertising, to feel more relatable and approachable. The biggest challenge was time management given differing academic and activity schedules among members, but clear role division and close collaboration enabled the team to deliver effective results and secure the award.
The competition allowed both teams to form groups with classmates, select a brand of interest from the participating leading brands, and undergo online training from organizers and brand representatives covering communication direction, target audience, and campaign objectives — followed by a two-week period to plan, produce, and publish content via their own TikTok accounts. Judging considered creativity, content quality, audience engagement, and real-world applicability, with select entries adopted directly by brands for ongoing marketing use — giving students authentic experience working with the business sector.
Both teams agreed that classroom knowledge — particularly in digital marketing, content creation, and communication strategy — along with guidance from faculty advisors, played a critical role in translating academic learning into practical application. Their success reflects not only individual student achievement but also the strength of BU’s practice-based teaching approach, which cultivates creative thinking, communication, digital marketing, teamwork, and technology application skills — all highly relevant to today’s media and marketing industry, and a strong foundation for future careers.