By Rory Dulock | Staff Writer
Every other week, two students sit in a recording booth at Moody Memorial Library, preparing a podcast. While it takes time and effort to create each episode, both students are passionate about all things business and have the determination to connect the business school.
Austin junior David Jabour and Lucas senior Benj Nopper are the two students who created the Bears of Business Podcast. Although the podcast has only existed for a few months, it has already grown in popularity among students in the Hankamer School of Business.
Jabour said what first started as an Instagram page has now branched off to become another way of connecting students in the business school.
“[The Bears of Business Podcast] was an extension of an Instagram page that we run, and that’s a student-run Instagram page that we post informative videos, we post funny videos, we post memes, we post interviews with professors,” Jabour said. “It just really highlights student life.”
However, Jabour and Nopper wanted to come up with a way to get more involved and reach more students.
“The goal behind the podcast is that it kind of extends our media presence so that people can listen and stay informed about the business school, whether they’re doing their laundry or driving to work,” Nopper said.
The Instagram page and the podcast both have the goal of sharing information and passion for the business school.
“Benj and I are both really passionate about the business school,” Jabour said. “We love this place, and we have so much fun here. Our main goal really behind the Instagram page is just to kind of share that excitement, share that passion, share that happiness that we have here within the business school. The ultimate goal is so that every day when students are walking in, regardless of who you are, you’re just a little bit more excited to be in the business school.”
Nopper said the podcast is “just about having fun.”
“Of course, being a business student, you work on the professional part, but you also want to have a brand and you want to be memorable,” Nopper said. “So that’s what we’re trying to do — and for the business school students, for them to have a voice almost.”
However, Jabour said the podcast is aimed at a lot of different groups within the business school, such as prospective students.
“Another audience that we really like to reach with the Instagram and with the podcast is prospective students,” Jabour said. “[They can] kind of get more information about what it actually looks like to be a Baylor business student. They can kind of see the fun side of it on the Instagram page and also get a serious side and still a fun side on the podcast.”
Outreach through the Instagram page has grown significantly, with over 1,000 people following and keeping up with Jabour and Nopper.
“We have 1,600 followers on Instagram,” Jabour said. “Some of those would be people who have already graduated, so I would estimate we have a third of the current business school following us right now.”
Nopper said he and Jabour have about 50 listeners per episode. He said they are trying to expand their reach through branding to provide an even bigger presence for members of the business community to enjoy.
“The podcast is like a part of the bigger division we’re trying to get of just representing Baylor students through social media,” Nopper said. “So we did the Instagram thing. Now we’re trying to expand that but also add on through Spotify and Apple Podcasts, which is really cool. So Bears of Business is our big thing, and we’re hoping that the podcast further adds to that.”