What happens at uni...stays at Unii.com

In 2011, Marco Nardone graduated with a degree in Physics from Imperial College. In just two years, the 25-year-old has become CEO & founder of the UK’s biggest student-only social networking platform, Unii.com.

The journey to becoming a social networking entrepreneur has been exciting, nerve-wracking and demanding – all rolled into one! The first time I aired my opinions about my plans for a new social platform to close friends and family, admittedly I was met with a few nervous smiles and pats on the shoulder. “Do you really think you can compete with Facebook at your age?” a few of my more blunt mates laughed. But that’s not what I had in mind. The platform I created – Unii.com – wasn’t born to compete directly with the big players like Facebook or Twitter, and neither was it designed to take users away from them. Instead, the platform offers students the chance to meet like-minded friends on their course, at their university or in their accommodation – all before they leave home in September. When arriving on campus, students can then use Unii.com for every part of their student life: by either meeting and socialising with friends within the university network; joining and managing societies through our unique platform; or even finding a job placement through the dedicated jobsboard. With younger audiences already dwindling on Facebook, it was evident to me that there was a hunger for a platform that clearly appreciated its target market’s exact needs and kept them at the core of any development. For Unii.com, this niche market was made possible by ensuring only those with a university-accredited email address can sign in – finally putting an end to those snooping parents flicking through your photos or future employers digging around past antics you’d rather forget about! But before this social start-up journey had even begun, it was vital I spent a lot of time (and patience!) figuring out the student market that Unii.com targeted. This involved understanding what students would find useful, which features would be desirable and the importance of a closed social environment. Being a recent student myself, it would have been easy to just use my gut instinct to craft something I would like personally. But Unii.com is about catering for all students across the entire UK, and I knew to become a successful start-up, I had to listen to the current market. Holding research focus groups and listening to user feedback in the early stages of launch has helped Unii.com to grow rapidly, seeing a massive 100,000 students sign up in just six months. We continue to listen to these users and have just revolutionised the user experience on the platform – a direct action taken from our user feedback. With the continued popularity of Unii.com, some people do question how I went from the world of science to the realms of social media. But having a Physics degree at Imperial College provided me with skills that have helped guide me through my journey as an entrepreneur and CEO, in some really unexpected ways. The four years at university not only taught me to think logically and be thorough, but above all – never give up! Physics was a degree that involves perseverance, time, and of course, lots of studying. Unii.com wouldn’t be where it is today if either my team or I had given up at the first hurdle and it was these skills that helped keep me grounded in the beginning. For students out there considering diving into the start-up world or the social media industry, that wise old saying “Never put off until tomorrow what you can do today” speaks volumes. It was this kind of thinking that led to the success of Unii.com – I saw a gap in the market, yet I didn’t wait until I was older or watch someone else swoop in and create an alternative website. The future of Unii.com is looking bright, as we look to tip 200,000 users by 2014. I can understand why there were some doubts – as a young graduate entrepreneur, any industry breakout is going to be tough – but by understanding the gap in the market for something fresh, and researching the target market inside out, it’s proven to be a success and I encourage any Imperial College student to follow in these footsteps.