WINTER SESSION CAMPAIGN

Transcription

1 Summer Session Marketing Campaign Barby Grant, Debra Kovach, Stephanie Birdsall and Michael Dambrowski Arizona State University College of Liberal Arts & Sciences Tempe, Arizona NEED/OPPORTUNITY / In 2008, the convergence of three situations led the Arizona State University (ASU) College of Liberal Arts & Sciences to undertake a first-time marketing effort to increase enrollment in summer session courses. 1. The university provost conveyed her expectation that academic colleges would begin assisting with student recruitment, which previously had been handled by a central office. 2. The university and the college had made investments to significantly increase online class offerings, which made many more class spaces available. 3. The university and the college experienced severe budget cuts from the state that necessitated new revenue-enhancement measures. Previously, there had been little or no effort to market summer session courses. However, tuition from the summer session went directly into college budgets, unlike tuition from fall and spring semesters, which went to the university provost to appropriate; thus, increasing summer session attendance was an ideal way for the college to increase its revenue stream and restore some of the funding lost as a result of budget cuts. The 2008 summer session marketing effort was directed by the then-media relations and marketing team and was highly successful. Enrollment in summer session courses in the college increased by 22 percent over 2007, to 14,554 from 11,889. The college s share of overall university enrollment in the summer session increased from 42 percent to 44 percent. Combined with a 5 percent tuition increase, the campaign netted the college US$5.9 million. Expenditures for the summer marketing campaign totaled US$20,000. More than 80 percent of the budget was spent on paid advertising, primarily in the student newspaper (US$6,717) and on Facebook (US$5,000). WINTER SESSION CAMPAIGN In recent years, the university had begun offering a winter session schedule of classes between the fall and spring semesters. As with the summer session, revenue from the winter session went directly to the academic colleges, based on enrollment in the courses they offered. Due to the success of the summer-session marketing campaign, the college undertook a similar effort to market winter session courses. Prior to the conclusion of that campaign, marketing responsibilities for the college were transferred from the media relations office to the communication office, and additional severe budget cuts in the fiscal year made revenue from the summer session even more critical. 1

2 INTENDED AUDIENCES / PRIMARY AUDIENCES Current undergraduate students at ASU who might need or want to take summersession classes Incoming freshmen who might want to take a summer class to get familiar with campus and start early on their college credits Community college students planning to transfer to ASU who might want to get an early start on their upper-level credits SECONDARY AUDIENCES Academic advisers who could help steer students into summer courses Alumni who might want to take an online class during the summer In January 2009, a survey of all students enrolled in the college s winter session courses was conducted. The purpose of the survey was to learn more about the students who take classes during condensed sessions, and the most effective ways to market to them. Using ASU Bookstore gift-card drawings as an incentive, 554 of the 1,922 winter session students responded, a 29 percent response rate. SURVEY FINDINGS The majority of the students (54 percent) were of traditional college age (16 22); 37 percent were Only 9 percent were older. Nearly all (97 percent) of the winter session students were enrolled full-time or part-time at ASU. About three-quarters of them took their winter session class online rather than on campus. Findings from the survey clearly showed that the ASU web site and were the most effective means of getting students attention. Nearly half the respondents first learned about winter session classes from the Internet, and 86 percent recalled seeing messages about the winter session on ASU s web site. Sixteen percent of respondents first learned about the winter session from an message sent by the college, and almost half of respondents recalled seeing the messages. Face-to-face communication was also effective. Nearly 30 percent of the respondents first learned about winter session classes from another person, primarily a friend or classmate (66 percent) or an adviser (19 percent). Print materials such as posters, flyers and banners were less effective. Only 2 percent of respondents first learned about the winter session from a banner, poster or flyer on campus, although about a fifth of them recalled seeing flyers or posters on campus. Less than 10 percent recalled seeing the banner that was posted in the Memorial Union. The least effective means of getting students attention was through ads in the student newspaper and on Facebook. Only 1 percent of survey respondents first learned about winter session courses from the student newspaper, and none from Facebook. Fifteen percent recalled seeing messages about the winter session in the student newspaper (print), and only 5 percent recalled seeing messages on the online edition or on Facebook. 2

3 The primary reason the majority of students took a winter session class was to complete major or general studies requirements. About one-fifth of the respondents said they took the class because they liked the three-week condensed session. The survey also tested the effectiveness of the graphic image that had been used in the winter session marketing campaign. The summer 2008 marketing campaign had featured an image of multicolored flip flops. The media relations director wanted to play off that image for the winter session campaign, so she used an image of a variety of shoes that might be worn in winter. Only a third of the survey respondents said the image looked familiar, and the largest number of respondents (39 percent) described the image as representing diversity, variety or differences. Another third said it made them think of shoes. GOALS AND OBJECTIVES / The goal of the summer session marketing campaign was to increase revenue to the college to help make up for budget cuts. The objective was to boost enrollment in the college s summer session classes, as tuition from those classes was direct revenue for the college. Due to the worldwide economic downturn and a 53 percent increase in undergraduate tuition in 2009, the objectives were conservative to match the enrollment numbers from 2008 while spending less money to do so. Objectives were as follows: Attain enrollment of at least 14,554 students in liberal arts and sciences summer classes. Capture at least a 44 percent share of the total university summer enrollment. Roll out an effective and targeted marketing campaign for less than US$20,000. SOLUTION OVERVIEW / The winter session marketing survey provided a wealth of information about how best to market condensed-session courses. Among the highlights were the following: Students were most likely to see marketing messages posted on the ASU web site or delivered through . Paid advertising on Facebook or the online student newspaper did not get students attention. Students who learned about condensed-session courses through face-to-face means most likely learned about them from a peer. Those who enrolled because someone else encouraged them to also were most likely influenced by a peer. The most effective on-campus displays of marketing messages were flyers or posters in or near an adviser s office. The primary reason students take a condensed-session course is to complete requirements; many also like being able to do so during a compressed time frame. Also factored into the development of strategies for the marketing campaign was an analysis of statistics and web traffic from the winter session campaign. The communication office had recently sought and gained approval to contract with a bulk e- mail service, Bronto, which allowed them to conduct tailored campaigns and track the results. The results of marketing efforts for the winter session campaign demonstrated that messages had performed best both in driving people to the winter session web site and in producing a corresponding bump in registrations. Print materials had produced 3

4 almost no web traffic. Facebook advertising had driven some people to the web site, but the vast majority of them left the site without clicking on links that would indicate further interest (such as catalog, registration or application links). Taking all of the above into consideration, the team developed the following strategies for 2009 summer session marketing: Deliver messages primarily through the Web and , with some supporting print advertising and marketing materials. Create key messages that focus on how summer courses can help students fulfill requirements in a compressed time frame. Use peer-to-peer marketing by featuring students who have taken summer courses touting the benefits in marketing materials. Take advantage of the new bulk service, Bronto, to target specific messages to specific student segments based upon their responses to prior messages. Direct students, where possible, to liberal arts and sciences summer course listings (versus the entire ASU summer course catalog) to increase the share of total ASU summer enrollment. Before finalizing these strategies and developing tactics, the team held a meeting with the director of online programs and the assistant dean for student and academic programs. After reviewing the survey findings with the group and recommending strategies based on those findings, the group brainstormed ideas on tactics and timetables. The tactics developed for this campaign were multifaceted. An overview follows, by audience: CURRENT ASU STUDENTS For the primary audience of current ASU students, the campaign included a targeted web site landing page, a series of targeted messages, flyers distributed throughout campus, and posters in the campus Memorial Union and the college s student advising office. Banners that had been created for the previous year s summer marketing campaign were posted in the lobby of the building housing the college s central advising office. (Though marketing research indicated the banners would not be very effective, since they had already been purchased for the summer 2008 campaign and were still usable, the team made use of them.) The key message of the marketing campaign to this group was Make your summer count. Catch up, speed up or get ahead with summer classes from The College. The print materials featured silhouettes of students with quotes on specific ways summer classes helped them meet requirements. The web site landing page included photos and quotes from real ASU students (i.e., peers) on how they benefitted from summer classes. The site also highlighted and linked to specific courses that satisfied different types of requirements. Links to lists of other 4

5 classes offered by Liberal Arts & Sciences that fulfill those requirements were included as well. The campaign involved 15 separate tailored and targeted messages. For each message, at least two different subject lines were tested with a small number of addresses. The subject line that got the most opens in the first 24 hours was then sent to the remainder of the list. A summary of the campaign follows: s one through three, sent 18 February, 21 February and 14 March, respectively, to: o All undergraduate liberal arts and sciences majors (15,655). o Students who did not open the previous . o Students who had opened a previous but had not yet enrolled for the summer session. s four through 11, sent between 3 April and 13 May, to students in eight different majors who had not yet enrolled for summer; each was tailored to that major and listed popular summer classes in that field 12, sent 14 May to all undergraduate liberal arts and sciences majors not yet enrolled for summer (reminder following spring break). 13, sent 22 May to all ASU undergraduates who had failed a liberal arts and sciences course in the spring semester; the subject line was Need to retake a class or catch up on requirements? 14, sent 26 May to students majoring in interdisciplinary studies in ASU s University College with an emphasis in liberal arts and sciences. 15, sent 16 June to all undergraduate liberal arts and sciences majors, promoting enrollment in the second summer session beginning 6 July. INCOMING FRESHMEN For the primary audience of students who had been admitted to ASU for the fall 2009 semester, the marketing campaign included a targeted web site landing page, a targeted e- mail, a flyer included in on-campus orientation packets and a poster displayed in the area where orientation sessions were held. Parents, who also attended orientation, were also exposed to the flyer and poster. The university provost and the college deans also promoted the summer session to the parents of incoming freshmen during their orientation welcome addresses. The key message of the marketing campaign to this group was Make your summer count. Get ahead with summer classes from The College. The print materials were similar to those for current students, featuring silhouettes of students with quotes on specific ways summer classes are beneficial. These quotes emphasized how summer classes help with the transition from high school to college. The web site landing page used the same artwork as the print materials and included links to classes that would satisfy various first-year requirements. A follow-up was sent to students who attended orientation and registered for the fall semester but had not yet registered for the summer session. The pointed out that studies show students who 5

6 start college early earn higher grades and are more likely to graduate. It also included links to popular first-year classes. COMMUNITY COLLEGE TRANSFER STUDENTS The team relied on advertising to reach students who intended to transfer from community college to ASU because they did not have access to contact information for these students. The team ran a quarter-page full-color ad in the Transfer Awareness Guide that ran twice as an insert in the College Times newspaper, a free weekly that reaches 200,000 students at 20 colleges in the metropolitan Phoenix area. Along with the paid advertisement, free ads ran on the College Times web site. The ads directed students to a targeted web site landing page that touted the benefits of summer classes and linked to some cool courses. ACADEMIC ADVISERS Marketing research showed that academic advisers were the second most influential, after peers, in steering students into condensed-session classes. The 2008 summer session marketing campaign had included flyers printed on one side and provided space for the college s 30 academic units so they could print their own summer classes on the reverse side and distribute them in their front office. The team polled the academic units to ask if they wanted flyers again this year and how many. They received requests for more than 2,140 flyers, which they provided, along with inch x 17-inch posters. They also kept academic advisers informed about the summer enrollment campaign by writing articles for publication in two issues of the advisers newsletter. ALUMNI Although alumni were not a primary audience for this campaign, the team wanted to promote the many new online classes available to non-degree-seeking students. They included an article in the March 2009 alumni e-newsletter touting the value of summer online classes to enhance working professionals value in the job market. The story included links to online classes for working professionals and to the summer session application page. IMPLEMENTATION AND CHALLENGES / Although the team had an approved budget of US$20,000 for this campaign, they spent less than US$4,000. The research conducted among winter session students was key to their ability to undertake a successful campaign at such low cost. The research made clear that the most costly elements of the previous marketing campaign ads on Facebook and in the student newspaper were the least effective in gaining students attention. It also showed that the graphic identity created for the campaign was not an effective branding tool; thus, the team was able to focus the 2009 campaign on more effective free promotional vehicles such as and the web site, and to develop a new creative approach. The survey research was also critical in gaining the support of the college s executive team for the marketing strategies. Because the previous marketing campaigns had been directed by the media relations and marketing office, it was important to show that the changes in strategy the team implemented were based on research rather than an effort to 6

7 undercut the previous marketing efforts. Before rolling out the 2009 marketing plan, the team presented the results of the winter session survey to the college executive team. The biggest challenge this project presented was the need to plan it so quickly. In November 2008 the team was asked to take over marketing responsibilities for the college so the media relations director could focus exclusively on media relations. Registration for the summer session began 18 February, leaving little time to settle into the marketing role before planning and rolling out the summer campaign. Winter session classes were held 30 December through 15 January. The winter session survey (using Survey Monkey) was conducted January. The team analyzed the results and presented an overview to the executive team shortly thereafter. On 11 February, the team held their first planning meeting, and the next day presented a plan outline to the executive dean. By 17 February, the web site landing page was up, and on 18 February, the first went out to 15,655 students. MEASUREMENT/EVALUATION OF OUTCOMES / The most telling evidence of the success of the marketing campaign is in comparing the college s enrollment to the university s as a whole. ASU s summer enrollment declined by almost 2 percent from 2008 to 2009, while enrollment in Liberal Arts & Sciences classes increased by 5 percent. Objectives: Attain enrollment of at least 14,554 students in liberal arts and sciences summer classes. Capture at least a 44 percent share of the total university summer enrollment. Roll out an effective and targeted marketing campaign for less than US$20,000. Outcomes: A total of 15,242 students enrolled in liberal arts and sciences summer classes (as of 6 July, the final day of registration). The program captured a 47 percent share of the total university summer enrollment. The marketing campaign was conducted for less than US$4,000. 7