The Real U: Building Brands That Resonate with Students, Faculty, Staff, and Donors

The Real U:
Building Brands That Resonate with Students, Faculty, Staff, and Donors
eduWeb Conference
Chicago, Illinois
July 28, 2010
Robert M. Moore, Ph.D.
President and CEO

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Agenda
Why Brand?
What is a Higher Education Brand?
The Brand Platform
Brand Activation
Northern Arizona University
University of Texas at Arlington
University of Minnesota, Morris

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Published by CASE in March 2010

Why Brand?

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Pressure From All Sides
Prospects just want to have fun

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Prospects just want to have fun…and learn something useful.

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Students want seminars with Nobel laureates and four-star cuisine.

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Parents want to know it’s worth the money.

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Alumni want bragging rights.

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Trustees want higher rankings and winning teams.

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Faculty want more respect

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Faculty want more respect…and raises.

Faculty want more respect…and raises.
Marketing folks just want a budget that’s aligned with institutional goals.
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Demographic Issues
Squeeze in traditional student marketplace
Decrease until 2014, followed by slow increase
Fewer “ready to succeed, able to pay” students in play
Greater emphasis on formerly underserved markets
Growth in nontraditional student pool
Recession compounds need
Ongoing shift from manufacturing to service/knowledge economy
Effects of slow recovery on middle class
Families looking to 6- or 8-year commitment

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Competition
University of Phoenix now largest in nation
Photo-finish with SUNY system
Cost factors more prominent
Recession driving reconsideration of options
Community colleges now an alternative to traditional four-year
Public now more of an alternative to private
Live-at-home a viable option

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Competition
“Storefront” schools springing up—attractive to nontraditional students
Convenience
Articulation agreements
Plenty of free parking

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Brand Value of Degree
Brand matters because…
…it gives the prospect a reason to choose you over the competition.
…it gives alumni greater pride (which equals greater $$$).
…it contributes to retention.
…it builds advocates and ambassadors.
…it helps with recruitment of faculty and staff (though money matters more).
…it reinforces lifelong relationships.

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Brands Exist in the Mind

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Brand
But a brand is not…
…a logo
…a tagline
…an ad
…a viewbook
…an uncontrollable Presidential impulse

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The Famous Swoosh.

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The Famous Swoosh…Personified.

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The Famous Swoosh…Amplified.

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The Famous Swoosh…Taken too Far.

Simple Definition:
How your prospect differentiates yourservice/product from that of competitors.
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Positioning

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Positioning
A more complex view:
Everybody has aspirations.
Everybody wants something.
How can you position your institution to be the answer to their needs—even if not fully voiced?
How can your institution be the hero in their personal narrative?

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Beyond the Basics
Every strong brand is a hero in someone’s narrative.
Volvo protects my family.
Red Cross helps me in a disaster.
Disneyland is fun for all.
Obama will save us from ruin.
How is your brand a hero? In whose narrative?
What impact do you have on the lives of students? Faculty? Staff? Alumni? Donors?
What is different about your offer?
How does your brand become a valued “badge” of affiliation?

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Positioning
Successful brand positioning…
Differentiates in terms that matter
Speaks to diverse constituents
Clarifies value proposition
Casts institution in heroic role
Creates brand ambassadors
Provides stakeholders a reason to strengthen affiliation
Most important: It makes a promise that you can keep.

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Bo Knows
“Don’t let your mouth write no checks your a** can’t cash.”
-- Bo Diddley

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What is a Strong Academic Brand?
Authentic
Focused
Energetic
Valued
Distinct

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Differentiation
What unique value does your organization provide?
What do you do better?
What do you do differently?
For whom do you do it?
How does that difference meet your audiences’ interests?
Answering these questions provides you with a sustainable competitive advantage.

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Words from the Wise
“Differentiation is one of the most important strategic and tactical activities in which companies must constantly engage. It is not discretionary.”
Theodore Levitt, Thinking About Management

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Words from the Wise
“Differentiation is one of the most important strategic and tactical activities in which companies must constantly engage. It is not discretionary. There is no reason for any company to get stuck in the commodity trap, forever confined to competing on price alone. Historically, companies that have taken and stayed resolutely on the commodity path…have become extinct.”
Theodore Levitt, Thinking About Management

The Brand Platform

P A Y O F F
P E R S O N A L I T Y
P L E D G E
B I G I D E A
P R O O F / V A L I D A T I O N
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C O M P E T I T I V E P O S I T I O N I N G
M I S S I O N
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The Lipman HearneBrand Platform

Brand Activation

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Brand Activation
Brand positioning works on a visceral level.
Brands are emotional…
…telling stories.
…generating response.
…providing a “reason to believe.”
Great creative brings positioning to life.
Creative must excite, entice, engage. If they don’t care, they won’t act.

Northern ArizonaUniversity
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A Mess of Identities
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No Focused Message/Delivery
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Clarity of Purpose
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Marketing goals:
Change perceptions
Increase awareness
Increase enrollment
Engage influencers and donors

Framing Idea
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Research delivered a key insight…
Good at talking about the “Where” but not so good at talking about the “What.”
. . .that led to positioning platform.
Northern Arizona University offers “the difference that matters.”

Key Messages
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Message development
To support new positioning, tie back to President’s determination to focus on the undergraduate experience, and differentiate NAU from its other state university competitors
Faculty as mentors
Student-centered
Personal attention
Good fit

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P A Y O F F
I am in charge of my destiny. I am confident in my skills and choices.
P L E D G E
We don’t look past you but at you. Together, we can achieve great things.
P E R S O N A L I T Y
The independent, focused “do-er” – ready to take on the world.
B I G I D E A
Geography is character.
P R O O F / V A L I D A T I O N
Location Undergraduate focus
Relative size Faculty teaching rewards
Student/faculty ratio Outdoor opportunities
C O M P E T I T I V E P O S I T I O N I N G
For “alternate thinkers” who aren’t satisfied with the
options available at a large public institution.
M I S S I O N
Provide outstanding undergraduate residential education strengthened by graduate/professional programs and distance delivery.

New Identity
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Identity launch
February 2005
President unveiled identity to campus and media during publicized event
Media coverage extensive
Local coverage in and around Flagstaff
Articles in The Arizona Republic in Phoenix
Reviews very positive

Cheeky, irreverent
Eye-catching
Create an ethos—and the possibility of transformation
Mountain air makes you smarter.
Sea level is for wimps.
Learn how to move mountains.
Think of it as a 7,000 ft. head start on life.
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Door-buster Advertising

Second Stage Advertising
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Subsequent advertising
Strategic move to next stage: highlighting “What” elements to validate “The Difference That Matters”
Small class sizes, faculty as mentors, etc.
Differentiates NAU from competitors
Campaign updated periodically with new photography and refined messaging

Key Message Delivery
Faculty as mentors
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Measuring Success

Student-centered
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Measuring Success by Marketing Message

Good fit
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Measuring Success by Marketing Message

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Measuring Success by Enrollment

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Resource Commitment/Effect
Increased marketing spending has a positive effect on enrollment

University of Texasat Arlington
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Message Set
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Looking for a lot of challenge? Look here.
Our perspective covers 360°.
Our campus is your test track.
Like our students, UTA is on the rise.
We know how to reach untapped potential.

University ofMinnesota, Morris

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The Takeaway?
works.
Brand-driven marketing

The Real U: Building Brands That Resonate with Students, Faculty, Staff, and Donors

by Lipman Hearne Inc. on Aug 03, 2010

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