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- 1. Creative Innovative Effective Capstone Agency The University of Alabama Capstone Agency The Digital Media Center College of Communication and Information Sciences February 16, 2015
- 2. Introduction Overview of Planning RISE Transcript Stadium Transcript Storyboard Media Coverage Tuscaloosa News Platform Online Magazine Alabama Power Online Newsroom The Odyssey Media Relations Conclusion Social Media Coverage Stadium Video Stadium Video Likes Stadium Video Shares RISE Video RISE Video Likes RISE Video Shares Focus Group Report Appendix Budget Breakdown, A.1 Media Plan, A.2 Focus Group Script, A.3 Table of Contents Capstone Agency Team: Julia Johnson, Account Executive Kendall Sellers, Transitioning Account Executive Elisa Richards, Digital Media Strategist Brooke Gunzelman, Transitioning Digital Media Candice Ji, Research Director Kyle Tindle, Research Assistant Brittany Downey, Senior Media Relations Strategist Tatum Roessler, Transitioning Media Relations Claire Whorton, Creative Services Digital Media Center Team: Amy Eifler, Programming Creative Services Faculty and Staff: Teri Henley, Capstone Agency Advisor Neely??
- 3. Introduction The overall goal of the Power of People campaign is to increase positive feelings about Alabama Power among members of the University of Alabama community by 20 percent by Nov. 25, 2014. We will be able to measure this by the focus groups we are holding. The five year project will include an integrated marketing communications campaign utilizing the time tested multi-step process of research, planning, implementation and evaluation. In the first phase, a series of “Power of People” video shorts are to be distributed on WVUA-TV, the University’s full power commercial television station carried throughout the Tuscaloosa/Birmingham DMA, online and other selected traditional media for the launch on Oct. 18, 2014.
- 4. Overview of Planning Thoughts and Planning behing Phase 1 Alabama Power approached the College of Communication and Information Sciences last spring with concerns of its image in the greater Tuscaloosa area. Alabama Power’s goal is to secure a positive lasting relationship among the students. Its goal for faculty and the greater Tuscaloosa area is to create a positive connection. In the spring of 2014, a small team from Capstone Agency began brainstorming ideas with the Digital Media Center on the direction of the campaign for the first phase. In the fall, a team of seven Capstone Agency members began the first phase of the five-year-campaign. The first phase consisted of the Digital Media Center creating two one-minute videos that would be released on WVUA-TV for several weeks. Each video appealed to a different type of audience. One video was an emotional appeal that highlighted Alabama Powers employees volunteering at the Rise School. The other video told the story of Greg Long, an Alabama Power employee, and how his team was responsible for keeping the lights on at Bryant-Denny Stadium. Both videos were released in the middle of football season at the University of Alabama. The videos were released through WVUA-TV and WVUA-TV’s social media accounts. Our team conducted focus groups to find accurate research and insights for phase one of this campaign. At the end of last semester, our team gave a broad presentation to Alabama Power employees about the research and insights gathered. Currently, our team is analyzing the results in great detail to conclude phase one.
- 5. Overview of Planning Phase 1 of the Five Year Project Phase 1 of this campaign is especially critical to the rest of the five-year project because our team will evaluate what will successfully target our audience through our results from the research we conducted. This spring, our team plans to brainstorm new ideas and plan for the future phases of this five-year project.
- 6. RISE Transcript Terri- I’m Terri Terri, I’m an employee of Alabama Power Company, I’ve been with them for 34 years, and I have a son Ian that is a Rise School graduate. Ian was my very first child and so I was young and excited about being a new parent, and then we got the news that Ian did have Down syndrome. I had so many friends at Alabama Power and… they new that Ian was going to the Rise School and they relied a lot on volunteers and so there was a group of Alabama Power employees and we would spend our lunch hours rocking babies and feeding them bottles, and so Alabama Power employees were a part of the Rise school during lunch hours. And we got so much out of it, and even now people say, “Hey! Let’s go back and rock some babies.” You know, yes, you always say there’s power in one, but when you have a company like Alabama Power, you just…you just really cant fail.
- 7. Stadium Transcript Greg: My name is Greg Long, I’ve been with Alabama Power for 32 years. I’m the operations manager for the Tuscaloosa region. There is a lot of things that goes into preparing for a game at Bryant Denny relative to restoring power should it go out. The amount of power that is consumed in the stadium during game day would be the equivalent to about 700 homes, the power they would use. The planning and the preparation that goes into game day here, we do that everyday for our customers through out the regions that we serve. Helping people is why we do what we do, and our whole team at Alabama Power feels that way. As I exit from my seat and head out I think another ones in the books and we start looking forward to the next one.
- 10. Media Coverage Overview “The highlight of the media relations strategy was the unique working relationship between Alabama Power and students conducting the Power of People campaign.” The Power of People campaign created a unique, working partnership with several organizations. Alabama Power’s support gave students at the Digital Media Center at The University of Alabama, Capstone Agency and WVUA-TV the opportunity to gain real life experience with a real client. This relation- ship was the highlight of the media relations strategy in Phase I of the Power of People campaign. The campaign appeared in four news outlets throughout the campaign: The Tuscaloosa News, the Alabama Power Online News Room, Platform Online Magazine and The Odyssey. Number of Stories: 4
- 11. Tuscaloosa News October 18, 2014 Circulation through 13 county distributions with 78,620 total households according to Tuscaloosa News’ 2015 Media Kit Comments: None Sentiment: Neutral NO PHOTO Reprints Enlarge Text Related Links Cuban poet Omar Perez to share his work Tuesday in Tuscaloosa University of Alabama PR students' campaigns for Alabama Power to debut Saturday A still shot from the video “Keeping the Lights On” shows Alabama Power Co. employee Greg Long inside Bryant‐Denny Stadium. The video was produced by Alabama Power in partnership with University of Alabama communications students. Submitted photo Staff report Published: Thursday, October 16, 2014 at 11:00 p.m. Last Modified: Thursday, October 16, 2014 at 11:58 p.m. Some University of Alabama students are getting hands‐on experience in their major fields by creating a pubic relations campaign showing how Alabama Power Co. and its employees interact with the university and the Tuscaloosa community. The campaign called "Power of the People" will debut two videos exclusively on WVUA‐TV on Saturday. The videos feature two Alabama Power employees, Greg Long and Teri Terry, who highlight their connections to the UA campus. Long's video, "Keeping the Lights On" will show him on the field inside Bryant‐Denny Stadium. The videos are the start of a five‐year partnership involving Alabama Power and UA students and More Videos 11/29 Alabama Head Coach Nick Saban Iron Bowl Post Game 12/20 Alabama Head Coach Nick Saban Next Advisor 7 Credit Cards You Should Not Ignore If… You Have Excellent Eater for Plated Millennials Are Ditching Delivery for This Din… Hack LowerMyBills 1 Dirty Little Secret To Eliminate 15 Years O… Mortgage Payments
- 12. Some University of Alabama students are getting hands‐on experience in their major fields by creating a pubic relations campaign showing how Alabama Power Co. and its employees interact with the university and the Tuscaloosa community. The campaign called "Power of the People" will debut two videos exclusively on WVUA‐TV on Saturday. The videos feature two Alabama Power employees, Greg Long and Teri Terry, who highlight their connections to the UA campus. Long's video, "Keeping the Lights On" will show him on the field inside Bryant‐Denny Stadium. The videos are the start of a five‐year partnership involving Alabama Power and UA students and organizations — Capstone Agency, a student‐run public relations firm; the Digital Media Center; and WVUA‐TV. LowerMyBills 1 Dirty Little Secret To Eliminate 15 Years O… Mortgage Payments "The best way I've been able to learn public relations is through real experience," said Julia Johnson, a Capstone Agency account executive. "This campaign with Alabama Power has allowed me to execute the things I learn in the classroom. It's my hope that other students in Capstone Agency and at the University of Alabama have experiences like I have had with this campaign. Public relations can't truly be taught with textbooks — only by experience." Alabama Power approached Capstone Agency in February about developing a partnership that would help the company to communicate with the university and Tuscaloosa communities while providing a hands‐on educational opportunity for UA students. "We were looking for a creative way to reach the university community and our customers in the Tuscaloosa area," said Hallie Bradley, Alabama Power's manager of community initiatives. "We believe this partnership not only helps us communicate our involvement in supporting the university and the Tuscaloosa community. It's also is a great way to give UA communication students some real‐world experience," said Mark Crews, vice president of Alabama Power's Tuscaloosa‐based Western Division. The first two videos will run on WVUA until Nov. 9 and can viewed online at WVUA's Facebook and Twitter accounts. Power of People ‐ Stadium 1:00 from The Center for Public Television on Vimeo. Power of People ‐ RISE 1:00 from The Center for Public Television on Vimeo. 00:49 by TaboolaPromoted Links Fix Your Blood Sugar Guide Do THIS Before Eating Carbs (Every Time) 0 COMMENTS "The best way I've been able to learn public relations is through real experience," said Capstone Agency account executive. "This campaign with Alabama Power has allowed things I learn in the classroom. It's my hope that other students in Capstone Agency an of Alabama have experiences like I have had with this campaign. Public relations can't with textbooks — only by experience." Alabama Power approached Capstone Agency in February about developing a partners help the company to communicate with the university and Tuscaloosa communities wh hands‐on educational opportunity for UA students. "We were looking for a creative way to reach the university community and our customers in the Tuscaloosa a Bradley, Alabama Power's manager of community initiatives. "We believe this partnership not only helps us communicate our involvement in supporting the university and community. It's also is a great way to give UA communication students some real‐world experience," said Mar president of Alabama Power's Tuscaloosa‐based Western Division. The first two videos will run on WVUA until Nov. 9 and can viewed online at WVUA's Facebook and Twitter ac Power of People ‐ Stadium 1:00 from The Center for Public Television on Vimeo. Power of People ‐ RISE 1:00 from The Center for Public Television on Vimeo. University of Alabama PR students' campaigns for Alabama Power to debut Saturday 00:49 by TaboolaPromoted Links Fix Your Blood Sugar Guide Do THIS Before Eating Carbs (Every Time) 0 COMMENTS
- 13. Platform Online MagazineOctober 28, 2014 VIEWS STILL NEEDED Comments: 1, positive Sentiment: Positive My friend Julia put it best when she said, “Public relations is truly taught by experience.” As we all know well, our world is full of trial and error, preparing for the worst and sighing in relief when it all goes right. Effective public relations takes work, cooperation and patience. It also takes the right opportunity to grow. Alabama Power recently awarded a grant to the new Digital Media Center at The University of Alabama. In conjunction with this grant, Capstone Agency, the University’s student‐run integrated communications firm, joined forces with WVUA‐TV and the Digital Media Center to create the Power of People campaign. Along with a few other talented teammates from Capstone Agency, Julia and I were given the opportunity to develop and implement the campaign as college students. Seems a little unconventional, right? Wrong. I’ve learned most of what I know from my work in Capstone Agency. It’s given my co‐workers and me a much‐needed opportunity to learn and work in the public relations field before even completing our degrees. On the Power of People campaign, in particular, we were working with a large company, and that meant large expectations. But, in the end, we pulled it off and we learned a lot. There’s no “I” in team With every campaign there are ups and downs. Tasks are thrown at you out of the blue and last minute details can get missed. Without the help of your co‐workers, campaigns can quickly go sour. Three days before our presentation to Alabama Power, the need for a news release arose. What would usually take about four days needed to be expedited in 24 hours. Without the help of my team, it wouldn’t have been accomplished; but with their help, the news release was picked up and appeared in the local newspaper just three days later. My friend Julia put it best when she said, “Public relations is truly taught by experience.” As we all know well, our world is full of trial and error, preparing for the worst and sighing in relief when it all goes right. Effective public relations takes work, cooperation and patience. It also takes the right opportunity to grow. Alabama Power recently awarded a grant to the new Digital Media Center at The University of Alabama. In conjunction with this grant, Capstone Agency, the University’s student‐run integrated communications firm, joined forces with WVUA‐TV and the Digital Media Center to create the Power of People campaign. Along with a few other talented teammates from Capstone Agency, Julia and I were given the opportunity to develop and implement the campaign as college students. Seems a little unconventional, right? Wrong. I’ve learned most of what I know from my work in Capstone Agency. It’s given my co‐workers and me a much‐needed opportunity to learn and work in the public relations field before even completing our degrees. On the Power of People campaign, in particular, we were working with a large company, and that meant large expectations. But, in the end, we pulled it off and we learned a lot. There’s no “I” in team With every campaign there are ups and downs. Tasks are thrown at you out of the blue and last minute details can get missed. Without the help of your co‐workers, campaigns can quickly go sour. Three days before our presentation to Alabama Power, the need for a news release arose. What would usually take about four days needed to be expedited in 24 hours. Without the help of my team, it wouldn’t have been accomplished; but with their help, the news release was picked up and appeared in the local newspaper just three days later. Communicate well, communicate often
- 16. Alabama Power Online Newsroom October 27, 2014 Circulation ???????? Comments: None Sentiment: Neutral Alabama Power Partnership Benefits UA Students Capstone Agency, Digital Media Center, WVUA work on campaign Oct 27, 2014 "THIS RELEASE IS FROM CAPSTONE AGENCY AT THE UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA" FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Brittany Downey October 14, 2014 Senior Media Relations Strategist Capstone Agency 8329225982 bsdowney@crimson.ua.edu Alabama Power Partnership Benefits UA Students Capstone Agency, Digital Media Center, WVUA work on campaign TUSCALOOSA, Alabama – Alabama Power has partnered with University of Alabama students and organizations to create the “Power of People” campaign. With the help of Capstone Agency, Alabama’s studentrun public relations firm, the Digital Media Center and WVUATV, the studentproduced campaign launched October 18 with the run of two studentproduced videos. The first phase of the fiveyear partnership kicked off with the highly anticipated Alabama vs. Texas A&M football game. The videos aired exclusively on WVUATV and will continue to run on the station until November 9. The videos feature two Alabama Power employees, Greg Long and Teri Terry, and highlight their connections to the University of Alabama campus. “The best way I’ve been able to learn public relations is through real experience,” Capstone Agency account executive Julia Johnson said. “This campaign with Alabama Power has allowed me to execute the things I learn in the classroom. It’s my hope that other students in Capstone Agency and at the University of Alabama have experiences like I have had with this campaign. Public relations can’t truly be taught with textbooks ‑ only by experience.” The work on the campaign began back in February, when Alabama Power approached Capstone Agency about formulating a partnership that would help the company to communicate with the university and Tuscaloosa Alabama Power Partnership Benefits UA Students Capstone Agency, Digital Media Center, WVUA work on campaign Oct 27, 2014 "THIS RELEASE IS FROM CAPSTONE AGENCY AT THE UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA" FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Brittany Downey October 14, 2014 Senior Media Relations Strategist Capstone Agency 8329225982 bsdowney@crimson.ua.edu Alabama Power Partnership Benefits UA Students Capstone Agency, Digital Media Center, WVUA work on campaign TUSCALOOSA, Alabama – Alabama Power has partnered with University of Alabama students and organizations to create the “Power of People” campaign. With the help of Capstone Agency, Alabama’s studentrun public relations firm, the Digital Media Center and WVUATV, the studentproduced campaign launched October 18 with the run of two studentproduced videos. The first phase of the fiveyear partnership kicked off with the highly anticipated Alabama vs. Texas A&M football game. The videos aired exclusively on WVUATV and will continue to run on the station until November 9. The videos feature two Alabama Power employees, Greg Long and Teri Terry, and highlight their connections to the University of Alabama campus. “The best way I’ve been able to learn public relations is through real experience,” Capstone Agency account executive Julia Johnson said. “This campaign with Alabama Power has allowed me to execute the things I learn in the classroom. It’s my hope that other students in Capstone Agency and at the University of Alabama have experiences like I have had with this campaign. Public relations can’t truly be taught with textbooks ‑ only by experience.” The work on the campaign began back in February, when Alabama Power approached Capstone Agency about formulating a partnership that would help the company to communicate with the university and Tuscaloosa communities while also providing an educational opportunity for students.
- 17. The Odyssey November 20, 2014 Circulation ???????? Comments: None Sentiment: Positive Capstone Agency, the student-run integrated communications firm at The University of Alabama, is helping implement the first phase of a five-year partnership with Alabama Power called the Power Of People campaign. Alabama Power approached the College of Communications and Information Sciences, last year, with a goal to help provide students with first-hand experience on a communications campaign experience. “Working on this campaign has been such an amazing learning experience,” said Assistant Account Executive, Morgan Chandler. “It has taught me to not look at corporations on just a surface level, but to look at what they are doing behind the scenes.” Part of the campaign consists of two videos that are being aired on WVUA-TV. These videos highlight the work that Alabama Power provides for the Tuscaloosa community. Capstone Agency and the Digital Media Center partnered together to create the series of videos. This opportunity provided students with a unique learning experience with the creation of the communications campaign. In one of the videos, Teri Terry, an Alabama Power employee, talks about the support Alabama Power provided for her and her family when her son was diagnosed with Down syndrome. While her son was a student at the Rise Center, Alabama Power employees would spend their lunch hours rocking babies and playing with the children there. Now, Terry’s son works as an employee at the Rise Center and she is very grateful for the assistance Alabama Power provided her during his childhood. Alabama Power employees recently made an appearance at the Rise Center, attending their annual Halloween party and passing out goodie bags filled with candy for the children. Alabama Power has participated in the event for the past several years, and their employees have said that this is one of their highlights of the year.
- 18. “This year was my first volunteering at the Rise Halloween Party. It was such a treat to be able to spend time with the kids and see all of their creative costumes. Rise has done so much for the Tuscaloosa community and I am thrilled that the Alabama Power Service Organization partners with Rise throughout the year to make events like this happen,” said Alabama Power employee, Anna Catherine Roberson. The University’s Greek system is even doing its part to help the Rise Center. On October 19, Kappa Alpha Theta hosted a fall festival for children and their families of the Rise Center. The day was filled with fun activities for the children and their families to participate, including Halloween-themed arts and crafts. “It’s always been a blast to interact with the children of the Rise Center. Our fall festival allowed us to entertain local kids while raising money for a great cause,” said Kappa Alpha Theta President, Elisa Richards. At the festival, Alabama Power’s Rise video was shown for all of the families. Many attendees were touched by Teri Terry’s personal story of her journey with her son. Families were able to relate to her story and found it to be very inspirational. As Teri Terry says, “ You always say there is the power in one, but when you have a company like Alabama Power you really can’t fail.” It’s the volunteers like Alabama Power and the members of Kappa Alpha Theta that make the Rise Center so special and welcoming to its students. The Rise Center does so much for the greater Tuscaloosa area that it is very moving to see the community giving back to them. Alabama Power has not only helped the students at the Rise Center, but has also helped students at The University of Alabama by giving them unparalleled experience creating a communications campaign, something most students across the country will never receive as undergraduate students. It is experiences like this that make the Tuscaloosa area a welcoming community. JuliaJohnson(/author/julia-johnson)
- 19. Because the campaign was focused on reaching Tuscaloosa area residents, especially students and faculty, pitching to campus-circulated publications was the logical step. It served the campaign well to receive coverage in the Tuscaloosa News because of its concentration in the Tuscaloosa area and in counties immediately outside of it. While the angles of the RISE events and the working opportunity between Alabama Power and UA students will always be one of human interest, using them again in Phase II would be redundant. During Phase II some goals for greater success would be creating new, relevant and interesting angles for publication as well as reaching other campus publications like the “Dialogue”, the UA faculty and staff newsletter, University Relations and other small but audience oriented publications. Media Relations Conclusion
- 20. Social Media Coverage Purpose The purpose of using social media for the Power Of People campaign was to help promote two videos that told a story about Alabama Power employees. The goal was to attract the attention of UA faculty and students to recognize that Alabama Power not only powers the stadium, but also gives back to the community. Using WVUA-TV to share Alabama Power’s message would show that the company truly wants to make a connection to the Tuscaloosa community. The social media posts ran from October 16 to November 2, 2014. Method For the campaign, WVUA-TV used its social media platforms to post about the Power Of People and share the two videos. WVUA-TV posted both videos on Vimeo, and promoted them through Facebook and Twitter. Since WVUA- TV has their Facebook and Twitter linked together, all posts had to be fewer than 140 characters including links, pictures and a hashtag. In order to ensure that the Power Of People message was being delivered in a consistent manner, there was only one hashtag used throughout the entire social media campaign; #ALPowerOfPeople. Since WVUA-TV, a news outlet, all materials had to be newsworthy and non- biased. Posts typically described the video, or used quotes from the video and always included the hashtag, #ALPowerOfPeople.
- 21. Social Media Coverage Implementation During the first week of promoting the two videos through the social media platforms, WVUA-TV shared them twice a day. After the first week, Capstone Agency collaborated with the digital media center and decided to only post every other day for the rest of the campaign. Major posts were made on Saturdays and Sundays to reach our target audience. On Saturdays, the stadium video was shared for gamedays in Tuscaloosa, and on Sundays, the Rise Center video was shared. Results Below, are some charts that give more information about each video and how WVUA-TV’s audience responded to both videos. As you can see, as time passes on WVU-TV’s audience stops watching and interacting with the videos.
- 22. Twitter Facebook
- 23. The audience reached, overall video views, and views that lasted for more than 30 seconds for the one-minute stadium video used for this campaign. This chart represents how much coverage the Stadium video received via social media during the three-week campaign. The “audience reached” column shows how many people saw a post on Facebook about the Stadium video. The “video views” column displays the number of Facebook users that watched the Stadium video. The “more than 30 seconds” column represents how many viewers watched the Stadium video for more than 30 seconds. As the chart indicates, WVUA-TV social media followers stopped showing as much interest in the Stadium video after week one of the campaign. The reason for this is because most of WVUA-TV’s followers had already seen the Stadium video twice within the first week; therefore, they had no reason to re-watch the video again during week two or three in the campaign. By the third week of the campaign, most of their followers just scrolled through a post about Alabama Power and the stadium. Viewers became uninterested in the same content being shared two to three times a week. Stadium Video 1st Week 2nd Week 3rd Week 0 1000 2000 3000 4000 5000 0 1000 2000 3000 4000 5000 Audience Reached Video Views More than 30 Seconds 4,927.6 2,271 619 2,648 753 92.6 1,324 567 67
- 24. The chart above indicates how many likes the Stadium video received throughout the campaign on Facebook. Once again, during the first week the Stadium video is receiving the most interaction. After week one, the number of likes received continues to decline throughout the campaign. The number of likes begins to fall in week two and three because Facebook users aren’t likely to interact with the same type of post more than once. If a social media user sees the same content over and over again on a news outlet, then the users become uninterested in the content. Stadium Video Likes 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 10 13.3 31.6 Average Stadium Likes 1st Week 2nd Week 3rd Week
- 25. The chart above displays how many WVUA-TV social media followers shared the Stadium video on Facebook throughout the three-week campaign. At first, a good amount of followers shared WVUA-TV’s Stadium video with their friends. However, after Facebook users saw the video continuously, users felt no need to re-share the same video or story. The first week was the only week where users felt inclined to share this video. By week two, the Stadium video was old news to WVUA-TV followers. Those sharing the Stadium video in week two or three were Facebook users that saw the video for the first time. Stadium Video Shares 20 0 5 10 15 1st Week 2nd Week 3rd Week 17 1 0.5 Average Stadium Shares
- 26. The chart above displays how much interaction the Rise video received through WVUA- TV’s Facebook page. The chart shows the audience reached, the overall video views and views that were viewed for more than 30 seconds. Over the three-week campaign, the inter- action received from users declined after the first week. At the beginning of the campaign, the video was new content on Facebook, so WVUA-TV followers were interested in learn- ing about how Alabama Power employees volunteer their time at the Rise School. After the first week, most of WVUA-TV’s social media followers had seen the video twice. Since the users kept seeing the same video over and over again, users started to lose interest by week two and three. Overall, posting the Rise video did gain coverage throughout the entire campaign. Rise Video 0 500 1000 1500 2000 2500 3000 3500 4000 Audience Reached Video Views More than 30 Seconds 3,765.6 1,183 222.6 2,195 793 93 2,333 711 74 1st Week 2nd Week 3rd Week
- 27. The chart above shows how many WVUA-TV Facebook followers liked the Rise video posts. As expected, the first week was when the video received the most likes on Facebook. After week one, the number of likes given by users started to fall. When users began to see the same video during week two and three, users did not feel inclined to like the same video and story. However, more of WVUA-TV’s followers gave more likes for the Rise video versus the Stadium video. Rise Video Likes 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 1st Week 2nd Week 3rd Week Average Rise Likes 32.3 30 14
- 28. The chart above indicates how many WVUA-TV Facebook followers shared the Rise video with their friends. During the first week, multiple followers were sharing the video because the story of Alabama Power employees giving back was fresh news. After the first week, us- ers were only sharing the Rise video if it was the first time they were seeing the video. Face- book users do not like to re-share the same story, unless it has been updated. It was expected that over the three-week time period, shares from WVUA-TV followers would decline. Rise Video Shares 0 3 6 9 12 15 Average Rise Shares 1st Week 2nd Week 3rd Week 14.5 1 1
- 29. The social media plan for the first phase was a success. Overall, both the Stadium video and Rise video received coverage via social media and received no negative feedback. During the first week of the campaign, users interacted with both videos by watching the video, commenting on the post, liking the post or sharing the video post with their friends. As expected, interaction between WVUA-TV followers and the videos declined after week one. Sharing the same story and video continuously is for allowing new audiences to interact with the videos, not for the same users. After evaluating the social media plan for phase one, Capstone Agency recommends using a different social media outlet for the next phase. Having a third-party news outlet share the videos limited the number of audiences for Alabama Power. Facebook users following WVUA-TV are interested in news- related stories, while fans of Alabama Power may not be interested in WVUA- TV or vice versa. Another recommendation is to not have the social media accounts linked. Having to keep all posts under 140 characters including the hashtag, pictures and video links put a limitation on the posts going through Twitter and onto Facebook. Twitter and Facebook audiences differ in many ways. Social Media Conclusion
- 30. Focus Group Report Objective To learn UA students and faculty members’ current habits of paying electricity bills; to learn their awareness and perceptions of Alabama Power; to learn their views and opinions about the initial video campaign. Methodology There were three focus groups held from November 10 to November 19 2014. Each group was planned to be an hour. The first group consisted of students who live in off-campus apartments; the second group consisted of students who live on-campus housing; and the third group consisted of UA faculty members. There were 14 total participants. The participating students were carefully screened. There were both males and females ranging from freshmen to seniors with a wide variety of majors, so that the students were representative of the overall UA student population. The general group structure was set up in a way that first discussed the participants’ electricity bill payment habits. Then they were asked to openly state their current knowledge and perceptions of Alabama Power as a corporation. Next the participants were asked to recall any Alabama Power ads seen in the past and describe the type of media and channel that got their attention. After that, they were shown the two videos in the campaign, the one about the RISE Center and the other about the stadium. Following each video, participants were asked their impressions and thoughts on the video and what they liked and disliked. In the end, the group brainstormed recommendations for Alabama Power to better reach out to the UA community.
- 31. Key Findings Current Knowledge and Perceptions Most student participants can identify Alabama Power as their electricity provider but they have extremely limited knowledge of what the company does other than providing power. That is especially true with the on-campus students because they do not directly pay their power bills. The students also have not heard much about Alabama Power’s charitable contributions or community involvement. Faculty members displayed more negative attitudes towards Alabama Power. They felt that Alabama Power is hard to approach, non-transparent and too politically associated. A positive perception found common among all three focus groups was that Alabama Power responds quickly when disasters hit. Awareness of Ads Two students from the focus groups had seen the stadium video on social media and one faculty member had seen the RISE video on WVUA. But while there had been some success on reaching the audience, there were also noticeable problems with limited media coverage. Very few students watch WVUA; some faculty members watch it but only for a few minutes of news or weather. Feedback on the Stadium Video The stadium video appealed especially to on-campus students who felt that the ad had nice quality footages and they could personally relate to the stadium and football concept. However, the video was a bit too lengthy for them to stay interested the entire time and the voiceover made it sound like a political campaign. The off-campus group did not particularly favor this video. The association with UA athletics made sense to them but was not interesting enough. They thought the tagline “the Power of People” in the end did not echo with the content because the video focused on lighting up the stadium rather than the people. Faculty were not impressed with the UA association. The video gave them the feeling of too much corporate messaging. Feedback on the RISE Video The RISE video held an emotional appeal to the off-campus group. Students liked seeing Alabama Power employees help each other and the RISE Center, and expressed that the slogan “the Power of People” fits better with this video. But at the same time, one student was confused about how Alabama Power made contributions to the RISE Center because it sounded like it was the employee’s idea to volunteer. The group agreed that it would work better if it were Alabama Power who initiated the volunteering program. The on-campus group, on the contrary, couldn’t connect to this video as much as they did to the stadium one. Because some of the on-campus students do not know much about Alabama Power, this video confused them on what the company actually does as a job. The content seemed irrelevant to them and lacked explanations. One student pointed out that the video was clearly an attempt to tug at heartstrings to get you to like the company.
- 32. This was also the faculty group’s opinion. They stated that Alabama Power was taking credit for its employees’ sacrifice. The participants were particularly not happy with the fact that it was during lunch hour when the employees went to rock babies at the RISE Center because they didn’t get time off to do it. Recommendation The general attitude of the focus groups is that traditional commercials are not the best ways to reach out and connect with the UA community. It is much preferred that Alabama Power makes some tangible efforts in the community and then speaks clearly about them in the messaging in order to maintain a positive image among the community. A few examples brought up by the focus groups are to install charging stations in libraries, to move towards a green campus with alternative energy sources, to establish a scholarship program, to hold events on campus, to work with community nonprofits and give them a break on connection fees etc. Additionally, more diversity of media outlets is strongly recommended to better reach the target audience such as popular TV channels, public radio, and online streaming websites such as Hulu and YouTube.
- 33. Budget Breakdown Video Production: $25,110.00 • Pre-Production service $7,060.00 • Production services $11,750.00 • Post-Production services $6,300.00 Media Costs: $19,890.00 • Ads on WVUA $19,575.00 • Printing $315.00 Capstone Agency Fee: $5,000.00 Total Cost: $50,000.00 A.1.
- 34. Media Plan 18-34 Reach: 26.8 Frequency: 3.0 25+ Reach: 74.7 Frequency: 4.8 Objectives • Run paid media on a continuous plan from Oct. 18 to Nov. 9 • Achieve a reach of 74.7 and a frequency of 4.8 among The University of Alabama faculty and staff as well as the Tuscaloosa community targets (represented by the 25+ DMA) • Acheive a reach of 26.8 with a frequency of 3 among The University of Alabama student tar get ( represented by the 18-34 DMA) Strategy A paid and earned strategy will be used to reach the Tuscaloosa area. The campaign will run from Oct. 18 to Nov. 9 using a continuous media strategy. Using only WVUA-TV as an outlet will allow a concentrated reach within the Tuscaloosa community from a local video outlet. A.2.
- 35. Media Plan
- 36. Focus Group Script Group 1: Off-Campus Students Participant Information: # Gender Class Standing College 1 Female Senior Human Environmental Sciences 2 Male Sophomore Communication & Information Sciences 3 Female Junior Communication & Information Sciences 4 Female Senior Social Work 5 Female Senior Commerce & Business Administration 6 Male Junior Commerce & Business Administration Current Interaction with Alabama Power • All can identify AP as their electricity provider • Some get bills delivered to mailbox; some get electronic bills • Some pay their bills directly; some write checks to the apartment complex • There are varying ways they pay electricity, online and by checks • Most of them live with roommates. Usually one person pays the bill and others write checks to that person • Getting bills every month is somewhat stressful. This month’s bill is so much higher than last month’s • On how good a value they feel they get from electricity on a scale of 0-10, five of them said 7-9 and one said 4-6 A.3.
- 37. Knowledge and Perception of Alabama Power • A majority of them don’t know much about AP. AP generates energy and sells it • Largest and sole electricity provider in Alabama, a monopoly • Effective when disasters hit • #2 said AP grants community money to build infrastructure • #6 associates coal ash with AP. Frustrated about not having a choice to choose an electricity company • #5 complained about a personal experience with Alabama Power’s customer service • None of them has heard of any charitable contributions AP does Awareness of Alabama Power Advertisements • #5 got an email from AP that looks like something about helping people, but she did not look at it • #5 saw an AP commercial on Hulu over a year ago • #1 saw the stadium video but did not remember much • #2 remember the slogan “Always On” • Feel that being a monopoly company AP doesn’t have to do ads, because consumers don’t have a choice Thoughts on Stadium Video • “700 homes” stood out • Association with UA athletics makes sense because as a monopoly company AP doesn’t need to advertise their products • Feel the ad is more emotional than rational in its nature • The slogan “the Power of People” does not make sense with the ad because the video focuses on the stadium rather than people. There aren’t even people in the seats • Would rather have AP’s company logo at the end. It would be more recognizable
- 38. Thoughts on RISE Video • Feel it’s an emotional ad, and like that AP employees help each other and the RISE Center • #5 likes the video because she is familiar with the RISE Center • The slogan “the Power of People” fits better with this video • #3 doesn’t get how AP helped with the RISE Center because it sounds like it was the employees’ idea. Others agree that it would work better if it was AP who initiated the program Recommendations for Alabama Power • A lot of people don’t know how to pay bills. AP could make it easier for people who can’t read or don’t have computers to pay their bills • Put charging stations at every table in libraries and include cords • A discounted rate for students • Provide education materials that explain electricity bill fluctuations • Move towards a green campus with alternative energy sources • Sponsor a student to kick a field goal at football games and it will be good publicity for AP at the same time • Create programs for students with relative majors to volunteer or intern at the company • Scholarship programs
- 39. Group 2: On-Campus Students Participant Information: # Gender Class Standing College 1 Female Senior Communication & Information Sciences 2 Female Sophomore Communication & Information Sciences 3 Male Freshman Commerce & Business Administration 4 Female Freshman Education 5 Female Sophomore Communication & Information Sciences 6 Female Sophomore Communication & Information Sciences Knowledge and Perception of Alabama Power • Because the students live on campus, they don’t pay their bills and don’t have specific opinions about AP • AP is a monopoly power company that keeps the lights on • “The only time you deal with them is probably when you are over charged” Awareness of Alabama Power Advertisement • Only one girl saw the stadium video on social media and that was because one of her friends who works at Capstone Agency shared it Thoughts on Stadium Video • Overall good ad. Nice quality footage and is visually appealing • It is good to put a face to AP • Can personally connect to the stadium and football concept • Like the slogan “the Power of People” • Perception of AP improved after watching the video • Would possibly share the video on Facebook if there is an article attached • The negatives: it’s a little too long for a TV commercial; the voice makes it sound like a political campaign
- 40. Thoughts on RISE Video • Feel the content is a little irrelevant to what the company really does • Some of the on-campus students do not know much about AP so this video confuses them on what the company actually does as a job • Feel the video is not “realistic” enough and can not connect to it • #5 can tell that AP is “trying to get you to like them” through this video. The video maybe helps improving the perception but “you probably won’t remember it when you are overcharged” Recommendations for Alabama Power • Putting more charging stations on campus is a great idea • Be more personable and visible about what they do
- 41. Bill Paying Habits • #1 receives bills online and uses auto payments; #2 also pays online but likes to receive bills in the mail as a reminder • Both surprised at a higher power bill after relocating to Alabama. #2 feels that a higher bill is due to lack of efficiency and lack of competition • Dislike the lack of options when choosing power company • On the value of what they pay for power on a 0-10 scale: #1 says 10 because “I get what I need”; #2 says 4 because of comparative high cost. Group 3: Faculty Participant Information: # Gender College Years Lived in Tuscaloosa 1 Female Human Environmental Sciences 16 2 Female Human Environmental Sciences 3 Views on Corporate Social Responsibility • Extremely important • Companies should inform the public about CSR efforts • Wants transparency and reports on what company is doing – online reports, reports to media • Companies should enact programs to encourage efficiency Knowledge and Perceptions of Alabama Power • Alabama Power is “a box that sits down there” • Needs more of a community spirit • Feels that AP engages in too much “big boy partnering” and “won’t support” the little guy and is hard to approach • AP not transparent; flexes political power as a monopoly in the state • Feels that AP selling appliances is a ploy to make money, exhibits a “monopoly mentality” • Company logo is usually seen together with UA’s logo • Feels that if UA pays so much for power. “AP better be sponsoring everything.” • Alabama Power responds quickly when things happen such as tornados
- 42. Recommendations for Alabama Power • Do things that show results – don’t spend money on ads • Speak at local churches because communities need ways to connect with AP • Work with community nonprofits and give them a break on connection fees • Hold events at the beginning of semester to welcome faculty and students • Hold events towards the end of semester when people are worn out to “pep people up” Media Consumption • #1 watches WVUA but only the first few minutes of news; #2 watches WVUA only during tornado seasons, and uses DVR and skips commercials Thoughts on RISE Video • Overall negative attitudes towards the video • The fact that it was lunch hour when employee went to RISE Center really stood out. “Individuals sacrificed, not AP. AP didn’t give them time off to do it.” “When did they have time to eat lunch?” • “The employee is the one who found it, not AP.” Feels that AP is taking credit • The video is a blatant attempt to tug at heartstrings with a distorted message • AP is “not participating in their own message.” Thoughts on Stadium Video • Overall negative attitudes towards the video • The fact that it was lunch hour when employee went to RISE Center really stood out. “Individuals sacrificed, not AP. AP didn’t give them time off to do it.” “When did they have time to eat lunch?” • “The employee is the one who found it, not AP.” Feels that AP is taking credit • The video is a blatant attempt to tug at heartstrings with a distorted message • AP is “not participating in their own message.”
- 43. Creative Innovative Effective Capstone Agency