Northern Illinois University uses Merit to grant achievements to admitted students for accomplishments like earning scholarships or having a parent who attended NIU. These achievements can then be shared on social media, helping turn admitted students into brand ambassadors who generate excitement about attending NIU even before they arrive on campus. Youngstown State University showcases over 12,000 individual stories of student success using Merit, such as experiences in experiential learning or performing arts. This directly ties the university's marketing activities to its strategic goal of recognizing student achievement. The University of Louisiana-Lafayette grants a wide range of achievements through Merit to recognize student participation in programs that differentiate the university and show students that their accomplishments matter, encouraging them to share their positive experiences

1. Case Studies
In this section
•Northern Illinois University
Combating summer melt by getting new freshman excited to become
Huskies
•Youngstown University
Showcasing student success and the value of a Youngstown State degree
•University of Louisiana-Lafayette
Building student engagement and affiliation with branded achievements

2. Case study
Combating summer melt by getting new freshman excited to become
Huskies
The challenge
How to turn admitted students into brand ambassadors before they even arrive on
campus?
NIU has turned Merit into a critical component of its accepted student
communication, developing key touch points to keep admitted students excited
and engaged about attending NIU.
By sharing their achievement badges with Facebook and Twitter friends,
incoming NIU students become brand ambassadors before they even begin
classes.
NIU grants all admitted
students an achievement
badge they can share on
Facebook, generating
excitement among family
and friends about their
acceptance and cementing
students’ desire to enroll.
NIU grants achievements
to all freshmen who earn
scholarships, which further
creates a public connection
between scholarship
recipients and NIU.
A special “NIU Legacy”
achievement is even
granted to students whose
parent attended the
institution, creating
excitement among key NIU
alumni, as well as accepted
students.

3. Case study
Showcasing student success and the value of a Youngstown State degree
The challenge
When resources are tight, how can marketing show that it’s
contributing to the strategic goals of the institution?
Merit allowed YSU’s marketing team to create
more than 12,000 individual stories about student
success in one year.
By using Merit to showcase and get attention for student success
in areas like experiential learning, performing arts, and academic
achievement, YSU’s marketing team could directly show how its
activities were tied to a key institutional goal without any increase
in the department’s budget or the hiring of new personnel from
outside the university.
“Merit provides one of the most effective means that we have found for YSU to recognize and celebrate
student success.”– Ron Cole, Director of University Relations, Youngstown State University

4. Case study
Building student engagement and affiliation with branded achievements
The challenge
How to show students that their work and accomplishments
matter, so that they’ll share the positive experiences they’re
having at UL?
UL Lafayette goes way beyond traditional achievements
with a full spectrum of activities and student participation
recognition. Students’ personalized Merit pages showcase
programs that differentiate the university, like SOUL Camp
and Ragin’ Jazz.
“Merit has expanded our ability to promote student achievements beyond what we imagined. The
feedback from students and parents has been overwhelmingly positive. We've had parents call our office
to thank us for recognition. Merit helps make customization of a personal moment possible.”– Aimee
Bullinger, Associate Director of Communications, University of Louisiana Lafayette
21 achievements
granted
22,000 students recognized
3,400 social media
interactions
800 newspapers reached