It’s that time of the year again, It’s Open Day Season.
Open days are some of the most significant dates in a University calendar. They are the opportunity to showcase your facilities, demonstrate your expertise and to welcome the next generation of prospective students. But how do you make sure that those prospective students put your open day at the top of their visit list? Reaching those prospects is no mean feat, especially with more Universities than ever vying for their attention – standing out is imperative.
This is why you’ll always find us exploring innovative ways for our clients to not only use the newest platforms to drive activity, but also exploring how tried and tested methods can work well to get voices heard and to really explore new aspects of campaign media.
For us, an integrated approach to media planning and buying is crucial.
But what is an integrated approach and how could it be the key that unlocks a future of strong Open Day interest?
“Digital First” has been a mantra the sector has long championed, using many online methods to venture into the digital wilderness to track down the students of tomorrow. But as we move into an age where digital channels are saturated with messaging – diversification of activity is the natural option to ensure that you’re heard over the noise.
By using an integrated approach to complement your schedule, you can strategically build reach across the campaign. Digital Audio, Podcasts and Connected TV can help reach a more diverse audience, whilst still offering the ability to target the right consumer segments. Out of Home can give the campaign scale, to target a broad audience and own key environments.
This approach not only increases enquiry generation but drives brand awareness- working to reach the public in a way that produces societal influencers (relatives, friends, teachers of prospective students) who can also champion the University and its message – working in a way that compliments your digital activity to increase reach and – with the right targeted messaging – working to drive real engagement.
In an economic downturn, we know that marketing budgets are often re-evaluated and capturing the in-market customer to grow short term engagement can become a priority to ensure long term success and stability when things inevitably start to balance out. In fact, organisations that invest in advertising during economic difficulties (according to some research) can grow up to 9 times faster than those who didn’t when times become easier.
Without including broader reach channels, institutions often neglect the early part of the student recruitment journey which helps fill the pool for future growth and build those memory structures that put your brand front of mind when the prospective student is faced with an array of competitor messages, building brands and enquiries, one piece of media at a time.
On October 20th, Emma Price (Client Partner) and Tanjit Pulahi (Head of Media) will be diving deep into integrated media on our brand-new webinar. This is the perfect way for you to explore more on the subject and hear their practical tips and leading insight into how innovation can come from integration this open day season. Check it out!
