the three c’s of community college branding mary de luca senior director, public relations chris...
TRANSCRIPT
The Three C’s of Community College Branding
Mary De Luca
Senior Director, Public Relations
Chris Mihavetz
Director, Marketing
The Three C’s of Community College Branding
Background Thoughts:
On brand
On the CCBC brand
The Three C’s:
Clarity
Consistency
Commitment
True or false?
Your logo, your collateral and your tagline are your brand.
The Three C’s of Community College Branding
True or false?A brand can be an overnight success.
The Three C’s of Community College Branding
True or false?
What others say about your brand is much more powerful than what you say about yourself.
The Three C’s of Community College Branding
True or false?
The crucial ingredient in the success of any brand is its claim to authenticity.
The Three C’s of Community College Branding
True or false?
A lower price gives your brand a distinct advantage.
The Three C’s of Community College Branding
True or false?Your name isn’t really that important.
The Three C’s of Community College Branding
True or false?
To build a successful brand you must have broad market appeal.
The Three C’s of Community College Branding
Evolution of the CCBC brandNew institutionCollege formed in 1998 from three existing community colleges
Campus histories dating back to 1957
ResearchName unknown
Poor recall of ads
Former colleges not equated with quality
Image “okay”
The Three C’s of Community College Branding
Unearthing CCBC’s brand
Executive-level participationBrand strategy session with external branding consultant
Distillation of brand essenceEmpower people to transform their lives
The Three C’s of Community College BrandingClarity
Clarity:brand
consumer profile
message
The Three C’s of Community College BrandingClarity
Demonstrate the brand promise
The incredible value of a CCBC education in helping people transform their lives.
In everything we say and do.
The Three C’s of Community College BrandingClarity
Key brand messages (points of pride)
A CCBC education is:– Affordable– Top-notch– Flexible– Convenient– Supportive
The Three C’s of Community College BrandingClarity
Audiences want an approach that is:• Direct• Personal• Relevant• Benefits focused
Keep it simple!
The Three C’s of Community College BrandingClarity
“I always wanted to be an engineer. Knowing
how expensive it could be to get my degree, I
opted to start at CCBC.”
-Kevin Richmond
Student, General Education
AFFORDABLE
The Three C’s of Community College BrandingClarity
“Before you decide to spend a lot of money on
college, you should think about CCBC. It’s
affordable, the faculty are awesome and it
definitely prepares you to transfer to a four-year
college.”
-Nazim Bouadjemi,
Student, Mass Communications
AFFORDABLE
The Three C’s of Community College BrandingClarity
“CCBC is a great investment in your future
because it gives you a solid foundation for
your career.”
-Troy Hastings
Student, Construction Management
Grainger scholarship recipient
TOP-NOTCH
The Three C’s of Community College BrandingClarity
“It’s an invaluable opportunity to work so
closely with your professor. Because they
know you, they can appreciate your work.”
-Vanya Kovacheva
International student (Bulgaria)
Biotechnology
TOP-NOTCH
The Three C’s of Community College BrandingClarity
“No matter what you want to do, CCBC is
all about providing opportunities.”
-Carlisa Mitchell,
Graduate, Electrical Apprenticeship
FLEXIBLE
The Three C’s of Community College BrandingClarity
“CCBC’s course options fit perfectly into my
daily work schedule. It was important to have
the convenience of a flexible night schedule to
accommodate my busy life.”
-Chris Cahoon
Student, Apprenticeship program
CONVENIENT
The Three C’s of Community College BrandingClarity
“I enjoy what I do; I don’t look at this as work.
The payoff is going to graduation and seeing
those students who have made it to the finish
line. That does it for me.”
-Mark Williams
CCBC alumnus and
Director of Career Counseling
SUPPORTIVE
The Three C’s of Community College BrandingClarity
“I absolutely love this place. I’m
surrounded by positive energy, people
doing everything in their power to help
me succeed.”
-Kesha King
Student, Aviation Management
SUPPORTIVE
The Three C’s of Community College BrandingClarity
“You’ll be amazed by CCBC. You’ll be amazed.”
-Arnaz Harrison
Graduate, Biology
Transferred to UMBC, Pre-Med
INCREDIBLE VALUE
The Three C’s of Community College BrandingClarity
Challenge: maintaining relevance amid the clutter
• Product clutter - too much stuff
• Feature clutter - too many choices
• Advertising clutter– too many voices, too loud.
• Media clutter – too many channels
The Three C’s of Community College BrandingConsistency
Solution: be consistent, be persistent
All audiences• Students, current and prospective• Community and businesses• Alumni• Employees past, present and future
The Three C’s of Community College BrandingConsistency
Student recruitment (Electronic) Web site
video
E-mail / 1 2
The Three C’s of Community College BrandingConsistency
Student recruitment (Print) • brochure series• I am CCBC view cards• PEP mailers/ads• Pepsi Trucks
The Three C’s of Community College BrandingConsistency
Student recruitment -brochure series
Student recruitment -view cards
Student recruitment - PEP
Student recruitment – Pepsi trucks
Community and Business• Annual report• Link• CCBC@Work• CEED Options mailer• CEED Schedule
The Three C’s of Community College BrandingConsistency
Community - annual report
Community - Link
Business- CCBC@work
Community – Continuing Education Options
Community – Continuing Education schedule
Alumni
Emerge
New employees
HR brochures
The Three C’s of Community College BrandingConsistency
Alumni - Emerge
Employees
Internal and On-campus Communications
Campus Flags/Banners
Bus shelters
Early Registration posters
Student handbook
Are you CCBC? civility campaign
Lyrics of new alma mater
The Three C’s of Community College BrandingConsistency
On-campus –flags
On-campus - bus shelters
Current students– early regisgration
Current students - student handbook
Current students – civility campaign
College community - anthem
The colors of the sun and skyThe orange and the blueWith honor and affectionWe sing our praise to you
Behold, the constant beaconOf your torch raised to the skyIt guides us ever onwardAs we keep climbing high
Hail to CCBC As we raise our voice in song“I am CCBC”Stand tall and proud and strong.
Challenges – top three:
The Three C’s of Community College BrandingCommitment
Results - Is it working?
Name recognition (top-of-mind awareness)
1998 - 0.75%
2005 -14.75%
The Three C’s of Community College BrandingCommitment
Results - Is it working?
Advertising recall
1998 – 6%
2005 – 28.9%
The Three C’s of Community College BrandingCommitment
Results
Quality
1998 – 4.47%
2005 – 25.5%
The Three C’s of Community College BrandingCommitment
Results
Image (positive or very positive)2001 – 48.3%
2005 – 55.3%
The Three C’s of Community College BrandingCommitment
Other challenges:
Not getting sick of it (keeping fresh, but consistent)
Generating content – takes the whole team
All – determines profile needs
media relations – finds stories that fit, interviews, keeps inventory
publications – coordinates photo shoots
marketing – matches profile message to audience and vehicle; “refines”
interview material.
The Three C’s of Community College BrandingCommitment
True or false?
A lower price gives your brand a distinct advantage.
FALSE. High price can be a benefit in attracting those who obtain psychological satisfaction from the public purchase and consumption of a high-end brand.
The Three C’s of Community College Branding
Other challenges:
True or false?Your name isn’t really that important.
FALSE. All other factors being equal, the brand with the better name will come out on top. In the long run, the most successful brand is not necessarily a higher-quality product, but a higher- quality name.
The Three C’s of Community College Branding
Other challenges:
True or false?
To build a successful brand you must have broad market appeal.
FALSE. The most successful brands have a single, simple focus. A brand actually becomes stronger when you narrow its focus.
The Three C’s of Community College Branding
Other challenges:
True or false?
The crucial ingredient in the success of any brand is its claim to authenticity.
TRUE. Articulating a brand promise is important, but is meaningless unless you fulfill it.
The Three C’s of Community College Branding
Other challenges:
