Impressive marketing to close the deal........

NEValu · 04-06-2009, 08:25 PM

My son or us (his parents) have received either some mailing or phone call from Denison pretty much every day during the last 10-15 days. Each time is something just a bit different. This really is pretty impressive. My son definitely knows that they want him to attend and I think this has impact.
It will be interesting to see what the overnight visit is like....I think they have to walk a fine line between hard sell (although they have offered the best merit program by far so I guess they are not "selling" in that sense) and wooing. We are headed for Granville on Thursday.

Whistle Pig · 04-06-2009, 08:35 PM

Have fun, enjoy. Make sure you hit Whit's ...at least 2X. It is out of this world. Really.

DU's niche is kids w/ brains, enjoy engagement and social interaction, more non than nerdy. They aggressively pursue bright students who enjoy being with other students and place great value on constructing a living-learning community. It's home to really quite different personality types, by design, than you'd find @ an Oberlin, Kenyon, Swarthmore, Haverford or many other well-regarded institutions.

Your student's challenge is to discern the difference and determine if that's where he thinks he can thrive, grow, learn, enjoy the other "types" who are and will be there.

NEValu · 04-06-2009, 08:55 PM

This is definitely a quirky kid who is his own man. He is much more interesting to watch in many ways than his older brother who went to Carleton on early decision because he KNEW that "this was the place" With #2 son, we visited Denison for a very brief time this summer, actually on our way to Oberlin, (which he found too pretentious) and schools further east. We really wished we''d had longer to stick around but were on an incredibly tight schedule. (Lessons Learned from 9 colleges/5 days/4 states: Never do 2 colleges a day unless they are in the same town and never squander your travel time on summer visits for colleges that don't have summer classes.)
I've heard a lot about Whit's. Ice cream is always good! I really hope that this is a positive experience since I'm ready for this process to reach its conclusion.

Zetesis · 04-06-2009, 10:43 PM

Yeah, D has been inundated with mail! There are 4 or 5 pieces of mail here for her!

She and my H are at Denison right now for the Spring Visit Day. Originally I thought it might have been better to go this Thursday/Friday for the longer visit and exposure and the more structured program. Turns out they spent an hour or more with three different faculty members in various fields of interest (chemistry, dance, German), and were impressed by their commitment and high morale. They did take the campus tour, and said they had a great tour guide. D also spent a night in the dorm, and had a good visit with a sophomore who's from the next town over here in SoCal. Smart match. And they got Whits.

So, even though it's lousy weather (and we've got glorious sunshine here), the school has made quite a good impression on them. Hope your son's visit goes well too!

Dairy State K8 · 04-10-2009, 08:54 PM

Denison did a great job last year wooing my son with emails, notes, calls to him and to me, etc. (Not to mention really great merit aid) But they really fell down on the job with the overnight visit. He had a "host" who was hosting about a half dozen other admitees (he got the impression that the students got paid a certain amount per prospect for hosting) The host abandoned them all and they sat around in his room and talked sports trivia. He enrolled elsewhere. I was shocked that with all the money Denison spends on marketing and flying kids in for visits, they didn't do a better job vetting their campus hosts.

It seems like a great school, so hopefully your students will have better experiences!

Zetesis · 04-10-2009, 09:15 PM

D had a good overnight visit; she was matched with a girl who was from the next village/town, and that was quite helpful. But I know it could easily have gone another way.

Whistle Pig · 04-10-2009, 09:48 PM

Yea, that feedback would be painful but welcomed, I suspect. To know where the potential pitfall may be in their marketing planning and execution. For ours, it was the absolute clincher. But that's apparently not a unanimous experience. Sounds like that young man was not well screened, trained, and/or committed to doing his job. I guess they're everywhere. At any rate, hopefully DU did not re-enlist his offer of service in ensuing visitation days.

Glad to hear D's visit was positive and productive, Zet. Sounds like some care was taken in your host matching process.

Zetesis · 04-10-2009, 10:49 PM

I guess they thought that a kid from Southern California might like to know how others have survived the midwest, winter, snow (what's that?), distance, and so on! D's older sister is in college in Michigan, so we're used to (but don't like) all of the above!

NEValu · 04-11-2009, 11:20 PM

Well, I don't know how great my son's experience in the dorms was. It sounded OK but he's sometimes a man of few words. Besides, before he went we had a discussion about this very topic. He knew that whatever happened in the dorm that ONE night was not representative of all students or the experiences he will have. We talked about how that would be if someone judged his whole high school based on contacts with one or two individuals. I think entering college students should be able to understand this. That said, it's always better if it is a wonderful experience, of course. The classes, the faculty and the administrators were quite impressive in their attitudes and actions on our visit. The boy still hasn't made his final cut yet but, I know this visit was definitely positive overall no matter what the dorm life was like. He did say that he was glad he got a futon and not a spot on the floor. His host took him and his fellow prospie to the coffee house event but apparently all agreed that it was too crowded and just came back to the room and talked.
Also, Whit's custard was a great plus!

JASMac · 04-12-2009, 08:56 AM

Our daughter visited overnight, but did not register through the University, and stayed with a family friend(s). She still hasn't made up her mind where she will end up, but reports she had a good visit. For her, flying under the rader was better than being clumped into the "prospie" groups, as she thought they all sort of stood out. To me, however, the program for prospective students looked good. All in all, I think she got a good perspective with her contacts and their friends.

Whistle Pig · 04-12-2009, 07:53 PM

Not sure I get the advantages of being under the radar, but glad she had a fine time. Good luck.

portland · 04-29-2009, 11:15 AM

Denison def. has brainy kids who are social and like to have a good time. Oberlin and the East Coast schools are so pretentious that it makes my stomach turn. Denison likes to refer to itself as the "Harvard of the Midwest" but it's not as bonk you on your head pretentious like Oberlin and East Coast schools.