What’s some of the best or worst college marketing in terms of mailings, phone calls, etc. you’ve seen? I’m not talking about tours as there are already several threads about this.
When I first started getting mailings for WashU it seemed like they were trying to sell St Louis more than the college.
Though I love OSU I didn’t like the silvery gray they used in their postcards. It reminded of the stuff on gift cards that you have to scratch off to get the card number.
I also loved Earlham’s marketing. All of their booklets did a great job showing the beauty of their back campus and definitely communicated their quirky personality.
I also really liked a booklet Lesley University sent out. It was very colorful and had tabs to turn to each of the sections. I had 0 interest in the school, but I saved the booklet
Wash U SL had TONS of mail to our kid…but what a waste of paper…since our kid didn’t hav an ice cubes chance in hell,of getting accepted. And there was no way to get that mail to,stop. Kid got dozens of mailings from WashU.
Wouldn’t any school that has risen in the rankings due to getting students to see it as more desirable and therefore attracting applications from strong students and therefore becoming more selective count as having good marketing over the several years involved? E.g. Northeastern, USC, NYU.
Indiana, Bloomington. I actually called them to tell them how much it made my day when my daughter got mail from them. It was so bright and cheery! They also sent her a beautiful scarf. I was sad when their correspondence stopped coming but the process is starting again!
We got very little from U of Chicago before my son applied, but after they accepted him EA they showered him with stuff. (Scarf, book of convocation addresses, calendar (with inexplicably the world’s gloomiest pictures) and most meaningful to him a holiday card with comments about his “why Chicago” essay.) He felt really guilty when he ultimately turned them down for Tufts.
My favorite still though is a card from Harvey Mudd which had splashed on one side, “Our name is Mudd.”
The fancy “creative” brochures (and postcards) with cool pictures and designs go directly into the trash. The 10-20 page booklets packed with info and some pictures are the keepers.
D1 got a lot of quirky and creative marketing materials from UChicago. That was 9 years ago when they had just started “trying” in the rankings. When D1 signed up 4 years ago at their website for interest, the quality of what they sent was not as interesting, not as UC. Don’t get me wrong – they sent D2 a lot of stuff. T-shirt and scarf before accepting her, then just tons of swag for her and parents after acceptance. But the initial materials for D2 lacked that UC spark we had seen a few years earlier.
U Chicago sent DS very fun creative material. He didn’t apply there, so it eventually stopped. Funny, though, how as a parent you feel bad about the schools that did a great job when your kid goes elsewhere!
@ucbalumnus , your question interests me. I see Tufts in that category, but was totally underwhelmed by their marketing and effort. I wonder what all is in play with the schools with meteoric rises in popularity.
I also forgot to mention the WPI foam puzzle! Very neat idea, but sadly I never got to solve it - my rabbits found it and thought it would be fun to chew on :))
@TomSrOfBoston Well Detroit is certainly an experience ; Not quite the same, but it reminds me of the University of Buffalo. Their marketing talks a lot about how awesome Buffalo is, but it’s never struck me as a great city to live in. I might be biased because of the weather though…
@TomSrOfBoston That Wayne State marketing is to counter the narrative that many seem fixated upon. The historical fact is the white suburbanites rarely venture into the city except for sports or if they work downtown. This marketing is aimed at them, to shake off their lazy thinking.
The WSU campus is in the cultural hub of Detroit and while the city as a whole has a long and steep climb ahead of it, the WSU area is one of the brighter spots. Gentrification is actually happening near there – sometimes to the long time residents’ resentment, to be frank.
to date–some weird, random Virginia school who had the (accurate and large) merit money offer splashed across the front.
it was a school we’ve never heard of, certainly not somewhere impressive, and one mine wont be going to, but suddenly i as the parent was highly interested and seriously considered a roadtrip to check it out. :))
it was a fantastic way to make someone stand up and notice them-money will get my attention every time!
My DS received a brochure from Wisconsin (Madison) and there were no words. All pictures. The only words were our address and the return address. No stats. No information. Nothing. I’m curious if this is some appeal to millennials… perhaps they aren’t expected to read. I found it odd.
I initially thought that Sweet Briar had the worst marketing when they started sending my D1 brochures. We’d NEVER heard of Sweet Briar, and the brochure made it sound as though you wanted to go there and ride horses. My D1 would never consider it for various reasons, so why waste money trying to lure her to apply? But since they’ve had money troubles and all, I’ve been pulling for Sweet Briar to survive, and getting the word out about who they are doesn’t seem so silly. I hope they are better able to target their potential students though.
The funniest marketing D1 received was from Deep Springs. They were considering adding girls (don’t know if they did) and said they were soliciting female applicants in case they approved the change to co’ed. We thought that was hilarious. D1 didn’t apply, but it was funny.
Not quite the same, but it reminds me of the University of Buffalo. Their marketing talks a lot about how awesome Buffalo is, but it’s never struck me as a great city to live in. I might be biased because of the weather though…