Authentic Uses for Social Media and the New Web for Higher Education Marketing

1. Authentic Uses of
Social Media and the
“New” Web
Adrienne Bartlett, Director of Marketing
2008 AMA Symposium

2. Access these slides by visiting:
knowledgecenter.targetx.com
(Click on “Groups” and look for AMA)

3. Let’s Set Expectations
The “Groundswell”
Authenticity
Listening
Participating
Examples

4. How Did We Get Here?
1970’s “Application and Catalog”
1980’s Marketing and Direct Mail
1990’s Branding and more Direct Mail
2000’s Authenticity and Social Media

5. Sharing & Connecting
Web 2.0 is about making connections & sharing
Thoughts. Pictures. Videos. Places. Products.

6. Think this way:
1.0 = passive
2.0 = active
(making the web more like a
conversation than a library)

8. Prosumer
Producers & Consumer
Content Creators
Social Advertising

10. Talk the Web 2.0 Talk...
create
animate
share
profile
tag
comment
vote
ratings
photo gallery
upload videos
frequent releases
mashups
beta
publish
wiki

12. quot;Right now, your customers are writing about your
products on blogs and recutting your
commercials on YouTube.
They're defining you on Wikipedia and ganging up on
you in social networking sites like Facebook.
These are all elements of a social phenomenon -- the
groundswell -- that has created a permanent, long-
lasting shift in the way the world works.
Most companies see it as a threat.
You can see it as an opportunity.quot;

13. Media
Advertising
SOCIAL
Networking
Marketing

14. Evolution of Online Advertising
1996 - Websites
1998 - Display
2000 - Search
2002 - Contextual
2004 - Exchanges
2005 - Lead Generation
2006 - Behavioral
2008 - SOCIAL
Source: Seth Goldstein, CEO, socialmedia

15. Spoiler Alert:
Social Media is not about
technology.

16. It’s about people’s desire to
connect with each other.

17. How does it differ?
Depends upon interaction
It’s about them
Built around discussion and participation
Uses technology as a conduit

18. “Social media describes the online
technologies and practices that people use to
share content, opinions, insights, experiences,
perspectives and media themselves.”
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

19. 76% of US college marketers say they
plan to use SM strategies like social networks,
viral campaigns and video contests
Source: Academica Group, 2008

20. Competition has changed.

21. Source: “Knocking at the College Door,” Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education, March 2008

22. Availability
Cost
Quality
Authenticity

23. Quality.
No Longer Differentiates
Difficult to Define

24. Marketing Immunity
3000-5000 Daily Messages
Neurological Blockades

25. 64%
Believe Advertising is “Dishonest” or “Unrealistic”
Consumers 18-65 years old, Ad Age 2006

26. Building brand recognition
has never been harder.

27. Authenticity:
The New Consumer
Demand

28. In a world increasingly filled with
deliberately and sensationally
staged experiences --
an increasingly unreal world --
“America has
consumers choose to buy or not
buy based on how real they
toxic levels of
perceive an offering to be.
inauthenticity.” all
Business today, therefore, is
about being real.
Original. Genuine. Sincere.
Authentic.”
Source: “Authenticity: What Consumers Really Want,” Pine and Gilmore, Harvard University Press

29. When everything is perfect,
we all look the same.

31. Demographics

32. Tell Better Stories
Stories not Stats. People not Programs.
Must be real, unique and recent.
Let “them” tell the story!
Can’t be authentic & have editorial control

33. False Real
Advertising Real
What
You
Say
Others Missed
Opportunity
Who You Are

34. Transparency
Differentiation
Connections
Stories
Profiles

35. What Kind of Car?
How would your students answer this?

36. Your tag line.
Is it Real/Real?

37. “In the era of social media, people use technologies
to get what they need from each other, not
traditional institutions.”
Groundswell: Winning in a World Transformed by Social Technologies ,2008, Harvard UP
Charlene Li & Josh Bernoff

38. What are you doing to
facilitate that process?

42. Today the most important conversation
is not the marketing monologue but
the dialogue between your audience.

43. “Word of Mouse”

44. Can’t we just ignore it?

45. Maybe.
For now.
But at a cost.
Trends show skyrocketing use.

46. Social media campaigns can be targeted:
Age
Gender
Political Views
Religious Affiliation
Activities
Location

47. Consider what happens when
your competitors harness the
power of social media
(while you cling to “traditional” methods)

48. Let go.
Remember, you’re not in control.
Remember, they don’t trust marketers.
Remember, they are talking about you anyways.
Remember, they want to figure out the truth.
Remember, their parents are talking about you too.

49. “It's a pretty safe bet that all marketers now know
engaging in social media can be a gamble.
But the question is whether opting out is really a
choice.”
Social Marketing Do’s and Don’ts, ADWEEK, October 8, 2007

50. So how do you start?

51. Cautiously.
Social media can start a firestorm of criticism.
If you have enthusiastic supporters,
they will rally to your defense.
Better to have your message reflected,
than be silent (in most cases).

52. Are you listening?
Prospects, applicants, current students and alumni
are already talking about you online.
Pay attention -- there’s no excuse!
Free feedback -- close the loop

53. Google Alerts

54. Technorati (blog search)

55. del.icio.us search

56. YouTube search

57. Facebook “Lexicon”
(A tool that allows you to see the buzz surrounding different words and phrases on Facebook)

58. Demographics

59. Ready to speak?

60. “With and for, NOT at or to.”
Seth Godin

61. Use social technologies to
energize, support and embrace
the Groundswell

62. A Few Ways to speak
Blogs
Social Networks
Private Communities
Audio/Video
Podcasts
(RSS)

63. Blogs & Diaries
Entries should be short
More than just text - add pictures!
The best bloggers have interesting things to tell
Set expectations - don’t censor
Encourage interaction through comment posts
Offer RSS feed option

66. “message from ben and matt”

67. Social Networks
Single location for sharing, connecting
and meeting online.

69. 96%
Teens Using Social Networking Tools
National School Boards Association, 2007

70. 9 Hrs
Spent on Social Networking Sites/Week
(compared to 10 hours watching TV)
National School Boards Association, 2007

71. “Hanging out on the web”

72. Forrester Research, Inc. 2007 — Groundswell

73. Forrester Research, Inc. 2007 — Groundswell

74. Warning:
Private Space
Very protected
It’s not about you
Enter at your own risk!
Be sure to provide value

75. A Tale of Two “Facebooks”

77. Private Communities
Social Networking [on your turf]

78. http://faces.albright.edu/

79. http://californialutheran.ning.com/

81. http://alfreduniversity.ning.com/

82. Taking “Student Blogs” to the Next Level...

85. Video
“The YouTube Revolution”

86. Will it Blend?

87. What can we learn?
4,925,289 views as of 7/8/08
Demonstrates key points
“Cult-ivate” a following
Entertaining and memorable
Huge awareness for virtually no cost

89. Demographics

91. Podcasting
Do other things well first
Consider time to record, produce and host
Determine frequency you can commit to
Make it real (um’s and ah’s are ok)
Promote it on iTunes

92. Demographics

94. What are Universities Doing?
Still in “testing” mode
Effectiveness is still unknown
Interviews/Roundtable Discussions
What’s Happening
Sports, Music, Department “Talkshows”
Events & Presentations
Keynote Addresses

95. RSS
“Really Simple Syndication”
Syndicate Content in Various Forms
Enables sharing
Helps cut through the clutter

97. What to look for...

99. “Feeds” for affinity groups, such as,
students, parents, prospects, etc.
are especially effective for pushing
out content for specific audiences,
much like that which is published in
newsletters.”
The Lawlor Group “Focus” June 2007

100. Some Ideas:
Feed to release emergency information
Feed to relay updates to policies,
programs or events

101. Great social media
campaigns are supported
by great email campaigns

104. The next level

105. Demographics

107. 7 Ways to Embrace Authenticity and
Social Media:
1. Tell (real) stories
2. Listen
3. Offer opportunities to share/comment/interact/upload
4. Invite participation -- give visitors a voice!
5. Include viral components (keep them coming back)
6. Provide value -- “what’s in it for me?”
7. Give up some control

108. Not your mamma’s marketing and PR;)
Don’t obsess about being “on message”
Don’t break the bank
Don’t force it
Don’t be afraid to try
DO tell your story authentically
DO make it easy to share with friends, family, colleagues, etc.
Source: Adrienne Bartlett, 2008 ;)

109. Why Social Marketing?
More visitors
More engaged
More time spent on your site
More viral components
More returners
More loyalty
More likely to enroll

110. Your Bookshelf

111. Thank You!
facebook: Adrienne Bartlett AIM: TargetXConcierge