Marketing Plan 2016-2017
Thaddeus Stevens College of Technology
Adam M. Aurand, Director of Marketing and Public Relations
Executive Summary
This marketing plan was developed to guide the College to meet its Strategic Goal #7. The plan should not be
considered a static document but, rather, a draft of strategies and tactics to set the College on a new marketing
direction. It can and should be revised, expanded and improved, based on the evaluation of data and evidence,
throughout the year.
The marketing plan can be summarized into three key priorities: (1) an emphasis on data-driven decisions, direct
marketing and digital advertising, (2) a strategic branding process to evaluate and refine the College’s identity
and resonant messages, and (3) the development of a modern, mobile-first website that appeals to digital
natives and represents the College well.
Table of Contents
Executive Summary ....................................................................................................................................................1
Key Messages for 2016-2017 .....................................................................................................................................2
Marketing Goals .........................................................................................................................................................2
Situation Analysis .......................................................................................................................................................2
GOAL # I: Increase enrollment....................................................................................................................................4
GOAL #2: Maximize student engagement and retention...........................................................................................5
GOAL #3: Integrate Strategic Communications ..........................................................................................................6
Appendix A: Marketing/Admissions Data Needs .......................................................................................................7
Appendix B: Projected Advertising Budget ................................................................. Error! Bookmark not defined.
Key Messages for 2016-2017
TSCT is Pennsylvania’s best technical college
TSCT graduates are in high demand locally and statewide
TSCT degrees are attainable with little to no student debt
TSCT provides unsurpassed financial assistance to economically disadvantaged students
Marketing Goals
1. Increase enrollment
2. Maximize student engagement and retention
3. Integrate strategic communications
Possible revised Strategic Goal 7: Utilize a mix of marketing and communications strategies to increase
student enrollment and maximize retention
Situation Analysis
Thaddeus Stevens College of Technology has established itself as the top technical college in Pennsylvania. Its
Middle States-accredited associate’s degree programs produce graduates in high demand locally, across the
Commonwealth and beyond. Nearly all of its graduates receive offers of full-time employment at familysustaining wages prior to graduation.
TSCT accomplishes this with tuition rates that are less than similar two-year colleges and a fraction of the
average cost of four-year colleges and universities, including public institutions. Graduates of TSCT have average
student debt loads less than 25 percent of the national average. The College also fulfills its mission of serving
socio-economically disadvantaged Pennsylvanians by providing free tuition to approximately half of its student
body at any time.
Therefore, a key message of College leadership to lawmakers, donors and others is: The Thaddeus Stevens
model is scalable. With additional resources, the College can expand its facilities, serve additional students and
better meet the demand of the 21st century workforce. It is the primary goal of the College marketing
initiatives to increase student enrollment commensurate to the growth of the College’s offerings.
Given the urgency of this goal, it is essential that the College establish the necessary foundation and
infrastructure on which to build a comprehensive, strategic, modern marketing program. The plan that follows is
a hybrid of traditional marketing tactics and strategic planning that aims to serve dual purposes: (1) maintain
visibility and support current recruiting; while also (2) conducing the strategic planning and infrastructure
development necessary to move the College forward.
This plan calls for building a foundation based on hard data, benchmarked against comparable institutions and
proposes addressing two key deficiencies in the College’s marketing infrastructure. They are, in order of
importance, discussed below.
1. Web Development: The College’s current website and digital communications is inadequate to fulfill the
vision of the marketing department. Similarly, the website does not represent the College well, particularly
given its reputation as a leading College of Technology.
In the 2014-2015 academic year, 80 percent of applicants said they heard about the College on the internet
and social media. Yet two-thirds of all College advertising dollars were spent on television, print and radio
which, combined, were cited by only 20 percent of applicants. However, it is not enough to simply change
the ratio of ad spending. Indeed, it is more prudent to invest in elevating web platforms and improve the
student’s experience as she interacts with the College online, and then leverage this new platform and
content in online (and some traditional) advertising.
Advertising should work in concert with online communications.
2. Brand Development: Given the above, the College must clearly define what does represent it well in all of its
communications—the look, feel and tone of all College messaging. This process is necessary to ensure the
web development priority is most effective.
“Branding” is often reduced to the design of a flashy logo. This is unfortunate. A College’s marks should, as
clearly as possible, represent what the college is—what experiences it offers to students, how it improves
students’ lives, the quality of its education and the productive work its graduates can do. But logos cannot
be everything. And they need to be adaptable in various communications channels. What a logo looks like—
its “artistic” value, subjectively defined—is the least of its concerns.
However, an organization’s marks should be unique to it, and, over time, instantly associated. Unfortunately,
there is nothing consistent or proprietary about the College’s current marks. A simple Google search for
open source bulldog clipart will return images that are being used as TSCT logos.
Before a logo package can be developed, however, it is necessary to research the College’s market, what
drives the College’s brand and what messages resonate with its audiences. From this research, the College
will draft a positing statement, which expresses how the College meets the needs of its students in ways its
competitors do not and cannot, and define the College’s personality and voice. These characteristics will be
evident in all future college communications and will be represented graphically by the College’s logo
package.
Ultimately, organizations can consciously define their own brands, or the public will do it for them.
GOAL # I: Increase enrollment
Discussion: Given the transitional nature of this year, the strategies and tactics under this goal are narrowly
tailored to support recruiting and lay the groundwork for robust direct marketing in the local area. Eventually,
the goal is to invest in advertising in areas other than the local core. This plan emphasizes CTAs for evaluation.
GOAL
STRATEGY
TACTICS
Goal 1
1.1 Establish reporting and
review processes for marketing
and admissions data
•
•
•
•
Benchmark 3-year trend in admissions funnel:
Prospects  Inquiry  Contact  Application (start)
 Application Complete  Test  Accept  Yield
Benchmark 3-year trend in ZIP code sources of applications
Benchmark 3-year trend in household income data from
FAFSA forms
Build framework for additional conversion rates
Goal 1
1.2 Publish valuable online
content for students and parents
on the College’s digital platforms
•
•
•
Hire and acclimate web and social media coordinator
Develop content publishing calendar
Create and publish regular content that expresses key
messages regularly on all college media
Goal 1
1.3 Increase attendance at fall
and spring open houses
•
Place ad in Clipper Magazine (Greater Lancaster edition)
with CTA
Send direct-mail piece to HH that meet key demographics
(ZIP code, HHI and children ages 13-18) with CTA
Mobile in-app targeting at key sites in Aug/Sept
Direct email campaign (3) to addresses that meet key
demongraphics ((ZIP code, HHI and children ages 13-18)
utilizing My Future Career content
Internet retargeting campaign for those who receive/
engage with email
Pandora ads among key demographics (county and age)
with CTA
WGAL.com video preroll (Spring only)
•
•
•
•
•
•
Goal 1
1.4 Enhance connections
between the College and the 22
public school districts in
Lancaster-Lebanon IU 13
•
•
•
Goal 1
1.5 Develop and implement
unique communication plans for
College-hosted events and
programs
•
•
•
•
•
Increase exposure of and participation in key K-12 STEM
programs (STEM-in-Gear, summer camps, adopt-akindergarten)
Ensure representation of trades by IAC members in all MS
and HS career day/career fairs
Increase number of early enrollment students (inclusive of
developing a specific marketing plan for students, parents
and school districts)
PA STEM Competition – create unique landing page to
promote College and collect student and teacher info
Girl Scout event – March 2017
Stevens Experience Summer Camps
Tech Gyrls
Science Camp
Goal 1
1.6 Promote key messages to
wide audiences through media
that can reliably deliver
impressions
•
•
•
•
•
•
Penn Cinema video advertising
Reading Fightin Phils sponsorship
PIAA sponsorship
Comcast Spotlight – NFL package + online tools
Adspace – Park City digital signage
Lamar – outdoor billboard campaign
Goal 1
1.7 Expand district media
contact list to include key media
outlets statewide and solicit at
least (1) media placement in all
recruiting regions during 20162017 academic year
•
Contact “home” newspapers for all Dean’s List students
and determine primary contact
Pitch stories involving non-local students to “home” media
Create an “experts list” of faculty and administration
including topics on which they can speak
•
•
GOAL #2: Maximize student engagement and retention
Discussion: Today’s high school and college student are “digital natives”—they have been communicating
electronically for their entire lives. Therefore, online engagement is essential to converse with prospective and
current students.
GOAL
STRATEGY
TACTICS
Goal 2
2.1 Establish a social media
strategy that emphasizes
engagement among prospective
and current student populations
•
•
•
•
Goal 2
Goal 2
2.2 Encourage use of social
media tagging among
prospective students
•
2.3 Drive traffic to College web
content
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Hire and acclimate web and social media coordinator
Conduct comprehensive review of existing engagement
data
Develop unique metrics for each platform to judge efficacy
of content
Invest in social media advertising (primarily
Facebook/Instagram and YouTube) to reach non-followers
with engaging content that include CTA
Conduct campus tour contents and award t-shirt prize to
student whose selfie generates the most likes by the end
of the session
Develop and suggest lighthearted hashtags to group
positive prospect interactions together online
Google Sponsored Promotions (GSPs)
Google AdWords and other paid search
CPM – display and retargeting
Targeted email campaigns
SEO strategy implementation (see Strategy 3.3)
Social media advertising
GOAL #3: Integrate Strategic Communications
Discussion: Strategies below relate to the strategic initiatives requested during the budget process. The
umbrella goal for these initiatives is to integrate all College communications to ensure alignment with the
strategic direction and maximize investments.
GOAL
STRATEGY
TACTICS
Goal 3
3.1 Form a standing College
Communications Committee to
review marketing and enrollment
data and discuss upcoming
tactics
•
•
•
Goal 3
3.2 Engage a private firm to
evaluate the College’s market,
brand drivers and resonant
messages and make strategic
recommendations
•
•
•
•
Goal 3
3.3 Redesign the College website
with an emphasis on mobile
capability (responsive design)
and SEO
•
•
•
•
•
•
Invite members (recommended: marketing director, chair,
VP of finance and administration, enrollment director,
development director, alumni & foundation executive
director and web & social media coordinator)
Audit all College communications for audience and
message
Meet monthly to evaluate current tactics and establish
new tactics
Form a small College task force of key campus leaders
(recommended: president, VP of finance and
administration, marketing director, enrollment director,
alumni & foundation executive director)
Assist the firm in research
Evaluate the firm’s recommendations and adopt a longterm brand strategy
Inclusive of: positioning statement, College
personality/voice, image package, desired marketing
and PR tactics
Establish quantifiable metrics for evaluating
implementation of the brand strategy
Conduct comprehensive audit of existing web content
Research traffic trends
Engage a private web design firm (possibly the same firm
conducting Strategy 3.2 or an affiliate)
Launch a dual site and promote to faculty, staff, current
and accepted students and families
Conduct brief survey on new site’s strengths and
weaknesses and make recommendations to design firm
Launch the new site
Appendix A: Marketing/Admissions Data Needs
Working Document
1. Recruitment Funnel + conversion rates – vs. conversion benchmarks
a. Prospects (need to define!) ↓
b. Inquiry ↓
c. Started Application ↓
d. Completed Application ↓
e. Tested ↓
f. Offered/Accepted (?)↓
g. Yield
2. Open House conversion rates
a. Overall
b. By attendee grade (i.e. HS sophomores, juniors, seniors)
3. Campus Tour conversion rates
a. Overall
b. By attendee grade (i.e. HS sophomores, juniors, seniors)
c. Group tours vs. individual tours
4. Conversion rates by radius from College
5. Recruiters’ close rates
6. Monthly application benchmarks – what percentage of total applications are complete by EOM
a. Project totals
7. Outside web traffic conversion rates
a. To inquiry
b. To application