“Manoeuvring the Marketing Mix, Canadian Style” 2012 Noel-Levitz National Conference

Sean Williams Associate Consultant, Noel-Levitz July 26, 2012

Flow for the hour

• Introductions

• Canadian ‘Media’ Marketplace

• Case Studies

• Dos and Don’ts

• Questions

Who is this guy?

• I’m the token

• 20 years experience

• Done the big agency thing

• Worked in marketing roles

• Big focus on HE

• With Noel-Levitz since Oct. ’10

I want to know...

What’s the biggest issue or concern you have in your marketing and advertising

planning?

Everything we read and hear tells us that...

Also that...

Anyone feeling like this?

Well...

...while I don’t have all the answers, I hope to pass on

some information and insights

My 6 stages for success

1. Understand your audience... PLEASE!

2. Figure out who you are – it’s ok to say ‘brand’

3. The message matters – really think about what you want to say and how (i.e. idea, tone, format, etc.)

4. Change it up – you shouldn’t be doing the same things you did 5 years ago

5. Use the right tools and integrate them – this ensure success

6. Test, track, and/or measure everything you can – you want to improve, right?

You’re now saying...

“Thanks for telling me that, but now what?”

Lets see how Canadian’s are consuming media?

We’re online, but still watch TV

TV viewership up over the years

Radio is seeing some decline

We multi-task media

TV is watched across multiple platforms

94%

84%

80%

55%

TV Only, 23%

4%

13%

18%

38%

Cross Platform 61%

2%

3%

2%

7%

Online-only, 16%

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%

65+

50-64

35-49

25-34

18-24

TV Only Cross Platform Online-only

comScore/TVB 2010 Custom Project

We love our social networking too

Where’s the $$$ going?

TV and Internet get the bulk of the spend

Outdoor and Cinema expect growth

And in the digital space?

Focus is on Search, Display and Video

Mobile too...

So you may be asking, how does a University and College act on this knowledge?

They...

• Better understand their audience

• Define who they are

• Develop a strong and distinct creative message

• Change/adjust what they are doing

• Integrate their efforts

• Track and/or measure what they’re doing

Holland College (Winter 2012)

• They needed to:

– Elevate their presence

– Impart on their audience ‘why them’

– Connect through ‘new’ means

– Generate inquires and/or applications by a certain time

• Their situation:

– Brand meaning not clear

– Same budget as last year

– Never advertised online

They developed a cohesive theme…

…used a mix of ‘traditional’ media…

…some SEM and social advertising…

…online advertising…

... linked it to social media...

…and tied it back to their site

In the end, they saw some strong results

• Raised community awareness in province

– Told people there’s something happening on campus

• Solid CTRs with SEM, social and banner ads

– Recognize site categories or topics that produce highest level of traffic

• Tracked search terms to program pages

– Highlighted specific program areas of interest and length of time on pages

– Pinpointed what keywords to focus on

• Recognized areas of improvements for next year

• Good level of applications – skewed more online (vs. previous yrs)

StFX University (Winter 2010)

• They needed to:

– Promote the brand in two key markets

– Impart on their audience ‘why them’

– Connect through audience appropriate mediums

– Generate inquires and/or applications

• Their situation:

– Strong brand (icon)

– Limited budget

– Limited/no previous advertising

Campaign theme…

… in traditional media…

… social and SEM…

… and online advertising

In the end, they saw some strong results

• Raised awareness in key markets – People recognized that they had not advertised much

in the past

• Good CTRs with SEM, social and banner ads – Gained specific knowledge around icon and adjusted

elements mid campaign

• Pinpointed key search terms – Saw what made people ‘click’

– Alignment with rankings and competition

• Recognized a mix of future opportunities

• Gained a slight foothold into the two markets and saw a reasonable level of applications

So looking ahead, here are some ‘Dos’ and ‘Don’ts’

Do... Understand how your audience acts

Don’t... Treat them the same as others

Do... Brand

Don’t... Be confused and lack focus

Do... Keep it simple

Don’t... Overcomplicate things

Do... Different

Don’t... Stand still

Do... Connect the dots

Don’t... Be left behind

Do... Tools that track

Don’t... Leave things until next year

So in summary, be sure to...

• Understand your audience

• Define your brand

• Develop unique messaging

• Change it up

• Integrate

• Track/measure

Questions? Contact Information: info@williamsmarketing.ca @swmgroup linkedin.com/in/seanwillliams