UTK Summer School Ad Book

UTK SUMMER SCHOOLADVERTISING CAMPAIGN

By: Shelby Dildine, Karlee Gower, Will Jellicorse, Amanda

Lyberger, Chris Purtee, and Bert White

The University of Tennessee, Knoxville (UTK) is the largest college in Knoxville, and home to the University of Tennessees main campus. UTK currently has a total of 27,171 undergraduate and graduate students who study one of their 300+ degree programs. Unfortunately, due to competition from a variety of community colleges that offer transferable course credits at lower rates, UTKs Summer School has recently seen a drop in summer school enrollment of 677 students. In order to increase enrollment by 10% by the end of 2016, UTK Summer School has decided to hire the Blu Cru to develop an advertising campaign that will convince students to enroll in summer school classes. Before developing the ad campaign, the Blu Cru conducted primary and secondary research to determine critical factors, competitors, and consumer information. Blu Cru then conducted further research to identify a primary target audience, as well as an appropriate key consumer benefit (KCB), message strategy, tone, and tagline that will best be used in their newspaper, Twitter, and website ads. There are many critical factors that need to be taken into consideration when working to solve the problem. It is important to identify the tuition costs of UTK Summer School when compared to the tuition costs of its competitors. UTK Summer School also offers upper-level classes necessary for graduating with particular degrees that are not offered by competing schools. They also offer many of the same services that are offered during the fall and spring, such as student housing. UTK Summer School also offers classes during four different sessions, as well as a variety of study abroad and co-op opportunities. Although UTK Summer Schools primary objective is to increase summer school enrollment by 10% by the end of 2016, they also have indirect objectives of increasing the understanding of summer school benefits by 9% to

those within the target audience, increasing 4% more of the target audience to consider enrolling, and increasing 8% more of the target audience to have intentions to enroll within the next year. After further analyzing the critical factors, and conducting primary and secondary research, we decided to define our target audience as current UTK sophomore and junior undergraduate students. Although we tested KCBs of being able to graduate on time, and the study abroad opportunities offered by UTK Summer

School, we found that the KCB of being able to graduate on time appealed most to the target audience. We then tested the chosen KCB through ration and social message strategies, and found that the target audience

preferred the social message strategy. We decided to use a slice of life tone-of-voice that will showcase the chosen KCB and message strategy in a way that will be familiar and appealing to the target audience. The tagline keeping you on track reinforces our

KCB of student being able to graduate on time by taking summer classes at UTK Summer School.

Although we are confident that the KCB, message strategy, tone-of-voice, and tagline that we chose to use in our

advertisements will appeal to the target audience, and persuade them to enroll in UTK Summer School, there are still a few limitations to address. One limitation that we found consistent throughout our findings is that many students would rather take classes at competitor schools that offer easier, and more affordable general education classes that are transferable. Another limitation we found is that many students would rather take summer off, go back home, work part time jobs, or summer internships. In order to combat these limitations, we suggest communicating the benefits and classes that are only offered by UTK Summer School. These benefits will allow the target to graduate on time, so they can walk with their friends and make their parents proud.

Executive Summary

Part One: The Situation

I. BackgroundProblem Statements

Although it has established a nationally-renown reputation

for achievement and tradition, the University of Tennessee has

recently seen a decline in student enrollment for summer

school undergraduate classes. Since 2012, the total number

of students enrolling in summer courses offered by

UTK has decreased by 677 students. Local community

colleges such as Pellissippi State, Roane State, and

Walter State have detracted from UTKs summer

school enrollment by offering several transferable

general education courses at lower prices.

In order to accomplish their goals, the

University of Tennessee conducted primary research

in order to determine an optimal target audience.

They must also determine a key consumer benefit that is

most likely to appeal to the target audience, and then must finally

choose an appropriate creative strategy that will best showcase

the key consumer benefit identified to those within the target

audience. After determining the appropriate target audience,

a key consumer benefit, and creative strategy, UTK must then

decide how to best execute its message to members within the

target audience through various media.

Communication Objectives

To increase the total number of students enrolling in

UTK Summer School classes by 10% by the end of 2016.

To increase the number of students in the target

audience who consider attending summer school at UTK

from 89% to 93% within one year.

To increase the understanding of the benefits offered

during summer school to the target audience from 81%

to 90% within the next year.

To increase the intention to enroll in UTK

summer school by those within the target

audience from 25% to 33% within the next

year.

University of Tennessee The University of Tennessee, Knoxville campus

(UTK) was first founded in 1794, and is one of the oldest

public universities in the country. It started out with the

name Blount College, but was renamed the University of

Tennessee in 1879. The Knoxville location is but one of the

colleges campuses, which also has schools in Memphis,

Chattanooga, Tullahoma, and Martin. Its Knoxville campus

is approximately 580 acres in size, and contains over 250

buildings. There are a total of 27,171 people enrolled at UTK,

6,138 of which are graduate-level students (Figure 1). 49.5%

of current students are female, while 50.5% are male (The

University of Tennessee, 2014c).

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Many of the professors teaching at UTK not only hold higher

levels of education, but are also actively conducting

research within their specific discipline.

UTK consists of 11 different colleges, and offers

over 300 different degree programs. Aside

from the large list of undergraduate programs

offered, UTK also offers post-graduate degrees,

such as masters and doctorate programs in several areas

including veterinary medicine, law, medicine, and almost

any field that they also offer an undergraduatem degree in.

Forbes Magazine has even recently added UTK among their

list of best schools in the nation, and is currently ranked as

the 57th best university in the south (2014). UTK also offers

several study abroad, and co-op opportunities for both

undergraduate and graduate-level students to gain practical

experience through working within their field of study, as

well as the ability to gain a global experience while abroad.

Figure 1: Number of Undergraduate & Graduate Students Currently Enrolled at UTK

Graduates

Undergraduates

2

Although tuition for in-state undergraduate

students costs roughly $5,938 per semester,

and tuition for out-of-state undergraduate

students costs almost three times as much

per semester, UTK offers an abundance of

financial aid opportunities, including several

scholarships, grants, and awards based on

need, family contribution, and academic promise.

Their current student to faculty ratio is 17 to 1, and

has approximately 9,791 employees. There are currently

over 1,500 instructional faculty members, 14 of which hold

positions on the UT-ORNL Governors Chairs.

Recent honors include four Fulbright Scholars, four American

Association for the Advancement of Science Fellows, and thirteen

National Endowment for the Humanities grants. Figure 2 shows that

there are currently 1,864 faculty members at the University of

Tennessee who have obtained a Ph.D., 1,442 faculty members who

have obtained a Masters degree, as well as 1,460 faculty members

who have some sort of Bachelor degree (University of Tennessee

Office of Institutional Research & Assessment, 2014).

Since being established over two centuries ago, UTK

has created several meaningful symbols and traditions, such

as the Rock which is a 98-ton rock that has served as a

communication hub and palette of expression for the UTK

community since the 1960s. It changes often with birthday

wishes, sports championships, upcoming events, and much

more. Some other traditions include the Vol Walk, the Torch

Bearer, and Neyland Stadium, which holds the record for being

the fourth largest non-racing stadium in the United States.

UTK also has several student-run organizations, such as their

newspaper The Daily Beacon, two radio stations, WUTK

and WUOT, as well as the UTTV television station.

Organizations like these give students great

opportunities to develop their skills in working

with broadcast media.

Many students attending UTK share

a Volunteer pride, which is represented

throughout the year at each game or

match against competing schools in any one

of their 18 NCAA Division 1 mens and womens

competitive sports teams. 23 UT teams have won national

championships, including Lady Vols basketball, field and

track, Vols football, cross country, swimming and diving

teams (UT Sports, 2014). Within the SEC, Tennessee has claimed

a total of 190 all-time championships, and 20 all-time national

championships between regular seasons and tournaments

played by its mens and womens teams (University of

Tennessee, 2014a).

Besides having accumulated a prestigious sports

backing, UTK is also constantly striving to increase their

several educational and research programs. In 2013,

the University of Tennessee received $162.3 million in

research awards, while it spent $155.7 million in research

and development. The UT-Oak Ridge National Laboratory

partnership also generates more than $17 million annually

in sponsored research. UTK is considered a research one

school, and has a Carnegie classification of being a research

university that has very high research activity. They also

have over 63 research centers and institutes, and are

currently ranked as the 118th best research school in the

nation.

UTK also has several nationally-renown alumni

including NFL quarterback and Super Bowl champion

Peyton Manning, former All-Star Major League

Baseball player Todd Helton, Garmin co-founder

Min Kao, DISH Network Founder and Chairman

Charlie Ergen, late award-winning author Kurt

Vonnegut, as well as late Senator, US Ambassador, and

White House Chief of Staff Howard H. Baker, Jr. (The

University of Tennessee, 2014c).

Knoxville

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Knoxville is a city located in the state of Tennessee

that was first settled in 1786, and became the first capital

of Tennessee. As of 2013, Knoxvilles population consists of

1,096,961 people and is widely known for having hosted the

1982 Worlds Fair. Knoxville is also home to the headquarters

of the Tennessee Valley Authority, as well as the Tennessee

Supreme Courts courthouse for East Tennessee

and serves as a corporate headquarters for several national

and regional companies such as A.C. Entertainment, Scripps

Networks (DIY, HGTV), Regal Entertainment, Pet Safe, and Pilot

Flying J. Besides being one of the largest cities in the region,

Knoxville is also home to the University of Tennessees main

college campus.

Knoxville is also home to the Tennessee Smokies

minor league baseball team, as well as the Ice Bears

professional hockey team. Each year the city of Knoxville

hosts the Boomsday fireworks celebration in order

to celebrate Labor Day weekend. Boomsday has

become one of the largest annual firework

shows in the nation since it first debuted in

1987, and attracts nearly 400,000 people from

around the region. Knoxvilles downtown area has

recently undergone further development, with the

opening of the Womens Basketball Hall of Fame and

the Knoxville Convention Center.

Knoxville has since become a perfect blend

of small-town, southern charm and big-city opportunities.

Their historic and revitalized downtown is always electric

with shows and celebrations that bring thousands of visitors

for events like the annual Italian opera celebration, free

outdoor concerts, and the month-long Christmas in the City

and Dogwood Arts festivals. The regions rich and progressive

music scene features everything from local hip-hop concerts

at small venues to huge acts like Loretta Lynn and Alison

Krauss. Some of Knoxvilles best-known venues

include Thompson-Boling Arena, the Bijou Theatre, and

Tennessee Theatre. Eclectic shopping, an outdoor farmers

market, art and history galleries, and museums are also only

a few short blocks away from campus.

There are also tons of festivals and summertime

events that are held in Knoxville each year. Greek fest,

Festival on the Fourth, Dragon Boat Festival, Biscuit Festival,

and the Tennessee Valley Fair are just a few events that

take place during the summer time. In Knoxville, the

country is never far from sight. Lakes, such as Fort

Loudon, Tellico, Norris, Cherokee, and rivers like

the Clinch, and Tennessee scatter the landscape

along with sixty-five miles of greenway trails

which make Knoxville an outdoor adventurers

paradise.

It is easy to plan a day hike or just an

afternoon of biking, kayaking, or boating. Less than an hour

away is the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, which

has over 800 miles of maintained trails. The Knoxville area

offers more than eighty parks including Ijams Nature Center,

a 275-acre wildlife sanctuary just ten minutes from the

university. Knoxvilles temperate deciduous forest climate

also allows for great seasonality and for people living in

Knoxville to experience the best of all four seasons. Warm

summers, brisk falls, snow-filled winters, and beautiful

springs allow Knoxville inhabitants the opportunity to enjoy

an environment filled with amazing year-round weather.

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5II. Critical Factors

Features Benefits

Product (Summer School)

There is financial aid available through various scholarships, grants, loans, and work-study programs that students taking UTK summer school classes can apply for.

Students taking summer classes at UTK and through UTK Study Abroad programs have multiple ways to finance their summer school tuition.

UTK offers 18 faculty-led study abroad programs during the first summer session, and 8 faculty-led study abroad programs during the second summer session in various countries all around the world (Table 1).

There are at least 26 faculty-led study abroad options available that can give students a global perspective across a variety of disciplines and countries.

UTK summer school offers smaller sized classes.

Students are able to not only get more individual attention and help from their professors, but are also able to get better acquainted with their classmates.

Tuition for summer school classes offered at UTK cost, on average $346 per credit hour for in-state students (Table 1).

Tuition for UTK summer school classes cost, on average, $21 less per credit hour than fall or spring classes offered to in-state students.

Tuition for summer school classes offered at UTK cost, on average $1,105 per credit hour for out-of-state students (Table 1).

Tuition for UTK summer school classes cost, on average, $21 less per credit hour than fall or spring classes offered to out-of-state students.

Features Benefits


Students can apply for and be awarded up to $6,000 in annual HOPE Scholarship to help pay for summer school tuition.

Students can have a large amount of their summer school tuition paid for by applying their HOPE Scholarship towards the cost of summer school classes.

UTK offers summer school classes for their 3-week Mini-Term, 5-week Summer 1, 5-week Summer 2, and 10-week full summer sessions.

Students have multiple summer school sessions to choose from in order to develop a schedule that best meets their individual academic needs.

UTK also offers several online summer school classes for undergraduate and graduate students.

Undergraduate and graduate level students have the ability to receive summer school credit hours for taking classes online while still having the flexibility to go home, travel, or work during summer.

There are several study abroad and on-campus co-ops and internships that can be counted for UTK summer school course credit.

Students are able to not only gain experience through a variety of co-ops and internships, but are also able to receive credit hours for doing so.

UTK summer school classes offer upper-level classes necessary for graduating with particular degrees not offered by competitor schools.

Students taking summer school classes at UTK can stay on track to graduate with their intended degrees or even graduate early by taking the upper-level summer courses that are only offered at UTK.

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Features Benefits


Summer classes are more intensive.

Taking fewer classes during the summer sessions allows for more rigorous and fast paced classes that are challenging but fun.

Summer classes allow students to make up a course they have failed, or did poorly on in previous semesters.

This helps take the pressure off students if they did poorly or had to withdraw from the class by giving them a second chance to make the class up.

Summer classes allow students to further their education, and graduate early.

Allow students to save money and time by completing their degree in a shorter amount of time.

Summer classes allow students to complete a prerequisite so they can take another course during the traditional semester.

Helps students stay on track with their classes throughout the semester so they can graduate on time.

The current unemployment rate for the United States is 6.1%.

Although the current unemployment rate is lower than it has been in previous years, current students may want to stay in school until the employment rate increases.

UTK summer school offers summer housing for students who need somewhere to live while taking classes on campus.

Students who are not from Knoxville and wish to stay to take summer classes will have a place to live for the summer.

Features Benefits


UTK is the states largest and most comprehensive institution and is a Carnegie One Research Extensive Institution.

Competitor schools are not accredited for being a Carnegie One Research Extensive Institution, and only offer a limited number of classes and associate degrees.

UTK summer school offers the same services offered during the fall and spring semesters like academic support, student services, and on-campus facilities.

Students will feel they are getting the same quality education as they would receive during the fall and spring.

Direct and Indirect Objectives

UTK summer schools direct objective is to increase the total number of students enrolling in their summer school by 887 students (10%) by the end of 2016.

Achieving their direct objective will help UTK summer school to grow in the number of students graduating from UTK as well as generate more revenue for the university.

UTK summer school has an indirect objective of increasing the number of students within the target audience who consider attending summer school at UTK from 89% to 93% within the next year.

Achieving this indirect objective will help UTK achieve their direct objective of increasing the total number of students enrolling in UTK summer school classes.

Simmons OneView was the database used to collect information on the beliefs, interests, attitudes, and opinions

of college students throughout the United States. The data

consisted of general information provided by all college students

who participated in a 12-month fall 2011 NHCS adult study. The

total population of full-time students consisted of 12,254,000

participants, while the sample size of full-time college students

consisted of 1,040 participants. The opinions, interests,

attitudes, and beliefs of the two populations of full-

time students were compared to a total universe of

226,276,000 and a sample of 24,054 U.S. adult

consumers (see Appendix A).

Indexes were based on participants who

strongly agreed with statements about their

lifestyle in general. Some of the statements

included I enjoy taking risks, money is the best

measure of success, I am willing to sacrifice time

with family to get ahead, its worth paying extra for

quality goods, if at first you do not succeed you must keep

trying, and I love the idea of traveling abroad (Simmons

Market Research Bureau, 2010-2011).

The results revealed that full-time college students are

101% more likely than the general population to strongly agree

that they enjoy taking risks. We also found that full-time college

students are 120% more likely than the general population to

strongly agree that they want to get to the very top of their

career. There was also an index of 140 among

full-time college students who strongly agreed that they love

the idea of traveling abroad, which indicated that college

students are 40% more likely than the general population to love

the idea of traveling abroad (Simmons Market Research Bureau,

2010-2011).

The data gathered from the Simmons report also

revealed several statements that the sample of full-time college

students did not strongly agree with. The results indicated

that full-time college students are 17% less likely than the

general population to strongly agree that its worth paying

extra for quality goods. We also found that full-time

college students are 21% less likely than the general

population to strongly agree that if at first you

do not succeed, then you should keep trying. An

index of 84 also suggested that full-time college

students are 16% less likely than the general

population to strongly agree that it is important

to be well informed about things (Simmons Market

Research Bureau, 2010-2011).

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IV. ConsumersCollege Students in General

UTK Students in General

General students attending the University of Tennessee

are those who are currently undertaking one of the 300+

undergraduate, graduate, or doctorate programs offered

throughout the 11 available colleges. They make up the current

enrollment of 27,171 total students attending the university (The

University of Tennessee Knoxville, 2014c). Current UTK students

come from over 112 different countries, although the majority of

students consist of

American-born citizens. 49.5% of the students

attending UTK are female, while 50.5% are male.

Current UTK students make up the campuss diverse

population and consist of everything from student

athletes, to business owners, artists, musicians,

teachers, veterans, technicians, humanitarians, and

soon to be doctors, lawyers, brain surgeons, and

politicians.

Figure 3 shows that the majority of students

attending UTK are white (81%), while minority students

consist of African American (7%), Asian/Native

Hawaiian/Pacific Islander (3%), Hispanic/Latino

(3%), multiracial (3%), or other (3%), (Forbes

Magazine, 2014). Forbes Magazine also

reported that 94% of all students are

full-time students, while 6% are part-time

(2014).

UTK undergraduates are all students enrolled at the

university who are currently working on getting their first

degree. As of fall 2013, 21,033 of the total 27,171 students enrolled

at UTK were undergraduates (The University of Tennessee

Knoxville, 2014c). There are currently over 170 undergraduate

majors, concentrations, and specializations offered at UTK. The

undergraduate majors offered at UTK are within the colleges

of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources, Architecture

and Design, Arts and Sciences, Business Administration,

Communication and Information, Education, Health, and

Human Sciences, Engineering, Nursing, and Social Work

(The University of Tennessee Knoxville, 2014c).

In 2013 there was a reported total of

6,008 seniors, which composed the majority of

undergraduate students, while the second largest

undergraduate class was made up of 5,401 freshman

students (University of Tennessee Office of Institutional

Research & Assessment, 2014). As an undergraduate, students

either live on campus or in an off-campus house or apartment

close by. Freshmen students are required to live in either one of

the several residence halls located on campus, or at home with

their parents. Many of the students walk to campus and if they live

off campus, they either drive or take public transportation such

as the T-Link.

Although the majority (88.77%) of undergraduate

students are from Tennessee, there are still many out-of-state

undergraduate students who originate from states like Georgia,

Virginia, North Carolina, Ohio, Florida, and California (University of

Tennessee Office of Institutional Research & Assessment, 2014).

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UTK Undergraduate Students

Greek life is also very popular among

undergraduate students attending UTK. U.S. News

estimates that approximately 35% of undergraduate

students belong to a sorority or fraternity (2013).

UTK has recently built Sorority Village, which allows

undergraduate sorority sisters to live together on

campus. U.S. News also reported that there are over

412 different registered clubs and organizations that

are offered to undergraduate students (2013).

Although some students may fail or drop a class

during the semester, the Summer School Survey results

revealed that many students choose to take summer school

classes to either complete a requirement for their major

(45.64%), lighten their course load for the following fall

and spring semesters (35.59%), fulfill a general education

requirement (28.11%), or to graduate on schedule (27.31%), (The

University of Tennessee Knoxville, 2014e). However, the data

collected by the Summer School Task Force showed that

students in good standing are able to increase their GPA

while taking summer courses, while those who are

on academic probation or who have been dismissed

tend to not improve their GPA by attending

summer term (2013).

UTK summer school students are still able

to use several on-campus summertime

services that are also available to them during

the regular semester. Such services include the

library, bookstore, tutoring, recreation center, student

transportation, and the several dining accommodations

offered (The University of Tennessee Knoxville, 2014d). The

provided Summer School Survey also revealed that the

majority of current summer school students prefer taking

either late morning, or early afternoon classes (2014).

Taking these provided class times would allow students

the availability to still spend the rest of their day either

working, hanging out with friends, or participating in fun

summer-time activities like boating, swimming, and hiking.

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Current Summer School Students

Current summer school students

are those pursuing one of the several

undergraduate, graduate, or doctorate

degree programs offered at the University

of Tennessee. Results from the provided

UTK Summer School Survey revealed that most

student participants consisted of freshman

(24.99%), while the second most number of student

participants consisted of graduate students (22.67%).

The majority (27.80%) of students who participated in

the survey were enrolled in UTKs College of Arts and

Sciences. Most of those surveyed (67.11%) stated that

they had not previously enrolled in any summer course

offered at UT (The University of Tennessee Knoxville,

2014e), and the data from the Summer School Task Force

revealed that the majority (89%) of students were in state

(2013).

The UTK Summer School Survey also revealed that

the majority of participants who either took, or intend to

take courses at another school besides the University of

Tennessee chose to do so because the cost of tuition is lower

elsewhere (65.79%), or because other institutions are closer

to home (52.71%), (2014). The given survey also showed that

out of UTKs primary competitors, most participants who

have studied elsewhere have taken or were intending to take

summer school classes at either Pellissippi State Community

College (40.63%), or some other Tennessee institution (44.73%).

Although many students had, or intended to take summer

school classes at other institutions besides UTK, the

majority (68.01%) of those surveyed stated that they

had not, or did not intend to take summer school

classes at another institution (The University of

Tennessee Knoxville, 2014e).

Of those participants who intended to take

summer school classes at UTK, the majority of

participants said that they were most interested

and influenced in registering for UTK summer classes

because of the major level courses offered (1860),

as well as the fact that UTK summer school offers online

courses (1291), while the least influential aspect of taking

summer classes at UTK were the general education classes

offered (1109), (The University of Tennessee Knoxville, 2014e).

Although the minority (32.92%) of total undergraduate

students currently attending UTK lives in the dorms during

normal fall and spring semesters, many students choose to

live in apartments on campus after they leave their dorm

freshman year (University of Tennessee Office of Institutional

Research & Assessment, 2014).

Since current summer school students are only able

to live in Massey, Volunteer, or Laurel Hall during summer

sessions (The University of Tennessee Knoxville, 2014b), many

students instead decide to sign 12 month leases in one of the

many affordable houses and apartments located around

Knoxville. This means that many students are likely to remain

on campus for the summer and have some free time aside from

part-time jobs and internships. This additional free time gives

students the opportunity to take a class they may have failed,

forgotten to take, or may need in order to graduate early or

on time.

Incoming freshmen take classes before the fall

semester in order to get a head start

or to lighten the load they have for the

following school year (The University

of Tennessee Knoxville, 2014e). The

smaller class sizes and shorter

sessions offered during summer

also allow student the opportunity

to get individual attention from

teachers and to choose schedules that fit

their summer agendas. The results from

the provided Summer School Survey also show

that getting general education or upper-level

classes out of the way in a short time period

is appealing to most students taking summer

classes at UTK (2014e). Giving students who

stay in Knoxville during the summer the

opportunity to take such classes will also

allow them to maximize their time on

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campus during their summer break. Since UTK summer school

classes are offered during mini-term, summer one, summer

two, and full summer sessions, current students are able to

take summer courses in addition to taking summer vacations,

time off from school, as well as work summer jobs and

internships.

Many students currently feel that summer school

offers shorter, smaller classes, and more intense course

work (The University of Tennessee Knoxville, 2014e).

Although many of them may feel that classes

offered at other institutions are easier, and more

affordable, the majority (68.01%) of those surveyed

had not, and did not intend to take summer classes

at any other institution besides UTK. Many students

(38.13%) who participated in the survey felt that

courses offered elsewhere are easier. Most

students make a decision to enroll in summer school

early in the spring semester (52.42%), and the majority

of them (58.80%) learn about UTK summer classes through

an academic advisor (The University of Tennessee Knoxville,

2014e).

Although many students still find it necessary or

beneficial to attend summer school classes, data gathered

by the Summer Term Task Force also revealed that many

students want a break from school and to have another

type of experience over the summer (2013). This is but one

possible limitation or barrier that could discourage students

from attending summer school classes at UTK.

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Potential Students The potential students for summer school would be

students that have either failed or done poorly in a past

class, are behind on classes on their path to graduate,

need to take a prerequisite class, want to graduate

early, study abroad, or who plan on doing a

co-op or internship that they can also get class

credit for (The University of Tennessee Knoxville,

2014e). These variety of reasons that were

revealed through the Summer School Survey will

help take the pressure off students who did poorly

or had to withdraw from the class by giving them a

second chance to make the class up, or the opportunity to

graduate early or on time.

Data provided by the Summer Term Task Force stated

that third and fourth year students are more likely to complete

summer school courses in order to graduate within 4 years

(Summer Term Utilization Taskforce, 2013). Estimates from Mass

Mutual Financial Group also show that there will be a 4%-6%

increase of annual tuition costs for public, 4-year universities,

so potential UTK summer school students would consist of those

wanting to save money and

What students now know, feel and do regarding summer school

time by completing their degree in a shorter amount of

time (2014).

Data from the Summer Term Task Force Report

revealed despite the fact that the majority of faculty

members are off-duty during the summer term, research

activity is comparable to- and in some cases- exceeds the

activity during the rest of the year (Summer Term Utilization

Taskforce, 2013). During the 2012 summer session, there were

almost half as many (48.21%) proposals submitted as there

were during the rest of the year, and faculty members

were also engaged in research-related developmental

activities. For the last three years, annually 20-24

faculty members have participated in the six-

week ORE Grant Writing Institute (Summer Term

Utilization Taskforce, 2013).

The data gathered from the Summer Term

Task Force Report also revealed that most of

the UTK faculty who participated in the survey had

taught summer school at UTK in the past, while some

reported teaching summer school at other institutions

(2013). Faculty members at UTK also have several incentives to

teach during the summer. Faculty members not only receive

extra pay for teaching during the summer term, but they

also have the opportunity to teach smaller classes during a

compressed time frame, with fewer responsibilities and an

ability to experiment with new teaching methods. All of these

incentives also leave them with an opportunity to achieve

greater research productivity (Summer Term Utilization

Taskforce, 2013).

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Parents may be those of undergraduate, or graduate leveled students, and range in demographics,

psychographics, and geographic areas. Data from the

Summer Term Task Force revealed that many potential

students, especially those who are incoming freshman that

visit UTK during the summer and participate in orientation

related activities before the fall semester would get a

better perception of campus life if more students were on

campus during the summer term (2013).

The data provided also revealed that many

parents have expectations for their children to

have time off, spend time with family and

friends, return to work in their hometowns, and

pursue internship opportunities closer to home.

Many parents also feel that if their children

need to take classes, then they can enroll in

local community colleges because they are not

only conveniently located close to home but are

cheaper and easier than courses offered at UTK (2013).

Although UTK has an annual allocated budget of

$49,742,431 in fellowships and grants for current students

(University of Tennessee Office of Institutional Research

& Assessment, 2014), the rising cost of tuition that many

parents pay for their children gives parents the financial

incentive for their children to complete a degree in 4 years

instead of 4 or 5 years (Summer Term Utilization Taskforce,

2013).

Parents Faculty

UTK summer school has been facing increased

competition from local competitor schools, such as Pellissippi,

Walter, and Roane State Community Colleges, due to the

competitive prices they offer easier and transferable credit

hour summer school classes for. Even though college students

in general are 17% less likely than the general population to

strongly agree that its worth paying extra for quality goods

(Simmons Market Research Bureau, 2010-2011), such as

the more expensive summer classes offered at

UTK, UTK still retains an annual allocated budget of

$49,742,431 in fellowships and grants for current

students that could help reduce tuition costs

(University of Tennessee Office of Institutional

Research & Assessment, 2014).

Even if many UTK students and parents both feel

that students should have time off, spend time with

family and friends, return to work in their hometowns, and

pursue internship opportunities closer to home (Summer

Term Utilization Taskforce, 2013), the data revealed by the UTK

Summer School Survey showed that most participants (68.01%)

had not, or did not intend to take summer school classes at

any other institution besides UTK (The University of Tennessee

Knoxville, 2014e).

These facts show that although UTK summer school

may face particular limitations and competition from other

colleges, there is still a good chance to increase summer

school attendance within the next year.

15

Even though there are several incentives for faculty

to teach during the summer sessions, there are also barriers

to teaching during the summer term. Since faculty members

are allowed a chance to further their research, doing so

may detract from the actual time they spend teaching.

Problems like this may result in students feeling that some

of the instructors who teach summer school are not of the

same caliber as those who teach during the fall and spring

semesters (Summer Term Utilization Taskforce, 2013).

V. Summary of the Situation

Although UTK is currently experiencing trouble with summer school enrollment, they

definitely have a strong basis of potential students

to appeal to. With over 27,171 total students

throughout their 11 colleges and 300-degree programs,

who are currently attending the university, UTK has a

diverse group of students who could participate in the UTK

summer school program. Not only does UTK have a rich

background within the Knoxville community, but it also has

a variety of traditions, student-run programs, and sports

teams throughout the school that makes it appealing to

potential summer school students. The beautiful summer time

weather, and multiple outdoor and cultural activities, such

as the Smokey Mountain National Park and variety of city-

sponsored festivals, concerts, and events makes Knoxville a

great place to spend the summer.

Marital Status: Mostly not married.

Children: Most of them do not have children.

16

Increasing the awareness of the benefits offered at UTK

during summer school to current and potential students,

along with increasing their intention to enroll in summer

school within the next year should help convince students

to take summer school classes offered by UTK and its 1500

instructional faculty members. Hopefully in doing so, UTK

summer school will be able to accomplish its overall goal of

increasing student enrollment by 10% by the end of 2016.

Age: 18-21.

Sex: Male and female.

Ethnicity: Predominantly white.

Annual Income: $5,000-$15,000.

Occupation: Students who work some blue or

white-collar part time job.

Standing: Sophomore and junior

undergraduate students currently enrolled at

UTK.

Part Two: Recommendations

I. Primary Target Audience

Demographics

The target audience lives in Knoxville during the

school year. The target audience comes from various

cities located throughout Tennessee and other states,

but theyre mostly from Tennessee.

Geographics

Behavioristics

Those within the target audience are

undergraduate students from a variety of

disciplines at the University of Tennessee

Knoxville campus. Some of them have already

taken at least one summer school class at UTK or

one of its competitor schools, while others have not yet

taken any summer classes. The target audience likes to

pay for things, or ask their parents to pay for things that they

like, or that they think could benefit them and their life (Noel-

Levitz, 2013). They tend to purchase things that cost less, but

still offer the same or similar benefits of those that are more

expensive (Simmons Market Research Bureau, 2010-2011).

They will want to attend summer school in order to

get ahead in their classes so they may have the opportunity

to graduate on time (The University of Tennessee Knoxville,

2014e). If they are from out of state and are attending

summer school, they will have the option to stay in housing

Our interviews revealed that the target audience likes

to participate in activities with their friends and family. They

like going to football games, and participating in outdoor

activities like hiking and boating. The target audience also

really likes using Twitter and other forms of online social

media. They are less likely than the general population to

agree that its important to be well informed about things,

(Simmons Market Research Bureau, 2010-2011). The data we

found on Simmons also showed that social forces, such as

the opinions of others swaying the targets views and how

important it is for the targets family to think that they are

doing well largely influences the target audiences

opinions, interests, and attitudes (see Appendix A).

17

Psychographics

We interviewed people within the chosen

target audience and found that many people

like the co-op and study abroad opportunities

offered through UTK Summer School (Blu Cru,

personal interview, November 2, 2014). Although,

our interviews also revealed that many students do not

want to take summer school classes, and would rather go

back home, work, or do anything besides take classes.

Those interviewed also reported having strong connections

with their friends and family, and would consider doing things

they dont want to do if its fun, sociable, or pleases

their parents (Blu Cru, personal interview,

November 2, 2014).

Justification

We chose our target audience based on the

primary and secondary research we conducted.

The data gathered from Simmons revealed that the

target audience is easily influenced by social factors and

opinions from their parents and friends. Our interviews

further supported these findings. Those within the target

audience are more likely than any other age group or level of

education to use Twitter (Pew Research Center, 2014). Even if the

target audience would rather not take summer classes, they

are still interested in the co-op and study abroad opportunities

that UTK Summer School offers. Although the target audience

is conscientious when it comes to prices, they still want to

graduate on time

provided by UTK while they are enrolled in summer classes (The

University of Tennessee Knoxville, 2014b). They will attend summer

school for any of the four sessions offered or study abroad, and

enjoy smaller classes with more attention from professors to

allow them to excel in the course (The University of Tennessee

Knoxville, 2014e). Although they may have already taken

transferable general-education classes offered at competing

schools because of the cheaper tuition costs, they still need to

take several upper-level courses that are only offered at UTK.

Although they have never studied abroad, they would like the

opportunity to do so (see Appendix A).

preferred the KCB of UTK summer school classes allowing

students the opportunity to graduate on time.

Table 2 shows the means and p-values of the both

KCBs. Although participants felt that the KCB of study

abroad programs offered was more believable, most

participants felt that taking summer classes through

UTK Summer School in order to graduate on time had

more personal relevance, was more unique, and would

encourage them to enroll in summer school classes at UTK

more than the KCB of studying abroad. Many participants

felt that studying abroad is too expensive, while

several participants felt that they or their

friends would need to take classes during

summer in order to graduate on time (Blu

Cru, personal interview, October 27, 2014).

Table 2 also shows that the KCB questions of

personal relevance and likelihood to attend

were the only qualities tested that proved

to be statistically significant.

18

with their friends, and many understand that UTK is the

only school that offers the upper-division, degree-specific

classes they need to take before graduating. We chose

sophomore and junior students because the Summer

School Survey revealed that many freshman and graduate

students are already enrolled in summer school, and a lot

of seniors will have already graduated by May.

II. Key Consumer Benefit

KCB Statement KCB 1: UTK summer school classes allow students the

opportunity to graduate on time.

KCB 2: UTK summer school offers 26 faculty-led

study abroad programs that are not otherwise

offered at competitor schools.

Justification From these two potential UTK summer school KCBs,

we developed two separate qualitative questionnaires in

order to find out which KCB would appeal most to the target

audience (see Appendix B). We administered a total of 24

questionnaires to 12 different people that fit the description

of our target audience. Participants consisted of both

males and females, who are currently either sophomores

or juniors attending UTK. Participants had various degree

backgrounds and concentrations, and were ethnically

diverse.The results revealed that most participants

III. Message StrategyStrategy Statement

Message Strategy #1 (Social): Would you want to take

summer classes at UTK if all of your friends were doing it

too? Or would you want to graduate on time in order to

please your parents, or look good to potential employers?

Taking summer classes at UTK will give you the opportunity to

graduate on time with your friends, and not get left behind.

Message Strategy #2 (Rational): Want

to save money? Want to get to the top of your

career? Since the cost of tuition is rising each

year, you will save money by graduating on

time, and will be that much closer to beginning

your career as a professional. The smaller

class sizes and session lengths offered at the

University of Tennessees Summer School will

give you the opportunity to quickly get back on

track in order to graduate on time. Graduating on time

through UTK Summer School will not only save you money,

but will get you closer to beginning your professional career.

the targets engagement of socially acceptable

behavior. This will provoke the target to act on their

emotions of relatedness the campaign will make them

feel, and ultimately motivate them to sign up for UTKs

Summer School. This tone will spotlight and personify a

slice out of the targets life, making it relatable to them.

By capturing a slice of the targets life in the

campaign, it will help promote the strategy by talking

and directly relating to the target. Additionally, it will

provide UTKs Summer School as the ideal choice for

summer school. This tone will also help to promote

the KCB by guaranteeing them an easy way to

graduate on time and not get left behind while

the rest of their class moves on and graduates.

It will tie into their lifestyle of wanting to keep

up with their friends and be socially

acceptable.

Tone For the tone of our campaign, we chose to use an

emotional, slice of life. This tone of voice will coincide with

19

being influenced by their parents. Although none of the

values tested proved statistically significant, this may

have resulted from not having a large enough sample size.

The chosen tagline and tone will support the

chosen message strategy by showcasing our KCB of UTK

Summer School classes allowing students to graduate on

time socially, and in a way that they will be able to relate

to. The emotional, slice of life tone will also coincide with

the social message strategy, and will allow us to show the

social and emotional benefits of graduating on time with

friends through a glimpse of the targets life. The chosen

tagline of Keeping you on track also reinforces the

KCB of being able to graduate on time by taking

summer classes through UTK Summer School, which

our data suggested would be the most appealing

KCB to the chosen target audience.

The chosen KCB was tested with the ration and social

message strategies from Dr. Taylors Wheel. We tested each

strategy with a questionnaire similar to the one we used to test

our KCBs (see Appendix C). Table 3 shows the means and p-values

of the tested message strategies. The results revealed that the

target audience feels that the social message strategy is more

believable, unique, and relevant to his or her needs. The target

audience also feels that they would be more likely to attend

UTK Summer School if they were presented the chosen

KCB through a social message strategy (Blue Cru,

personal interview, October 31, 2014). The results

from the questionnaire revealed that the social

message strategy would be more effective

than using a rational message strategy filled

with facts about UTK Summer School.

This is also consistent with our target

audiences psychographics of not wanting more

information about the products they buy, easily

being persuaded by other peoples opinions, as well as

TaglineKeeping you on track.

Justification

20

IV. Sample ExecutionsNewspaper

21

Twitter

Twitter Video Story Board

Website

Using the chosen KCB, message strategy, tone, tagline, and

media vehicles will allow us to increase the understanding of the

benefits offered during summer school to the target audience from

81% to 90% within the next year. Increasing the awareness of what UTK

Summer School can offer students should persuade 4% more students

within the target audience to consider taking summer school

classes at UTK within the next year. If our campaign is as effective

as our research suggests, then we should be able to increase the

intention of those within the target audience to enroll in UTK

summer classes from 25% to 33% by next year. If we are

able to increase the intention of those within the target

audience to enroll in summer school, then we will be

able to achieve UTK Summer Schools overall goal of

getting 10% more students to enroll by the end of 2016.

We intend to measure the effectiveness of the

campaign by administering an additional survey to

students several months after the initial release date. This

way we will be able to better understand how effective

the campaign was in raising awareness of the benefits of

taking summer classes at UTK, but also see how many students are

considering, or intending to take summer classes at UTK Summer

School during the following summer. The results from this additional

survey will not only let us know how effective the initial campaign

was, but will also allow us to gauge our progress in achieving the

objectives.

Evaluation

Using the KCB of being able to graduate on time by

taking summer courses at UTK Summer School is the KCB

that appealed most to the target audience. Developing

newspaper, Twitter, and website advertisements with a social

message strategy will be the best way to present the

chosen KCB to the target audience. While we initially

chose our KCB and message strategy based

on our secondary and primary research,

our interviews with current students, and

the multiple concept tests we conducted

supported our decision in choosing our KCB

and message strategy.

Using a social message strategy that

persuades the target audience to take classes

based on social forces that influence their decision

making, like the opinions of their parents and friends,

should prove to be the message strategy that is most

effective in showcasing the KCB of taking summer classes

at UTK in order to graduate on time. Our decision to use a

slice of life tone of voice should also support our campaign

by presenting the KCB and message strategy in a way that

the target audience will be familiar with and able to relate

to. Our tagline of Keeping you on track with UTK Summer

School also reinforces our KCB of being able to graduate on

time.

V. Summary & Justification of

RecommendationsHow the Plan will Accomplish

the Objectives

22

Part Three - The AppendixI. The Executions

Newspaper

A.I

Twitter

A.I

Twitter Video Story Board

A.I

Website Advertisement for UTK Website

A.I

Website Advertisement for UTK Summer School Website

A.I

A.II

II. References

Forbes Magazine. (2014). University of Tennessee, Knoxville. Retrieved from http://www.forbes.com/colleges/the-university-of-tennessee/MassMutual Financial Group. (2014). Estimating College Costs. Retrieved from http://www.massmutual.com/planningtools/educationalarticles/articledisplay?m mcom_articleid=df94531cb3a4a110VgnVCM100000ee6d06aaRCRDNoel-Levitz. (2013). The Attitudes of Second-Year College Students. Coralville, Iowa: Author. Retrieved from www.noellevitz.com/SecondYearAttitudes.Pew Research Center. (2014). Social Networking Fact Sheet. Retrieved from http://www.pewinternet.org/fact-sheets/social-networking-fact-sheet/Quality and Research Committee of the North American Association of Summer Sessions and the Center for Survey Research at Virginia Tech. (2013). Summer Session Associations Joint Statistical Report. Riskind, J. (2013). Report Finds Demographics of College Graduates Do Not Reflect Changes in Overall Student Body. Retrieved from http://www.acenet.edu/news- room/Pages/Demographics-of-College-Graduates.aspxSimmons Market Research Bureau. (2010-2011). Simmons OneView (Fall, 2014) [Computer software]. New York: Simmons Market Research Bureau.Summer Term Utilization Taskforce. (2013). Summer Term Task Force Report. Knoxville, TN: Author.The University of Tennessee Knoxville. (2014a). Athletics. Retrieved from http://www. utk.edu/athletics/The University of Tennessee Knoxville. (2014b). Housing. Retrieved from http://summer.utk.edu/while-on-campus/housing/The University of Tennessee Knoxville. (2014c). Quick Facts. Retrieved from http://www.utk.edu/aboutut/numbers/

A.II

The University of Tennessee Knoxville. (2014d). While on Campus. Retrieved from http://summer.utk.edu/while-on-campus/The University of Tennessee Knoxville. (2014e). Initial Report: Summer School Survey. Knoxville, TN: Author.University of Tennessee Office of Institutional Research & Assestment. (2014). UTK 2013-2014 fact book Knoxville, TN: Author.U.S. News and World Report. (2013). University of Tennessee Student Life. Retrieved from http://colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-colleges/universi ty-of-tennessee-3530/student-lifeUT Sports. (2014). All-Time National Championships. Retrieved from http://www.utsports.com/fans/ncaa.html

A.III

III. Additional ResourcesAppendix A - Simmons Report

A.III

Appendix B- KCB Concept Testing Questionnaires

A.III

Appendix C - Message Strategy Concept Testing Questionnaires

A.III

Appendix D - Interview Guide for Objectives

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Documents

UTK Summer School Ad Book