Public relations pros came together this week for the College and University Public Relations and Associated Professionals Fall Workshops and the hot topic was… drumroll, please… visual storytelling!
Visual storytelling is one of our favorite topics, and it’s imperative that universities use visuals in their public relations. What catches the attention of a 17 year-old better than a funny GIF or an engaging video?
That’s why universities, like all organizations, are shifting their attention to communicating visually (check out what we learned about visual content from HighEdWeb 2015). Our Libris team was part of the workshops and took notes on how universities are using video marketing, Twitter and student voices to tell their stories. Scroll through to see what we learned.
Video Marketing: A Better Way to Share Stories and Connect with Audiences
Eleanor Kubacki, President & CEO of the EFK Group (East)
Alan Sharavsky, Consulting V.P. of Brand Management and Strategy for EFK/ President of Sharavsky Communications (East)
Steve Patterson, Principal, The Patterson Media Team (West)
Video is still a very new medium to most college marketing departments, and figuring out how to use it online is both a challenge and an exciting opportunity. Video is becoming increasingly popular in social media channels because it increases engagement and keep viewers engaged longer. Colleges and universities are introducing video to their .edu websites as well as micro sites.
Check out these great examples of universities using video on their microsites:
Hopkins Interactive
Hopkins Interactive brings together the school’s social media in a visually engaging dashboard for prospective students. The site looks like window panes that offer an authentic and fun view of the school.
One of the window panes is this video, welcoming new students to school (if this video was made for the class of 2019, it certainly would have been included in our Best Photos & Videos of College Move-In). Not only does this video celebrate the incoming class, but it paints a picture of the school that will help prospective students feel like Hopkins is the place for them.
OSU Stories
Oregon State University’s microsite, OSU Stories, is geared toward a broader audience. Students, prospective students, parents, alumni and community members could find a feature that interests them here. It’s a combination of images, headlines, and of course, videos. Check out the one below, which highlights a student athlete with a passion for engineering.
Be a Billiken
St. Louis University’s Be A Billiken microsite has a special section devoted to videos. When you follow the links, they take you to posts featuring each video, with copy underneath to give you some context, and lots of options for other videos to watch on the sidebar. It’s a rabbit hole of videos and information about the school, and it’s clearly geared toward incoming students who want to watch fun, short snippets and pick and choose their own content. I like What’s A Billiken? because, as a newcomer to the site, I was wondering exactly that.
If You Can’t Beat ‘Em, Join ‘Em: How to Talk Like a Student and Not a Marketing Mouthpiece on Twitter
Jeffrey Martin, Sr. Associate Director, University Communications, Saint Joseph’s University (East)
Andy Shaw, Director of Web Communications, York College of Pennsylvania (West)
At CUPRAP East, the voice behind Saint Joseph University’s Twitter handle @saintjosephs, Jeff Martin, encouraged university communicators to use the voice of a student in their visual storytelling. Think blogs written by students. Testimonials. Combining user-generated content and high quality photography to highlight the personality of the student body.
Many students will be leaving for Fall Break at the end of class today. Rest up, Hawks! pic.twitter.com/CzZ7Kai0lm
— Saint Joseph’s (@saintjosephs) October 9, 2015
Using photos and videos and communicating like a student conveys unmatched authenticity. Martin says this is mandatory for catching the eyes of high school juniors and seniors, convincing them to apply to the school, and converting prospective students.
In the West, Andy Shaw shared how he applied his background in improv and standup comedy to York College of Pennsylvania’s Twitter handle, @yorkcollegepa. Here are a few gems:
Thanks to everyone who came out! Now tell your moms to stop favoriting all your updates. https://t.co/vVDSsCuAhZ
— York College of PA (@yorkcollegepa) October 14, 2015
For Columbus Day, feel free to get lost and convince classmates you did it on purpose.
— York College of PA (@yorkcollegepa) October 12, 2015
.@YCP_CAB Looks like you should get @JohnCena on campus. But only if he shows up halfway through event out of nowhere
— York College of PA (@yorkcollegepa) October 9, 2015
Incorporating humor led to a massive spike in engagement on Twitter. Now, the small school of less than 5,000 students has more than 5,700 followers.
Using Students to Communicate Your Campus Story
Purnell T. Cropper, Digital Marketing Manager, Arcadia University (East)
Genna Kasun, Assistant Director of Advancement Communication, Juniata College (West)
Luke Fragello, Director of New Media Communication, Juniata College (West)
Purnell Cropper shared how Arcadia University harnesses the voices of its student body with Because Arcadia. The blog’s tagline sums it up: “More Than 260 Stories By Arcadia University Students. Follow Along or Share Your Own.”
The blog’s student contributors share everything from stories of academic accomplishment to tales of studying abroad and strategies for making college feel like home. The posts share GIFs, photos and videos, like the video below featured in Follow My Feet – a first person story of student life at Arcadia.
First-year Marcella Runs a Rehearsal ahead of a Dance Recital from Arcadia University on Vimeo.
The Take-Away
Let’s review the tips from CUPRAP:
- Give video a try – they can increase engagement on social media, on your websites, and on your microsites. Plus, they can show off your university better than any other medium.
- Don’t talk like an institution. Talk like your students.
- Your students are your greatest asset. Have them share their own stories in an authentic, visual way.
These tips and examples can serve as inspiration for your university public relations. The more you use visuals to tell compelling stories, the more your audience will read, watch and share your content.
