When UMass Dartmouth’s College of Engineering needed to increase awareness and engagement among prospective students, we upped the cool factor.
UMass Dartmouth’s College of Engineering offers a world-class academic experience that allows students to make a real-world impact. The challenge? Not enough prospective students and parents were aware of the quality of the programs.
With limited resources and a short time frame, the college needed to generate awareness and engagement by connecting with and appealing to parents and academically strong high school juniors and seniors—including a larger percentage of women.
“Overall, the campaign was highly successful, contributing to a 46% year-over-year increase in generated leads”
Keren Cole, VP, Media Strategy and Activation
KHJ developed a two-pronged strategy. For students, the message was emotionally driven, bringing to life the kinds of innovative projects they could be a part of and the impact they could aspire to make. The creative approach featured young women, used humor to engage the target audience by countering engineering stereotypes, and reinforced the idea that students can do what they love most at UMass Dartmouth. For parents, the digital campaign led with a rational, data-driven message highlighting the quality of the student experience, from the low student-to-faculty ratio to high-profile internships.
Targeting students and parents in eastern Massachusetts, the six-week digital campaign combined banner ads, social media ads, and paid search. The use of Snapchat ads, in particular, allowed us to make a direct connection with prospective students, leading to a 286% stronger swipe-up rate than the industry average. Overall, the campaign was highly successful, contributing to a 46% year-over-year increase in generated leads—positively impacting applications for the upcoming semester.
“Today’s students want to start making an impact now. UMass Dartmouth’s engineering program allows them to do that through research and experiential learning. Our campaign got at the heart of this program in a unique and unexpected way.”