Much of the work that we at SimpsonScarborough do for colleges and universities across the country leads to valuable marketing insight and strategies for our clients. A question we commonly tackle centers around how marketing communications teams should be organized, resourced, required competencies and prioritization of efforts. As marketing organizations mature in higher ed these are an important questions to be considered. But, unfortunately, answers vary greatly across institutions. There's simply not a one-size-fits-all approach.
But a new study by Effective Brands (now Millward Brown Vermeer) points out that the real secret to becoming an effective marketing organization centers less around reporting lines and staffing levels but in the values and goals that guide brand strategy. As authors Marc de Swaan Arons, Frank van den Driest, and Keith Weed point out in the recently posted Harvard Business Review article, The Ultimate Marketing Machine, "structure must follow strategy—not the other way around."
The study was a robust one. Interviews were conducted with more than 350 CEOs, CMOs, and agency heads. 10,000-plus marketers from 92 countries participated in an online survey of more than 80 questions on topics as varied as analytics capabilities, brand strategy, cross-functional and global interactions, and employee training. Results were then segmented by whether the brands were outperforming or underperforming their competition.
And the results were fairly clear. If you want to be an effective marketing organization you must:
- Guide decision making with meaningful data
- Ensure that your brand's purpose is understood and valued
- Create customer experiences
- Organize for growth and agility
- And focus
So how does this translate to higher education marketing? A sector where our organizations are just beginning to model where the corporate sector was some 10 years ago?
Data-driven decision making. The study points out that "high performers are distinguished by their ability to integrate data on what consumers are doing with knowledge of why they’re doing it, which yields new insights into consumers’ needs and how to best meet them." Quite simply, brands that know not only what the market thinks of their brand but how their brands fill "universal human truths," like desires to achieve or raise a family are most successful.
In higher ed, our brand expressions typical center around talking about ourselves. Our descriptors, brag points, values, content choices and—in some cases—differentiators are all about us. Rarely do colleges and universities connect relevance in basic human needs and terms. Would we dare say how our colleges/universities contribute—directly—to meaningful jobs and careers? And perhaps connect that to happiness and fulfillment in life? The recent Gallup-Purdue Index began to point out those relationships but it's clear that talking about outcomes like starting salary, getting a job or going on to graduate school, or tuition as investment can't be shied away from. It's the first step to tangible, meaningful relevance. And not to worry. It won't make your institution seem like job training. It'll make it seem attune to people's needs.
Purpose-driven brands. According to the findings, the most successful brands detail functional benefits (the job the customer buys the brand to do), emotional benefits (how it satisfies a customer’s emotional needs); and societal benefits, such as sustainability.
As mission-driven institutions, here's a place where higher ed excels. We're great at pointing out the emotional and societal benefits but we often fall short when truly understanding (and measuring) the functional benefits our various audiences value in our institutions. Here's where market research and sound strategy can help. Do you truly know where your institution wins and loses in the minds and guts of the audiences you care most about? What are the ingredients that make your sauce of mission different?
Creating meaningful experiences. The research found that high-performing brands provide a “total experience" with meaningful touchpoints and interactions. This is an area much harder for higher education to impact. The personalized experience of attending a college or university is different for different individuals. And the experiences shared with faculty, staff, other students and alumni can vary as well. If you were taught by adjunct faculty in large classes it was a different experience than small seminar classes.
That said, higher ed marketers are just beginning to understand and influence the various places that represent opportunities to affect experience. The ease of applying for admission, requesting information, getting a copy of a transcript, learning about campus events, even picking up the phone and answering questions - and all on your mobile phone - are more meaningful to your brand's health than a billboard. Take care of those brand experiences.
Organize for growth and agility. The report authors point out that "marketing has become too important to be left just to the marketers in a company." It's an idea that is finally accepted in higher ed as CMO and cabinet-level leaders are being appointed at schools big and small to drive and connect marketing to organizational goals.
Regardless of the type of institution you may work for, thinking that marketing doesn't or shouldn't support key areas that contribute to the university's bottom line—admissions or fundraising—is a critical mistake. Putting blinders on to the importance of PR and crisis management is also a pitfall. Acknowledging those important functions (and others) and working across institutional barriers leads to successful organizations.
Decentralized atmospheres may prove challenging but they can't be a barrier to this integration. Stated succinctly, successful marketers "create a tight relationship with the CEO, making certain that marketing goals support company goals; bridge organizational silos by integrating marketing and other disciplines; and ensure that global, regional, and local marketing teams work interdependently."
The report also states a reality that many marketers are facing with digital convergence and social media. Traditional roles and functions in an organization matter less. Your org chart should become less linear and resemble a hub and spoke model with competent professionals able to think strategically and work in small, effective teams focused on outcomes rather than areas of speciality or function.
Focus. Perhaps the greatest challenge for higher ed marketers centers around focus and prioritization. The study found that "winning companies were more likely to measure brands’ success against key performance indicators such as revenue growth and profit and to tie incentives at the local level directly to those KPIs." Stated simply, marketers knew the things they were trying to affect, built organizations and outcomes around those goals and were able to articulate it across the organization.
Marketing in higher education continues to mature. By focusing on these key themes marketers can create organizations that position their schools for long-term success.
