Integrated Marketing Council formed

President Welty has formed an Integrated Marketing Council to develop, enhance and maintain a strong and consistent institutional image, across all of the interests of the campus – academics, athletics, development, and institutes and centers.

The marketing council will develop an overall collaborative marketing program for the campus designed to accomplish key institutional goals.

Administrators, faculty, staff and students representatives from the campus have been named to administer a planned and consistent marketing program.

Welty said the integrated approach is needed because there is widespread lack of coordination and little integration of marketing communications functions across campus.   These uncoordinated efforts produce many different images of the university. Sometimes information conveyed is incorrect, or presents a misleading or embarrassing view of the campus.  The campus can promote the overall academic excellence of the university through a strategic marketing effort directed by the marketing council.

Greater coordination of campus marketing efforts will reduce costs through efficiencies of publication, advertising and promotion.   The combined impact of campus messaging will better express key university goals and aspirations. Improved marketing of the campus will be key to the success of the comprehensive campaign to generate high levels of donor support for the campus.  

The council will oversee and direct the marketing of academic programs, entertainment and cultural activities, the comprehensive campaign, athletics, overall university strategic communications, digital communications and instruction, and develop strategies to address the university’s changing competitive and political environment.

An executive committee headed by Mark Aydelotte, associate vice president for University Communications, Governmental Relations and Public Affairs, will direct the council’s work.

Responsibilities of the Integrated Marketing Council are:

• Surveys all campus marketing efforts with a view to combining and coordinating efforts to better communicate key university messages.
• Develops a plan for the integration of marketing communications that will:
• Develop institutional agreement on the marketing functions of the university;
• Successfully integrate Web, publications, public relations and marketing functions across the university;
• Provide the organizational framework to ensure the communication of the university’s image through an institution-wide program of branding and marketing;
• Achieve a high-level of efficiency and cost-effectiveness in development, production and distribution of marketing communications;
• Identify marketing opportunities for the campus and make recommendations about funding and support of integrated marketing communications efforts;
• Review current university policies guiding university communications and make recommendations for changes in these policies to reflect integrated marketing communications plans.
• Establishes survey tools and other methods to determine the effectiveness of marketing communications for the campus.
• Modifies marketing efforts based on surveys and research.