Download Marketing - Active Minds

Marketing
What you’ll learn:
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Different types of marketing you can use to advance your chapter, your cause and your programs
The basics of a marketing campaign, including branding and logo usage, and how to reach your target
audience
Dozens of innovative marketing strategies
What can marketing do for your chapter?
Marketing can be kept relatively simple and inexpensive and allows a lot of room for creativity. A chapter of
any size can be successful at marketing – even with little or no money. Marketing is synonymous with the
mission of Active Minds because we are all about getting the word out!
Marketing strategies can be used to help accomplish various goals for your chapter. It’s important to
understand what your goals are before you choose an effective strategy (see the Goal Setting for more on
setting goals). You can market your chapter, your cause (mental health awareness), or an event. Marketing can
be anything from making a flyer to launching a school-wide campaign.
Types of Marketing
Marketing your chapter and its purpose at your school will help establish your organization as the student voice
for mental health. Your chapter can attract new members by marketing the benefits of joining Active Minds
and what students will get out of being a part of your chapter. Let them know that your chapter is always
looking for new members and everyone is welcome to join.
Cause marketing
Marketing campaigns don’t have to “sell” something – they can also educate. For example, you can reach your
audience with an informative message that teaches them facts about mental illness, taking care of their mental
health, or how to help a friend. People love to feel that they can make a difference. Your chapter can also use
cause marketing to encourage your campus community to
get involved and donate to your cause. Let them know
what their money will be used for, who it will help, and
how they can contribute.
Event marketing
Effective advertising can generate excitement and
anticipation, and drive people to an upcoming event or
program. Make sure to include the following information
on promotional materials for an event:
 Date, time, and location of event
 Rain date/location if applicable
 Admission price – if it’s free, include that too!
 Deadline for registering or applying (if applicable)
 Contact information for questions or additional
information
 Any co-sponsoring organizations’ names/logo
For more programming and fundraising resources, visit: http://activeminds.org/ourprogramming/chapters/chapter-resources/active-chapter-resources/fundraising-kit#walk1
Marketing Checklist
Before designing and launching a marketing campaign, consider the following:
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School policy – What are your school’s guidelines on student organization marketing? Check with the
Student Activities Office for the rules and processes in place for organizations to hang posters, chalk,
place table tents in the cafeteria, etc.
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Audience – Who do you want to reach? Take into account your audience’s age and likes/dislikes when
designing marketing materials and deciding how they will be distributed.
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Call to action –What do you want your audience to do? Let your
audience know in clear and simple language what steps you’d like
them to take
Putting it in action…
Active Minds at Alma College has
published monthly “Stall Street Journals”
that they have hung in bathrooms
around campus. The flyers feature
educational stories about a wide variety
of mental health issues. Where else will
you have someone’s undivided attention
but in a bathroom stall? Give them
something to read and advertise or
educate at the same time – a win- win
situation.
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Schedule – When should you launch your marketing campaign?
People may forget if you advertise too early but may not have
time to plan ahead if you advertise too late – it’s a fine balancing
act. This is especially important to consider when it comes to
event marketing. Usually, 2-3 weeks prior to an event is a good
rule of thumb, but it depends on your method of advertising.
Writing up a calendar or timeline with deadlines may be helpful.
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Budget – How much does your chapter have to spend on
marketing materials? If your chapter doesn’t have a budget or
marketing materials aren’t part of your current budget, you may
want to consider creating one or creating a budget item for
marketing the next time around. (See Budgeting). There are also a lot of marketing strategies that require
no money at all.
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Resources – What and who are your resources? Are there people in your chapter especially skilled at
graphic design and advertising techniques? Does the student activities office offer printing services
and/or banner paper/paint for free or at a discounted rate to registered student organizations?
Branding and Logo Usage
When creating a marketing campaign for your chapter, cause, or event, make sure that the campaign is
appropriately branded with the official Active Minds logo and name. It’s important to take credit for the
message and make the connection between what you’re marketing and your chapter’s identity.
At its most basic, branding can mean simply including the logo on all promotional materials. Branding can
extend beyond this and signify an even greater level of cohesion among marketing materials by creating a
unified theme or “look” that people will come to recognize and associate with your chapter. The act of
branding itself can go a long way towards raising awareness about your chapter around campus.
Visit www.activeminds.org/logo (make sure you log- in first) for logo usage information, guidelines for creating
a customized logo for your chapter, and to download high-resolution images of the Active Minds logo.
Target Audience
You are often a good representative of who you are marketing to – think about your own preferences. You
know what attracts students’ attention and what prompts them to take action or attend an event on your
campus. Do you largely ignore flyers in academic buildings but events announced through the campus-wide e-
mail system make it onto your calendar? Are Facebook events the way to go or do table tents in the dining hall
really catch your eye and get you thinking? Is chalking sidewalks a waste of time or do people really stop and
read the message? Don’t be afraid to leverage your insider knowledge of what works for students on your
campus to guide your chapter’s marketing decisions.
Some Flyer Examples
Marketing Ideas
From the traditional to the creative, the ideas are endless. The list below incorporates what has been successful
for other chapters in the past. But don’t let this list limit you - think outside the box and have fun! The money
signs ($) are a loose guide to the cost of a particular marketing method ($= least expensive; $$$ = most
expensive).
Icon Key
This idea
involves print
materials.
This idea
requires people
power.
This is an
online or
virtual idea.
This is an
especially
innovative
_______idea.
Idea
Description
Cost
Campus-wide e-mail and
other listservs
Craft a brief and enthusiastic message to be broadcast out
through the campus-wide e-mail system or to targeted listservs,
such as psychology majors or freshmen
Free
Campus event
Word-of-mouth
Lecture halls/class
blackboard
Door-to-door
Phone-a-thon
Facebook
Chalking
Skits/flash mobs
Contact the administrator of the campus events calendar well in
advance to make sure that your events and meetings are
included
Word-of-mouth is the simplest and often most effective
marketing technique. Decide on a message and then start talking
and encourage others to help generate a buzz around campus.
Make announcements in your classes, cafeterias, the residence
halls, and ask your professors if they will do the same.
Write a short, creative message on blackboards in classrooms
throughout campus where students will see them when they go
to class (just be sure this doesn’t constitute as vandalism on your
campus).
Spread the word by visiting people in their residence halls and
asking them if they have a minute to learn about “insert your
message here”. You’ll need lots of outgoing, cheerful, “people
persons” for this to be effective. Be careful and courteous when
it comes to “no solicitation” requests.
Organize a phone-a-thon to call up individuals to tell them about
your chapter or event. Most campuses are moving away from a
campus telephone directory, but if you pool your chapter
members’ phonebooks of students on campus – you might be
surprised how many individuals you can reach. Getting a
personal call can be a big motivator to show up for an event.
Create an event on Facebook and invite everyone you know.
Encourage them to do the same. Facebook events are especially
useful because the RSVP function allows you to estimate how
many people you can expect for an event. A custom or eyecatching photo for the event is always appreciated.
Sidewalk chalk can be a fun and creative way to reinforce your
campaign message. If a group of your chapter members are
chalking, make sure they know the key points to convey.
A flash mob is a pre-arranged gathering of a group of people who
assemble suddenly in a public place and perform an act or skit
spontaneously meant to surprise passers-by. They can get people
talking all over campus!
Free
Free
Free
Free
Free
Free
Free - $
Free - $
Curiosity teasers/”sneak
previews”
Generate excitement for an event by releasing “clues” with
information a little bit at a time. Set up a preview or demo of the
upcoming program to get people hooked and ready for more.
Free - $
Showcase
displays/bulletin boards
Academic buildings, residence halls, and student centers usually
have some form of bulletin boards and/or showcases where you
can feature your chapter and/or upcoming event. Using a unified
theme throughout the bulletin board and 3-D items for an
especially impactful display.
$
Tabling
Balloons
Ad in campus
newspaper/radio/TV
station
Posters
Tear-off flyers
Leafleting
Buttons
Flyers on cars
Set up a table with information in high-traffic areas. Make sure to
have a sign hanging at the table that clearly communicates your
message to those walking by to attract people to your table.
Candy, food, or other giveaways (no matter how small) are
always an effective draw.
You can get lots of balloons printed with your information on it
for a relatively low cost, or buy plain balloons and attach a small
flyer. Hang them around campus or a table to attract attention or
hand them out for student to take. The student activities office
on your campus may even have a helium tank that you can use.
Your campus newspaper, radio, and/or TV stations may offer
discounted rates or in-kind advertising space for student
organizations and charitable causes.
The most affordable option is printing 8.5 x 11 posters, but
bigger posters or banners may attract more attention.
Experiment with shapes of posters. Handmade posters using
markers or paint add a personal touch and are great when you
only need to make a few. Designing posters on a computer
allows you to make lots of copies quickly and efficiently.
Design flyers with “tear-offs” at the bottom so people can take
the most pertinent information with them.
Produce a small flyer (quarter sheet) that communicates your
message quickly and can be printed in bulk. Have chapter
members stand in high-traffic areas on campus during busy times
and pass them out. You can also leave leaflets on tables and
desks around campus.
Button-making can be a fun group activity or you can order bulk
from a custom promotions company. Have your chapter wear
them on their backpacks everywhere and pass them out until
they’re gone!
Make sure you get permission from the appropriate outlet
before flyering cars on campus to make sure you don’t get fined
– and don’t do it if rain is in the forecast.
$ - $$
$ - $$
$-$$
$$
$$
$$
$$
$$
Mailbox Stuffers
Swag with info attached
T-shirts
Insert a small flyer into each student’s on-campus mailbox or
target a specific population. Your campus post office or student
activities office may be able to provide a mailing list if you
wanted to address individuals specifically. If it’s a smaller batch, a
handwritten note increases your chances that the message will
be read.
Staple or tape an informational flyer or card to something
students will love – candy, food, water bottle, soda, or swag with
the Active Minds logo – such as pens, stress balls, or notepads.
Buy t-shirts from the Active Minds store or have your chapter
members create t-shirts with puff paint. Have members wear tshirts on the same day or to a chapter event.
Door-hangers in
residence halls
Have a special treat waiting for students when they return to
their residence halls – their very own door hanger with your
message on it. This is an effective method for an “educational”
message or information about your chapter and the counseling
center in general rather than advertising an event or program
that will “expire”. The idea is to design something that students
will want to hang on to and be reminded about every day.
$$ - $$$
$$ - $$$
$$$
$$$
Design Tips for Creating Eye-Catching Flyers and other Promotional Materials
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White space is your friend – be careful not to make a flyer too “busy”. Try and balance the amount of
text and images on your flyer.
Creative fonts give marketing materials a personalized, professional touch. Fun fonts can be
downloaded for free on websites like www.dafont.com.
Always use spell check and have someone else look over it before mass producing or hitting the ‘send’
button on an e-mail.
Print on colored paper to make a flyer stand out and/or print in full-color when budget permits.
Refrain from using all CAPITAL LETTERS – it can be distracting and hard to read.
Choose clip-art carefully. Use original designs or real photographs when possible.
Keep it short – conciseness is essential when it comes to marketing.
A catchy headline will go far in getting people to read the rest of the flyer.
Consult with the graphic arts department at your school – they may know of students who would be
willing to work with your chapter to build their portfolio. Some schools also have marketing or graphic
design clubs that work with student organizations to gain professional experience.
For resources to help you promote your events, see the Active Minds Chapter Fundraising Kit:
http://activeminds.org/our-programming/chapters/chapter-resources/active-chapter-resources/fundraisingkit.
Active Minds also offers Fundraising Webinars that provide more information on how to use marketing
strategies to support fundraising. E-mail the Chapters Team at [email protected] to schedule a
fundraising webinar.