Larry D. Lauer

This week I helped kickoff a special pre-conference seminar at the association of international educators (NAFSA) annual meeting. It was co-sponsored by both NAFSA and the Council for the Advancement and Support for Education (CASE) and it was about how individual institutions can “get their key constituents on the same page” with respect to their international objectives.

When higher education became a more competitive industry a number of years ago my staff and I at TCU understood that we would have to become much more sophisticated.  Institutions today once again face a similar challenge to become even more sophisticated now that they will have to compete in a rapidly changing global market.

What differentiates our institution in a global context?  What do we offer better than others? How will we know what our constituents are thinking, or how they are responding? What are they saying to others about us?

For a long time marketing people educated in business schools have talked about the 4 P’s… product, price, place and promotion. Promotion was their word for communication, and all four elements needed to be considered simultaneously for success. So we in strategic communication realized early on that if products (or programs), prices and places (total experiences) were to be communicated successfully we would have to think collaboratively with those who determined the first 3 of those 4 P’s.

Now that higher education is becoming a competitive “global” industry integrated marketing thinking and planning, the use of carefully selected new media platforms, and group process tools will still be essential for success. A critical mass of people will need to understand what makes each institution special, and they will need to help to tell the institution’s story. The use of task-forces, action teams, and focus groups are still the most effective way to first find out what constituents think and then get them fully engaged. And most especially in today’s new media world, communicators will need to know how people in each market segment within each country want to receive information from them.

The bottom line: As higher education becomes a global industry the ideas and tools of integrated marketing communication will be essential to get key constituents in each institution “on the same page” with respect to institutional objectives… and the many exciting opportunities.