Larry D. Lauer

In preparation for a presentation I will be making in Australia, I have been reviewing some current university marketing materials. I was reminded that not too long ago, we could not even utter the word “marketing” on some campuses. Now, it can be quite striking to see how far some institutions have come.  In fact, I actually found myself asking: Have some of my professional colleagues gone too far?

Cute tag-lines with little content or substance abound. My contention all along has been that no tag-line is better than just a cute one. Cute gets old fast, every time! Tag-lines must connect so well to an institution’s mission that they cleverly sum-up the true essence of the place. Otherwise, they serve no real purpose. Some institutions are using athletic mascots in their advertising to symbolically stand for the entire institution. But here I found myself asking: Is this the best symbol for the institution’s long-term academic reputation building?  Others are using design so trendy that it’s difficult to see how their materials accurately represent their institution’s mission and vision.

Dont get me wrong. Especially in this digital world, I do believe we need to “look” innovative. In order to connect with our audiences we must be able to demonstrate a state-of-the-art understanding of technology, and of our constituents’ needs and interests. But the question for the academy remains:  How do we do that and still represent the traditions and substance and what academic work is really all about?

We are advancing an industry with significant historical relevance. There is nothing else in society quite like the academy. It’s traditions of academic freedom and constructive debate require continuing explanation. It remains the custodian of the lessons of history and the best thinking of mankind. Indeed, reminding each generation of the very definition of  a fully “educated person,” is also our ongoing challenge. 

All of this today certainly does require a measure of  innovation. The first chancellor I would work  with on meeting this challenge would often say to me:  OK, Lauer, we will try this idea, but not that one!”  I often felt I was being held back. But now I appreciate what I learned from that struggle to fully explain what I was trying to do.

Maintaining the heritage of this entire academic enterprise will require a certain amount of elegance. We must find a way to “look” imaginative and creative without  going over-the-top. This is why I now argue that we must adapt the profession of marketing to the academy. We are not selling an academic shopping center.  What we do must begin as a “way of thinking.” and not end up as a road to commercialization.

We need to connect with our constituents where they are, no doubt about it. But, then we must go on to take them to a better understanding of this wonderful world of ideas, and the unique role our institution intends to play in it. Honest communication that is more imaginative than cute should be the rule of the day.  Simply put, to be true to our heritage our marketing must be “appropriate.”

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Of course, I would be thinking about football again. Who wouldn’t?  TCU just won the Rose Bowl, and questions abound about what this means for a high quality academic institution!

Some call this historic contest “the granddaddy of them all!”  In fact, the day after the game a New York Times article declared that with  this victory TCU “solidified its standing as one of the elite programs in all of college football.”

New visibility is happening nationwide, and that is truly exciting.  But this win is also a big challenge to keep it all in perspective. The real benefit is that such a victory definitely opens the door for more communication. But it therefore becomes critically important that all areas of the institution are prepared  to walk through that door and tell the institution’s unique and compelling academic story.

For all this to happen effectively, the athletic program must stay “integrated” with the insitution as a whole. This means that its management and coaching staff must reflect the leadership style and quality of the institution. Its’ brand identity and design must also convey that this is one institution, not two. An athletic program absolutely must not “look” and function like a separate organization. 

Athletic staff should promote campus and academic programs at games, and university marketing people should incorporate the vitality and benefits of college athletics into academic and campus materials.  Also, behaviors of fans should match the cultural values of the institution, since realistic lessons about winning and losing are important for everyone. The bottom line is that the ability of athletics to bring vitality to the total campus experience can be extremely positive, but making it happen is an integrated, campus-wide enterprise.  

Too often, however, althetic programs lose perspective. They operate as separate organizations. In fact, one college president once told me he didn’t even want his athletic program to be associated with his institution! In my way of thinking, there is no way to justify the existence of such a program.

This win was incredibly positive for TCU, there is no doubt about it. The visibiity and name recognition we are enjoying is beyond imagination.  But it is more clear to me than ever that academic, ethical, and financial integrity must be preserved. Only then will everyone continue to benefit.

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It’s always easier to write a long essay than it is to produce an accurate, concise one.  It also always seems more professional to produce a  complicated strategic plan than a simple action outline.   

In fact, many consultants feel they must provide pages and pages of analysis and recommentations.  This, it seems, is the best way to demonstrate their depth of knowledge and to justify their fee. The fact is that many of these plans are too complicated to implement, and fail to provide a simple road map ahead.

For me, the mark of a true professional is an ability to absorb and comprehend complicated details, and then present a perceptive and concise review of the situation, identify the most effective message points, and describe a few basic action initiatives that will most effectively move the organization forward.

Most organizations have collected more programs than are really needed. In fact, many activities may be needlessly draining resouces, talent and energy.  Deciding what not to do, however, often proves to be more difficult than adding new things to do. In time, by adding more and more programs, many organizations have actually drifted away from their most productive mission and vision.

The key is to simply answer these questions: Is this program or activity directly related to our core business? Are others doing it better? Is it an essential revenue source?  Answering these questions should make the decisions you need to make about your “product” line very clear.

Your brand is your “differentiated identity.” We have argued in other posts that clarifying it is the ultimate key to success. The programs and message points that collectively establish this identity are the ones you want to preserve.  Now, stay focused on them.

Over time, all organizations collect unecessary publications and engage in needless communication activities.  You will probably want to keep a “branding piece” that establishes your market position. In addition, you may also want to have a piece for each major “sub-brand” program and activity.  If you determine you need a tangible “hold in your hands” symbol,  you may still want a few printed pieces. But most other communication can take electronic form these days, especially current news and information about your institution. 

Segment and prioritize your markets and use only the media that each  segment prefers. Usually this will be a combination of both new and traditional multi-media platforms, and they should be focused to converge simultaneously on each segment. Remember more is not better in an already information-cluttered world. Concise, focused, repeated interactive messages is what you will need for success.

All these points have been individually discussed, or will be, in other posts. The point of this one is simple! Although it isn’t easy, simplicity is essential. And then staying focused is absolutely required.

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My university is having a fantastic year in football.  We are undefeated and number 3 in the nation! For professionals in marketing and communication, this always means questions from almost eveyone about just what it all means for advancing an academic institution? 

Does it help student recruiting?  How about fund raising? And what about building  academic reputation?

With respect to student recruiting, a sustained winning streak can certainly help stimulate more applications. For some universities, unneeded applications may just add overhead processing costs. For many others, however, a well developed marketing and communication program can use this new found positive visibility to effectively target appropriate market segments with an impressive academic story.

A winning season certainly stiumlates fund raising for athletics. But what about support for academic programs? Here too experience teaches that a professional advancement staff can use a very positive overall alumni atmosphere to steer donors toward academic programs. How well this works, however, will depend on the make-up of the donor base and the priorities of the immediate fund raising campaign.

The matter of how well winning athletics can help build academic reputation is more uncertain.  Athletics imagery alone does not advance academics, but it can convey a tone of campus vitality and welcoming community. And when the marketing and communication staff is prepared to target appropriate media and specific image influencing audiences with well crafted, interactive, relationship-building, academic messages, visibility and name recognition will certainly be an advantage.

In addition to being undefeated, our last several winning seasons have been challenging the BCS control of the national championship game. This produced significant visibility for us in Washington, DC, where I have been spending a lot of time these days. I have been able to witness first-hand how this ongoing visibility helped open the door to educational and political opinion leaders, and how effective it has been when we walked right through telling the rest of the academic story.

The bottom line lesson here, then, is that a winning athletics program provides visibility and opens doors, but only highly professional marketing, communication, admissions, and development work can sustain enrollment and fund raisng over time, and build lasting academic reputation.

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This week I found myself reflecting on all the travel I do, and I realized what I like mostly about it is just absorbing the everyday experiences of the people and the culture… observing what people are doing, seeing how they look, and fnding out what they are thinking is what interests me most.

It also occured to me how similar this is to discovering the essence of the brand identity for a university, and for many other organizations. It indeed is very challenging to find brand differentiation in very similar organizations. University and other institutional benefits descriptions can all sound alike. After all,  many have similar programs, offer similar activities, and even have similar quality goals.

I believe the very essence of the fabric of an institution is revealed only when spending time walking around, watching the behavior of people, having coffee or lunch, asking about experiences, absorbing the culture, and noting how values are acted out in day-to-day activities. You will find that many times those values are in fact shaped by local geography and the social traditions that have enolved over the years from founding missions.

Location, culture, and values enable discovering the differentiated and substantive brand identities of the largest, most comprehensive, institutions. And just spending time there observing, absorbing, and taking detailed notes, can give you all you need to know.

Some “tourists,” and many brand specialists, make sure to see all the attractions of a destination and then find that most offer the same features.  But others prefer to just be there for a while, and thereby come to know the true character of the place.  Culture and character, then, well communicated, can be the differentating factors in a destination’s brand distinction, and that is also very true for institutions.

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I was reminded of this essential lesson this week during a float trip down the Snake River in Wyoming.

Besides being a skilled river pilot, our guide was immersed in the unique authenticity of his, and now our, surroundings. He told us about the dramatically changing geology, endless plant life, the trees, the incredible variety of wildlife, the countless number of birds– including the majestic bald eagle, and  how a culture and a unique set of values evolved around river life. This young man was a total product of this very unique and special land and he could explain it all with passion and authenticity. He clarified the brand identity of the Snake River for us.

Organizations are much like this river. Most originated and have evolved around a very special set of unique factors. They develop a culture and a set of values, and have unique characteristics and strengths that literally define the direction they must go.

Their founding missions address an unmet need and then evolve into a culture, with a set of values, which in turn attract and influence special types of people. This mission can be guided through change with relevant visions, but organizations cannot be made into something they are not.

For example, I have found that those academic leaders who have tried to remake their institution into their own idea about what a university should be, invaribly fail. The dynamics of institutions take on a life of their own. 

Brand identities therefore must be authentic. They must be grounded in the founding mission and culture of their specific institution. They should incorporate an inspiring vision for an exciting future, but that vision must stay true to the unique character, culture, strengths  and values of the founding mission of the institution.  

Just like the Snake River, institutions take on a life of their own, and shape the people who inhabit them.

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