Monday, February 11, 2008
Case Study: Northwestern University Athletics Department Keeps Wildcats #1
Situation:
Northwestern University is a charter member of the Big Ten and the conference's only private institution. The University sponsors 19 intercollegiate athletic teams and numerous club sports for its more than 14,000 students, and the Wildcats regularly bring home NCAA team championships and conference titles. With 190,000 alumni, Northwestern needed an effective way to keep them informed and excited about University sports teams while also giving them an easy way to donate to their alma mater.
Solution:
Northwestern University turned to Performance Communications Group (PCG), a Chicago-based interactive marketing agency. PCG recommended an e-Newsletter utilizing its patent-pending Internet Secured Application Technology (ISAT) solution created specifically for alumni communications. ISAT uniquely integrates multimedia, portability and direct response capabilities in a secure environment, and can be used for remote content distribution with centralized control and viral tools to increase website traffic and awareness.
PCG developed a marketing program that includes publishing two ISAT powered e-newsletters a year that are emailed to Northwestern alumni in the fall and spring. These e-Newsletters include a video message from the associate athletic director, Wildcat athletic articles, sports photos and a call to action for a donation. Everything is integrated so a viewer can watch the video while looking through the rest of the e-newsletter. The entire e-newsletter is secure, so viewers can respond to the call to action and make a donation. In addition to the e-newsletters, alumni also receive a direct mail piece. It includes an envelope for an immediate donation and also directs alumni online, should they choose to donate that way. This helps Northwestern build its email list of alumni sports fans.
Results:
Northwestern University's Athletic Department currently has a growing database of 15,000 alumni and has email addresses for about 5,000. The online donation program started in 2004 and, at the end of the first year, the number of donations increased by 80 percent and the amount donated increased by 185 percent. The growth of the program continues. In 2007, the number of donations increased by another 25 percent and the amount donated soared by 180 percent. Over the life of the program, the online donations averaged 55 percent annual growth in both the number of gifts and the number of donors. During the same period, the value of the donations has increased an average of 125% per year.
Northwestern University Direction
Northwestern University Sports
Northwestern University is a charter member of the Big Ten and the conference's only private institution. The University sponsors 19 intercollegiate athletic teams and numerous club sports for its more than 14,000 students, and the Wildcats regularly bring home NCAA team championships and conference titles. With 190,000 alumni, Northwestern needed an effective way to keep them informed and excited about University sports teams while also giving them an easy way to donate to their alma mater.
Solution:
Northwestern University turned to Performance Communications Group (PCG), a Chicago-based interactive marketing agency. PCG recommended an e-Newsletter utilizing its patent-pending Internet Secured Application Technology (ISAT) solution created specifically for alumni communications. ISAT uniquely integrates multimedia, portability and direct response capabilities in a secure environment, and can be used for remote content distribution with centralized control and viral tools to increase website traffic and awareness.
PCG developed a marketing program that includes publishing two ISAT powered e-newsletters a year that are emailed to Northwestern alumni in the fall and spring. These e-Newsletters include a video message from the associate athletic director, Wildcat athletic articles, sports photos and a call to action for a donation. Everything is integrated so a viewer can watch the video while looking through the rest of the e-newsletter. The entire e-newsletter is secure, so viewers can respond to the call to action and make a donation. In addition to the e-newsletters, alumni also receive a direct mail piece. It includes an envelope for an immediate donation and also directs alumni online, should they choose to donate that way. This helps Northwestern build its email list of alumni sports fans.
Results:
Northwestern University's Athletic Department currently has a growing database of 15,000 alumni and has email addresses for about 5,000. The online donation program started in 2004 and, at the end of the first year, the number of donations increased by 80 percent and the amount donated increased by 185 percent. The growth of the program continues. In 2007, the number of donations increased by another 25 percent and the amount donated soared by 180 percent. Over the life of the program, the online donations averaged 55 percent annual growth in both the number of gifts and the number of donors. During the same period, the value of the donations has increased an average of 125% per year.
Northwestern University Direction
Northwestern University Sports
Labels: advertising 2.0, Internet Secured Application Technology, ISAT, online advertising, Online Marketing, Performance Communications Group, predictive advertising, social advertising
