Marketing U

DOTAC (Daughter of the Ad Contrarian) is going to college in September, which means we went shopping for colleges this year.

The best visit we had, and the school DOTAC fell in love with, followed some universal principles of marketing.

First, they treated the customer right. When we arrived, they had DOTAC's schedule for the visit clearly and personally printed for her. She knew exactly what she was going to do and when she was going to do it.

Next, they had the best salesman make the pitch. The info session was conducted by the Dean of Admissions, not a student or an underling. He was articulate, he was knowledgeable, and he was credible.

Finally, the school clearly differentiated itself : here's how we do things and here's why. We know it's different, but there's a reason for it.

You don't have to be a Rhodes scholar to figure this stuff out.

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Marketing Tips for Geniuses

DOTAC (Daughter of the Ad Contrarian) is in full college application mode, which means we've been traveling around looking at colleges. We've met some genius-type people on our visits but have witnessed some woefully inadequate marketing practices. If you're a college or university marketing or admissions officer, here are some tips:

1. A visiting high school senior bases about 99% of his/her impression of your school on the student giving the tour. There is a very simple calculation the senior makes -- if this is not my kind of kid, then this is not my kind of school. Make sure you pick your tour guides carefully.

2. Parents make a slightly different, but similar, calculation. Student guides who begin every sentence with "so", use the word "like" three times in every sentence, and end every sentence with "so that's cool", make a bad impression on parents. Somehow we expect a university to teach a student to speak the language.

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