Hey there friends! We're only a month or so into school, and I'm sure that many of you fellow college students are eager to engage with freshmen and plan for a year of fun events. One of the most important things you can do is properly market your student group! I learned last year with my sorority that, regardless of what specific event or aspect you are addressing, marketing really does affect every single detail of a campus organization. As my sorority's social media director, I've definitely gone through lots of trial and error with getting marketing right, so I want to share some of my best tips with you all today, so that you can start off this school year right and get lots of new members!
1. Establish a vibe or brand you want to exude. One of the first steps of marketing your organization is to determine the key things that you represent and how you want to tangibly showcase that. Maybe your group is very edgy, or minimalist. You have to choose the sort of vibe you want to exude in all your marketing and social media, and stick to it. Also, make sure to run these ideas by all members so that no one feels misrepresented.
2. Divide up work among members. If one person tries to do all the marketing work for your group, you'll end up with content that is subpar and only shows one person's idea of how an entire group should be represented. Instead, select one person to post only on Instagram, and another for Facebook, etc. Enlist a few crafty members to make all the posters/banners/signs, or have a musically talented member create a playlist for your group's webpage or events. Whatever it is you need, make sure that multiple people are involved with the execution of your marketing plan.
3. Post quality content, instead of quantity content. You might think that you have to post every single day or every single picture, but you are actually much better off sticking to quality posts less frequently instead of spamming people's feeds with worse quality content. Don't stress about uploading on every platform every day or constantly handing out flyers around campus. Create a schedule that is manageable for your group and coincides with special events so that you don't get overwhelmed.
4. Take advantage of all the different social media platforms. Once you master quality content over quantity, you can start expanding to more social media platforms. Start out with one or two that you think will have high reach (Instagram and Facebook are really great for college students), and then expand to include Twitter, Tumblr, Pinterest, or any other platforms in your marketing arsenal. And don't forget the power of in-person marketing as well - bake sales, fundraisers, flyering, and campus events are also great marketing tools to take advantage of!
5. Put yourself out there. Especially on a college campus, if you don't make an appearance around with your group, you're putting yourself at a huge disservice. Show up for the activities fairs, organize a team for powderpuff or the kickball tournament, and go support other organizations as a group.
6. Engage with other student groups. Along with supporting other organizations, collaborating with different groups is important. You can volunteer to co-host an event with another popular group on campus, like the Student Government or Residential Life organizations in order to get more exposure for your campus group.
7. Set manageable goals. Not every goal is a manageable one. Know the difference between "get 50 new members for our group" and "get 10-20 highly engaged members for our group." Whatever your goal is for this school year, make sure that it is attainable. Better to exceed your expectations than to keep setting goals that will be hard to reach!
8. Assess and reevaluate your strategies. With quick overturn in college (aka seniors will graduate and new members will arrive every single year), it's especially notable to reevaluate your marketing strategies frequently. What worked four years ago might not work now, and it's also important to note that new campus groups need different strategies from well-established ones. At the beginning of every year, or even every semester, go back through the strategies and talk about what worked and what didn't. Then, adjust your plan accordingly. Maybe your vibe is changing. Maybe the group has a different motive now then when it first started. If something needs changing, fix it.
These 8 steps have been incredibly helpful to me over the past two years with the various campus groups I help run, and I hope that they can help your group too! Comment below with your requests for upcoming posts - I have a lot scheduled but I might even be able to do some extra posts (I know you miss me on Tuesdays and Thursdays) for y'all with special requests!
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