Integrated marketing communications as a whole is essentially telling a story. It synthesizes the message of an institution of higher education, and delivers it by any medium in which the message’s sequence and interactivity may bring understanding and meaning to its recipients.

In the case of most colleges, however, the marketing is often confused and disorganized, from the perspective of the target audience. In fact, the messages are often unspecific and without a target. The messages lack engagement.

Imagine, for a moment, that you are reading a bed-time story to a child. Now, imagine that the bed-time story contains only the elements that are prominent in your institution’s marketing. “One pig built a straw house, using award-winning materials that provide the best in straw color, while adding to winter warmth through the use of thatching on the roof. Structurally, it was the leading house in the area, with many happy pig residents of similar houses giving glowing testimonials. Not only that, but the builder of the house is none other than a Harvard trained straw-house expert, and the house was chosen as a 2008 huffing and puffing Olympic training facility.” How popular would your bed-time stories be?

Of course, marketing is not the same as children’s stories, but when marketing communications are coordinated and properly targeted, prospective students are much more likely to hear the message. A persuasive story may be able to draw the attention of the perspective student away from the various distractions in his or her life and allow him or her to take notice of the college’s website or telephone number.

How does a college compose a story? Many marketing coaches will recommend a focus on statistics, while others want to plug as many features as possible. Yet others stand by the thought that the reputation speaks for itself. However, even with a comprehensive list of facts and a solid reputation, students may not be any more interested in an institution of higher education than they were before the message was sent out.

What is missing is a good story. A good quality marketing story for colleges will include the following:

• A promise – it must be a bold promise, but not overconfident. Unless the promise is exceptional and answers the question “what’s in it for me?”, most students won’t feel it is worth listening to.
• Believability – trust is an important part of an effective marketing story. Remember, your target audience cut their teeth on marketing messages, receiving hundreds, even thousands each day. They have finely tuned filters for marketing that lacks believability.
• Subtlety – students don’t want a hard sell. They want to feel that they are making the right choice for them, not visiting a trade show.
• Appeal to the senses – facts are necessary, but the story itself should appeal to students’ emotions. Higher education is as much an emotional choice as a logical one.
• Targeted – good stories aren’t aimed at everyone in general, but have a specific target market in mind.

When colleges market themselves through stories, they stand a better chance to engage the students, and then deliver an important message in a way that reaches them on more than just an intellectual level. It is in this way that the story makes the difference.