Campaign to change perception of community colleges surpasses all goals, sets enrollment record
Its campaign with agency APCO Worldwide led to a substantial number of soon-to-be college students considering community college. It won the Education Campaign category of Ragan’s PR Daily Awards.
The North Carolina Community College System needed to change the negative perception that community college offered second-rate education, and APCO Worldwide was happy to help.
The partnership launched the “Your Hire Education” campaign. The goal was to showcase modern and little-known offerings of North Carolina’s community colleges, create a sense of pride among prospective students and provide benefits of a community college education.
The paid media plan included digital and social media and programmatic display. To reach audiences in urban and rural areas, print ads, radio and TV spots and billboards were also created. Information sessions focused on the campaign were also offered to public information officers and marketing staff at 58 community colleges.
From the summer of 2019 to February 2020, the campaign contributed to a 4.4% increase in enrollment across North Carolina, which had not been achieved in almost 10 years.
Become a Ragan Insider member to read this article and all other archived content.
Sign up today
Already a member? Log in here.
Learn more about Ragan Insider.
