Marshall unveils new marketing, advertising campaign

NEWS – The Parthenon

Filed under NEWS, ShowcaseAdam Stephens Ginny Painter, senior vice president of communications, at the podium, discussing Marshall’s new “I am a son/daughter of Marhsall” campaign. AdvertisementMarshall University administrators hope a new marketing campaign implemented this year will increase interest and boost enrollment to the university. The marketing campaign features numerous types of advertisements, such as billboards, signs in airports and shopping malls and pages printed in magazines and newspapers.
Each advertisement includes a single photo of a student or faculty member, a quote such as “I’m proud,” “I’m strong” or “I’m inspired” and either the phrase “I am a daughter of Marshall” or “I am a son of Marshall.”
“The new marketing campaign is one way that we can spread the news about Marshall and what it has to offer and get our name in front of a lot of people that have not heard about us before,” said Marshall University President Jerry Gilbert.
The marketing firm hired by Marshall conducted focus groups with students and faculty members before creating the campaign. Ginny Painter, Marshall’s senior vice president of communications, said the references to being sons and daughters of Marshall were suggested by participants in several groups.
“They knew that there was something there that wasn’t typical, that’s not something you hear at other institutions,” Painter said. “That really became the hook that we’re hanging this campaign on and it reinforces the concept of family, tradition and pride that were really the cornerstones of this campaign.”
Gilbert said these advertisements show the Marshall campus is a tight-knit community.
“I think that the son and daughter terms create a sense of family and a sense of being an affirmed member of a family,” Gilbert said. “Not just a distant relative but an actual son or a daughter, a strong, viable and valued ...

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