Communications and Marketing initiatives

Task forces established

In July, President Harvey Stenger and Associate Vice President Greg Delviscio established a number of task forces to focus on communications and marketing strategies for the campus. The task forces are intended to create a stronger communication strategy that prioritizes campus communication needs while supporting high-priority, strategic objectives.

It is imperative that Binghamton University is represented consistently and positively to the world. Collectively, these task forces will ensure the Binghamton University identity is clear and is being used wisely and correctly. With the ability to set policy and make recommendations to the president, they will help to build an integrated marketing system into the campus culture, and together, they will ensure the University’s brand is aligned with the Road Map strategic plan.

The newly created task forces are:

1. Branding – to provide all stakeholders an understanding of the Binghamton brand; review and comment on materials and websites that bear the Binghamton University name; direct, define and approve certain brand strategies; review and update the University brand; ensure that the brand remains current and consistent; monitor brand compliance while offering brand consultation; encourage deeper brand adoption that extends beyond high-profile communications; and celebrate and congratulate branding successes.

2. Communications – to review and offer guidance and counsel about programs, policies and initiatives pertaining to internal and external communications; help build and maintain the University’s positive relationship with media, including marketing and advertising strategies, news and information dissemination, publications and external communications; share information and make recommendations on future communication and implementation strategies; approve communication strategies for schools, colleges, divisions and programs, reviewing materials that will bear the Binghamton University name; and ensure communication initiatives remain current and consistent with the University’s brand image.

3. Campus Appearance – to set a standard for all sign graphics and environmental signage applications; develop and maintain a consistent campus map; ensure all signage adheres to the University identity standards; establish a naming convention hierarchy for all signage; and establish a consistent digital signage for the campus.

4. Mobile – to approve and regulate all mobile apps that will bear the Binghamton University name; direct, define and approve all mobile content strategies; review requests for specific mobile apps while discerning how they might fit into our current suite of apps; and ensure that we are remaining current with our entire mobile technology suite.

In addition, the Social Media Task Force, formerly known as the Social Media Admin User Group, has been given the authority to function as the governing body for social media on campus, with the power to approve/deny new page requests, start large-scale campaigns and be the decision-making unit when it comes to social media @BinghamtonU. Current activities include updating the University’s Social Media directory, removing inactive pages and adding those that are active and contain content relevant to our audience.  Also, new sections for social media governance as well as best practices are in the works.

Also, though not a large-scale task force, discussions began on ways to better align the look and consistency of school and college magazines with the Binghamton University Magazine, which published its summer issue in August.

Creative Services print activities

The Office of Creative Services developed and printed the new travel piece for Undergraduate Admissions counselors to take with them on the road, as well as the Reaching Higher School of Management magazine and Harpur Perspective, the magazine for Harpur College of Arts and Sciences.

Web development

Our Web developers have been working to create Binghamton University web pages that are responsive, which means users can easily read them on any device, ranging from mobile phones to tablets to desktop computers. The University’s homepage was adapted as a responsive page earlier this year, and in the past quarter a number of University pages were also migrated into templates that allow them to be responsive: the Libraries website, Transdisciplinary Areas of Excellence pages, the Media and Public Relations website, the new Experts Guide page
and the Road Map website.

Additional work by our Web developers has included a collaboration with Undergraduate Admissions to develop and send out a series of more than a dozen responsive e-mail messages to prospective students; providing two training sessions each month in OmniUpdate (the University’s Web content management system); holding monthly OmniUpdate User Group meetings to provide support to the entire campus in using the content management system; and developing additional responsive templates in OmniUpdate.

Our Web developers also created 80+ recruiting forms for the Graduate School to use to collect potential graduate student information at fairs. A sample can be found here.

Internal communications

Inside, the campus online newspaper, was among the first media to post coverage of President Barack Obama’s Town Hall Meeting on campus in August. The initial coverage of the meeting was posted and sent to external media as the President was leaving campus. Updated and more complete coverage was posted within a matter of hours and can be found online.

Media and Public Relations

Binghamton University hosted over 200+ reporters from the local community, New York state and around the nation on Aug. 23, when President Barack Obama visited campus. We received thousands of news hits as a result, from outlets including U.S. News & World Report, USA Today, the Associated Press, Bloomberg Businessweek, the New York Daily News, Newsday, The Wall Street Journal, NBC News and more. Many of these articles not only mentioned Binghamton, but also listed Binghamton in the headline. The visit continues to generate news hits, mentioning Binghamton University in a positive light.

Additional major media hits include:
    • Laura Bronstein, interim dean of the College of Community and Public Affairs, featured in USA Today in a story titled Study: Student social workers decrease re-hospitalization rates, save millions.
  • Binghamton University student Aparna Narain Saxena from the Class of 2016, featured as an international student in The New York Times’ Education Life
  • Binghamton University featured USA Today in an article about college students and service on 9/11
• Associate Professor David Campbell featured in the Chronicle of Higher Education in an article about the evolution of 9/11 charities

The campus is also awaiting the results of a visit to campus by Buddy the “Cake Boss,” who came with a crew from the TLC network and taped an episode of at spin-off show called “The Bakery Boss.”

Social Media

The hashtag created for the president’s event − #BingPotus − was listed as trending on Twitter. Each day, United States Trends lists the top 10 hashtags being used that day. On Aug. 23, #BingPotus was included with the likes of #President Obama #Batman and #Ben Affleck. (Affleck was named the new Batman the same day)

Social media activity continues to be robust, and the University also launched a new University LinkedIn Brand page.

Video

Video initiatives included doing something special for the incoming Class of 2017, by playing a trivia game on Aug. 22, the day freshmen and new transfers arrived on campus. Our camera crew went around and asked incoming freshman some tough Binghamton University trivia questions. At Convocation that evening, the trivia video was aired, revealing the winners of the trivia game.

In support of the many campus initiatives under way to strengthen the sense of tradition and pride at Binghamton, the video team also created a mascot-focused video: Binghamton University – Becoming the Mascot.

Our video team also created:
• a new Welcome to Binghamton overview video
• a Pantone 342 Spirit video (Binghamton University’s official green is Pantone 342)
• a video featuring Distinguished Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Associate Dean Ron Miles and the anechoic chamber (perhaps the quietest room in the world)
• a video overview of the College of Community and Public Affairs
• a Binghamton Bucket List video