Client Pitch: Department of Mass Media

Centennial

Alumni Celebration

So, what’s YOUR story?

Southeast Missouri State University Homecoming 2014

Contents Executive Summary

1

SWOT

2

Objectives

3

Recommendations

5

Save the Date

6

Invitation

7

Social Media

8

Program

10

Signage

11

Further Recommendations

14

Schedule

15

Budget

17

Evaluations

18

Our Team

19

Executive Summary To celebrate 100 years of student media at Southeast Missouri State University, we have created a special homecoming event for Mass Media alumni.

At its most basic, the purpose of this event is to increase donations to expand scholarships like the Herb and Peggy Taylor Endowment, and we have tailored our strategy to facilitate that end.

Alumni would gather in Rose Theater to socialize over coffee and doughnuts at 11:00 a.m., followed by a short address by Dr. Karie Hollerbach, department chair, and a student-produced video detailing the history of student media at Southeast.

After that, there would be an open house with student ambassadors assigned to operate each of the media outlets housed in Grauel. Alumni would then be allowed to explore.

Since we anticipate a diverse audience, we have devised an emotionally engaging theme coupled with clean design elements. Clean, bold lines clearly communicate the purpose and significance of the event without alienating any of the target audiences. Our tagline, “So, what’s YOUR story?” encourages attendees to share their memories with each other.

Our overall objective is to get any 46-60 year-old alumni to wax nostalgic and donate funds by illustrating, using student ambassadors, social media integration and strategic printed materials, just how much things have changed since they were students here.

We have identified alumni 31-45 and 22-30 years old as less likely to donate, but as secondary objectives, fostering a sense of pride and community is vital to keeping them connected in the future.

Finally, we have proposed multiple-dimensional evaluation, including gathering feedback from student volunteers, Alumni Services and attendees, social media tracking, monetary contributions and internship opportunities for current students within one year.

1

SWOT

Strengths

Weaknesses

Number of alumni Venue (reminiscent location)

100 year anniversary of student media

Out of touch alumni Travel distances for alumni

Recent Alumni Event (Bar Louie) Large population of alumni in nearby cities

Opportunities

Threats

Alumni are already here for Homecoming

Homecoming events

Ability to connect current students with alumni

Uninterested alumni

2

Objectives Primary PR Objective To invoke a feeling of nostalgia among 46-60 year-old alumni so that they contribute to the department financially or otherwise (with internship opportunities for Southeast students) within one year of Homecoming 2014.

Primary Marketing Objective To increase endowed funds for the Herb and Peggy Taylor Endowment among 46-60 year old alumni by 10% in one year.

Strategy 1 Create a theme and event components as a Mass Media-specific event in conjunction with the Homecoming program and schedule of events.

Tactic 1: Create a pathos-oriented slogan and logo.

“So, What’s Your Story?” is engaging and pertinent to all alumni, prompting them to remember their personal experience with the Department of Mass Media.

Tactic 2: Design activities to articulate personal experiences for alumni to share their story.

Strategy 2 Encourage alumni to continue socialization after event’s conclusion.

Tactic 1: Coordinate with local restaurants (Bella Italia, Broussards, El Sol) to agree to grant discounts to event attendees to be printed on the back of event programs.

Secondary PR Objective 1 To create solidarity among 31-45 year-old alumni toward students beginning their careers in the mass media industry and generate the feeling of being needed among the established professionals in order to facilitate networking and internship opportunities during the event and the succeeding six months.

Secondary Marketing Objective 1 To develop relationships between current students and 31-45 year-old alumni in order to create internship opportunities during the event and the succeeding six months.

3

Objectives Tactic 1: Train current students to interact with alumni during the event with the emphasis on what they did with their degree.

Strategy 2 Use participation in Department of Mass Media’s Professional Speaker Series as a way to contextualize alumni’s real-world experience.

Tactic 1: Set up table outside of Rose Theater with information for alumni to learn about the Department of Mass Media’s Professional Speakers’ Series and how they can take part in it.

Secondary PR Objective 3 To increase sense of belonging among 22-30 year-old alumni so that they return to future alumni events hosted by the department.

Secondary Marketing Objective 3 To increase participation of 22-30 year-old alumni in the department’s alumni events in one year.

Strategy 1 Increase recent alumni’s sense of belonging within the University community and more specifically the Department of Mass Media.

Tactic 1: Create promotional material for upcoming alumni events.

Tactic 2: Engage alumni on Facebook and Twitter so that they are aware of this Homecoming event and other upcoming events.

Tactic 3: Create and promote the use of the hashtag: #SEMOStory for the event.

Tactic 4: Have a projector set-up in Grauel 113 with a live twitter feed shown on screen so that alumni can read what others are saying about the event.

Tactic 5: Connect computers in The Arrow to a database of past issues for alumni to look up when they were writing for the newspaper.

Strategy 2 Inculcate a sense of indebtedness to the University in recent alumni.

Tactic 1: Appeal to emotion/reason with a series of blurbs with quotes and pictures of students on posters saying “Thanks to Southeast, I did/got/accomplished xxx,” where they share their story.

4

RECOMMENDATIONS

5

Save the Date

the

Southeast Missouri State University

Alumni Celebration

10.4.14

formal invitation to follow

6

Invitation Southeast Missouri State University

&

the Department of Mass Media

invite you to the

Centennial

Alumni Celebration

TWENTY FOURTEEN

Rose Theatre

Refreshments - 10:30 a.m.

Program - 11:00 a.m.

573-651-5104 RSVP: masscomm@semo.edu

7

Facebook

Alumni Celebration Facebook Event

Department Facebook Page: Profile & Cover Photos

8

#SEMOStory

Announcement

Sample Stories

9

Refreshments Welcome Presentation

10% off your bill.

20 N Spanish St - (573) 332-7800

GB 113 - Mac Lab GB 102 - RAGE

Public Relations

Radio

Front

120 N Main St - (573) 334-7235

Back

19 N Water St - (573) 334-0954

E- Port Cape Girardeau Restaurant & Lounge

D- Bella Italia Ristorante

Rose Theatre

Television/Film

1105 Broadway St - (573) 803-2775

C- Broussard’s Cajun Cuisine

GB 117 - Arrow Office

B- El Sol Mexican Restaurant

408 N. Pacific St

A- Rose Theater

and recieve

the restaurants featured below

Present this program at any of

Broadway

N. Sprigg St.

Journalism

The Department of Mass Media welcomes you back; now feel free to explore!

Centennial

Centennial

Grab a bite & share your story!

Program

10

Signage

11

Signage

Alumni Spotlight

12

Signage

Before & After

13

Recommendations Select a group of talented TV/Film majors and allow them the opportunity to create short films on alumni stories (of people from all mass media majors) to be screened at the Alumni Celebration in Rose Theatre.

Solicit local restaurants to offer discounts to alumni attending the celebration to encourage socialization among mass media alumni after the event.

Have a table set up in the lobby of Rose Theatre to allow interested alumni to request additional information about the departments speaker series.

Further recommendations Create and maintain an active Facebook page for the Department of Mass Media

Reach out to faculty alumni, requesting their attendance.

14

Schedule

May 4 June 4 July 4 Aug. 4 Sept. 4 PREPARATION AND PLANNING

X

Draft list of dept. ambassadors training instructions Solicit dept. student leaders to serve

as ambassadors Dept. Chair selects young alumni for X

spotlights Request quotes and headshots of

X

young alumni for spotlights Reserve Rose Theatre

X

Meet with J. Dufek and F. Jones about X

student video for opening Create Facebook Event

X Reserve computer and projector from

X IT. Request recent Arrow copies

X Reserve tables and chairs for Rose

Theatre DEVELOPMENT AND APPROVAL Send all print material for approval X

from Dept. Chair Send design “before/after” foam cord X

posters for hallway for approval Send alumni spotlight for approval X

Submit “What’s your Story” video for

X approval Send directional signage for approval x

Send Facebook designs for approval X

Send Tweets for approval X

Send speaker series info for approval X

Pitch “What’s Your Story” to Arrow

Editor Dept. Staff drafts ambassador training X

Place food order

IMPLEMENTATION Send Save the Date Evites X

Send Invitations to print

X

Send Invitations to guests

X Turn in training instructions to

X ambassadors Send directional signs, spotlights,

before/after posters and Redhawks to print Place all signage: directional signage,

spotlights, “before/after” posters and Redhawks

Oct. 4

Nov. 4

X

X

X

X

X

X

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Schedule

May 4 June 4 July 4 Aug. 4 PREPARATION Prep Rose Theatre

AND PLANNING

Draft list of dept. ambassadors

X

training i nstructions Confirm food order with Chartwells

Solicit dsept. student o serve

Schedule ocial media leaders posts atnd

X as a mbassadors tweets Dept. p Crofessional hair selects syeries oung vaolunteers’ lumni for X Gather

spotlights contact info.

Request quotes and eadshots of projector Test in G B 1h13

X

young alumni for spotlights Reserve Rose Theatre

Place Arrow copies in newsroom

X

Meet with J. Dufek and F. Jones about X

student video for opening Test audio of TV/film short movie

Create Facebook Event

X Reserve c omputer a nd p rojector f rom

Prepare reception area in Rose

X IT. Theatre Request recent Arrow copies Follow-­‐up with alumni interested in

X Reserve tables and chairs for Rose

Professional Speaker’s Series Theatre Meet with ambassadors to explain

X

DEVELOPMENT AND APPROVAL game plan Send all print material for approval X

EVALUATION from Dept. Chair Count amount of guests

Send design “before/after” foam cord X

Monitor Twitter sentiment and use of

posters for hallway for approval #SEMOStory Send alumni spotlight for approval X

Create social media report with

Submit “What’s your Story” video for

X Facebook approval & Twitter Amount of speaker volunteers signed x

Send directional signage for approval up f or t he s eries

Send Facebook designs for approval X

Amount of endowed scholarships set X

Send Tweets for approval up in the following year Send speaker series info for approval X

Amount o f i nternship o ffers f or

Pitch “What’s Your Story” to Arrow

current Editor students in the following year Request feedback Alumni training X

Dept. Staff drafts farom mbassador Services a nd s tudent v olunteers Place food order

IMPLEMENTATION Send Save the Date Evites X

Send Invitations to print

X

Send Invitations to guests

X Turn in training instructions to

X ambassadors Send directional signs, spotlights,

before/after posters and Redhawks to print Place all signage: directional signage,

spotlights, “before/after” posters and Redhawks

Sept. 4

X X

Oct. 4 Day

before

Nov. 4

X

Day of event

Day before

Day

before Day

before

Day before

X

X

Week

after

X

X

Day of

Day of

X

Day of

X

X Year after X Year after

16

Budget

Expense

Cost

Before/A(er Foam Core Posters $48.00 Alumni Spotlight (Poster paper) $28.00 PrinDng: Save the Date (four per page) $0.12 PrinDng: InvitaDons (two per page) $0.12 PrinDng: Programs (two per page) $0.98 InvitaDon Envelopes $0.16 Address Labels $0.00 Postage $0.49 Command strips $0.00 Assorted Donuts (dozen) $12.50 Assorted Muffins (dozen) $18.00 Orange Juice $9.75/gallon Water $10.00/gallon Coffee $9.75/gallon Decaffeinated Coffee $9.75/gallon Student Worker $0.00

Quan-ty 4 5 TBD 250 125 250/TBD 250 250 4 packs 10 10 6 gallons 6 gallons 6 gallons 6 gallons 1

Total $192.00 $140.00 TBD $30.00 $122.50 $40.00 $0.00 $122.50 $0.00 $125 $180 $58.50 $60.00 $58.50 $58.50 $0.00

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Evaluation The success of the event would be evaluated in multiple instances by gathering qualitative and quantitative data.

First, students in each student media would report amount of attendees observed in their student media, share how the experience was for them and what they perceived the alumni liked and disliked.

Secondly, to assess the success of the hashtag and to gather qualitative data, a student-worker should monitoring attendees’ sentiment and use of the #SEMOStory hashtag on social media posts during and after the event. This student worker would create a report for each social media platform that would include increase in likes/follows, interactions (mentions and retweets) and sentiment (positive/negative/neutral content in posts).

Thirdly, to assess the success of the socialization opportunities, a student worker would contact the restaurants to gather feedback on the use of discounts on the day of the event.

Fourth, to assess the success in generating the feeling of being needed among alumni, the number of interested professionals to participate in the Professional Speaker Series would be counted.

Fifth, to assess how successful the event was in generating the sense of nostalgia and feeling of indebtedness to the department, we would monitor alumni contributions to the department and its students, both in endowment funds and amount of internship offers to current students within a year after the event’s completion.

Lastly, we would request feedback from alumni services to compare the university’s perceptions and gathered information once the event was over.

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Our Team Tyler Graef Tyler is a senior studying mass communications and political science at Southeast. He specializes in strategic writing and design, and is currently involved with Riverfront Public Relations and doing freelance writing for the Southeast Missourian.

Trevor Mulholland Trevor is a senior studying public relations with a minor in management at Southeast. He is fluent in event planning and design. He is currently planning events for Future Business Leaders of America, Brookfield Zoo and the National Association for Campus Activities.

Alex Frisby Alex is a senior studying public relations and foreign languages at Southeast. She is passionate about social media and designing in a nonprofit agency.

After graduation she hopes to move to Nashville, Tenn. to work for a small nonprofit parks department.

Andrea Gils Andrea is a senior studying public relations and journalism at Southeast. She writes for PRSSA National and is the newsletter editor for the PRSA St. Louis Chapter. She hopes to work for a global public relations firm where she can make use of her traveling experience and multiple languages knowledge.

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