OKLAHOMA STATE UNIVERSITY FOUNDATION 2011

TABLE OF CONTENTS

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

SITUATIONAL ANALYSIS

Beginning in 1961, the OSU Foundation is the only enity that is allowed to solicit and distribute scholarships on behalf of the university. The Foundation’s goal is to “Unite donor and univer-sity passions and priorities to achieve excellence.”

The Foundation functions as a channel for alumnae and other donors to give back to OSU by accepting most forms of dona-tions, such as land, stocks, bonds and endowed faculty posi-tions. With the foundation, donors can be assured their gift to the university is used to continue the traditions and eduction they remember from their time at the univeristy. Unforntualy,many students on the OSU campus may not be aware that some of their scholarchips come from the Founda-tion or if they do, they are not sure what the Foundation is. This presents a problem for the Foundation. If the students on campus do not know what it is, how can they reasonable expect the students to donate back to the univeristy whenthey graduate. Thus, increasing the knowledge about the Foundation on the OSU campus is the focus of this campaign. Using social media and other tactics the campaign wants to interact with the tar-get audience using the channels most familiar to them.

SWOT ANALYSIS

OpportunitiesThe Foundation’s main opportunities in regards to this campaign is to reach over 20,000 students in hopes of giving financial aid and increasing awareness of the purpose and goals of the OSU Foundation.

ThreatsThe Foundation must face the main threats of the students’ lack of awareness of scholarship competition and the motivation to apply.

StrengthsThe Foundation’s greatest strenths are the connections they have with OSU students, alumni and donors, which in turn cre-ates other strengths that benefit the OSU community.

WeaknessesThe Foundation’s weakness is that it is not well known. Their communication efforts to the OSU public can be improved.

PRIMARY RESEARCH

We began our research by surrounding ourselves with information from the Oklahoma State University Foundation. The Foundation’s website provided a history of the non-profit organization as well as current news. We also looked at the Foundation’s social media platforms and how they have been utilized. As we looked at other universities’ foundation sites, we found methods that can be improved for a better understanding of who and what the foundation achieves.

PRIMARY RESEARCH GOALS:

- Establish student awareness of the OSU Foundation by 15% at the end of the semester

- Recognize the most effective channels

- Identify target audience and strong influencers

- Utilize the channels for the most effective communication

- Gain a better understanding of target audience

FOCUS GROUPS + INTERVIEWS

Our team conducted two focus groups and approximately 25 interviews. Participants involved in the focus groups were from the Stillwater campus, while interviews were from the Tulsa and Stillwater campus. Students were asked about their awareness of the Oklahoma State University Foundation and the OSUccess competition. They were also asked questions concerning attitudes, motivations and financial behavior.

FOCUS GROUPS + INTERVIEW FINDINGS:

- Awareness of the Oklahoma State University Foundation is extremely low

- Feedback was consistent across majors for both focus groups and interviews

- Associations for the Foundation consisted of money and alumni

SURVEYSOur team created a survey to more fully quantify the attitudes and behavior of the target audi-ence. The sample included students from all undergraduate colleges on the Stillwater Campus, undergraduate students on the Tulsa Campus, and graduate student from both the Tulsa and Still-water campuses. The survey included questions about preferred communication channels, adver-tising attitudes, behavior, motivations and potential influencers.

MOTIVATION:

After learning the initial goal of the Foundation is to offset student costs by 50 percent, 60 percent of surveyed students are more likely to donate after graduation.

BEHAVIOR:

Of the participants surveyed, 41.2% initially claimed they would not donate to the Foundation

INFLUENCERS:

Likelihood of participation increases when informed by friends, professors and roommates.

COMMUNICATION:

Students are more likely to seek out campus information from e-mail, advi-sors, in-class announcements and Face-book.

SECONDARY RESEARCHA CLOSER LOOK AT OUR TARGET AUDIENCE: THE MILLENNIALS

It’s going to take more than traditional marketing to reach our students. They are living in a world that is completely cluttered with different messages, even on our campus. We will be implementing strategic, integrated marketing techniques to increase aware-ness among students and hopefully begin to foster relationships. According to research, students are open to change, liberal, self-expressive and upbeat. Our campaign will play off of these inherent traits by catching their attention with nontraditional, guerilla techniques and allowing them to become engaged with the Foundation. Our research also shows that the millennial generation is extremely benevolent and is looking for ways to give back to their commu-nity. Let’s give them the opportunity.

Generate student awareness of the Foundation.

GOAL

Increase student awareness of the Foundation 15% by May, 2011.

Increase Student awareness of the Foundation 25% by the end of Fall, 2011.

OBJECTIVE

TACTICS

Without the Foundation

Overview: This guerilla tactic is geared toward showing students how the Foundation is beneficial to the University by tagging items the Foundation has supported, including faculty, students, researchers, campus buildings, books and other materials.

1. Computers and Laptops: In the main computer area in Edmon Low Library, ten computers per campus will be re-placed with older, out of date computers. These computers will be non-functioning and have a “Without the Foun-dation” sign posted to them, containing information about why this computer was not updated and a link to the OSU Foundation web page. This will also be repeated at OSU-Tulsa, OKC, and Okmulgee campuses.

2. Textbooks and Library Books: Book sleeves will be placed on selected textbooks and library books. The book sleeve format will be similar to the “Without the Foundation” signs and will feature a link to the Foundation web page.

3. Students and Professors: Among campuses, there will be life size blank cutouts of students and professors in their respected environments. These cutouts represent students and professors who are no longer at the univer-sity due to the lack of funding, scholarships or salary needed. Text on the cutouts is of similar format to the book sleeves and computer signs.

4. Classrooms and Buildings: Exterior doors to selected classrooms and buildings will be covered with a white post-er, representing classrooms and buildings the Foundation has allocated money to.

Date:April 18,2011 - May 6, 2011 // Aug 29, 2011 - Sept 23, 2011

Budget/Supplies:- Computers: $500 per campus (Unless found in OSU-ITLE Surplus)- Textbooks and Library Books: $500 per campus- Cutouts: $750 per campus- Door Posters: $300 per campus

Show Us Your Success

Overview: The OSU Foundation will have several refrigerator doors placed throughout campus. Students will be able to post their test/essay scores and other successes on the refrigerator. At the end of the month or semester, all the posts will be taken down and one of the posts will be drawn out to win a prize/scholarship. The Show Us Your Success project will help raise awareness and will be supplemented by social media efforts as well.

1. Refrigerators will be placed in each of the college buildings or one fridge will be placed in a central location and students can post their test/essay/success on the board. To promote this, volunteers would pass out magnets with a “Show Us Your Success” slogan and OSU Foundation Logo. These magnets could then be used on the “fridge”.

2. Refrigerator with digital screen will be placed in front of the foundation or on campus and the screen will scroll tweets and texts from students who have had a success (i.e. “I just got an A on my biochem test”, “She said Yes”). Tweets/texts will need to be monitored to ensure appropriate material.

Budget/Supplies:- Wood (Roughly $50 for each fridge)- Paint (Magnetic Paint- $22/quart)- Flyers/Promotions (Magnets!-Under $1/magnet)- Money for prize or scholarship (TBD)

TACTICS

Social Media Giveaway

Overview: Students can follow the @OSUFoundation or like the OSU Foundation Facebook page and automatically be entered in a weekly giveaway. Winners will have to go to the Foundation to pick up prizes.1. This will be a semester-long tactic. It will be easy to repeat for as many semesters as you want to use it. It is a great way to raise awareness about the Foundation and its social media presence.

Budget/Supplies:- T-shirts ($10 each)- Sunglasses ($10 each)- Athletic Tickets (Possibly)- OSU Book Store Coupons

TACTICS

Scavenger HuntOverview: Students who follow @OSUFoundation or possibly a second Twitter account will receive directions or clues to locations on campus where they will receive prizes.

1. This will be a semester-long tactic. It will be easy to repeat for as many semesters as you want to use it. It is a great way to raise awareness about the Foundation and its social media presence.

Budget/Supplies:- Prizes similar to the Social Media Giveaway

$500 GiveawayOverview: The Foundation will supply 500 one-dollar bills to hang from hallway ceilings. Five classroom buildings on campus will be chosen to hang 100 dollars in each. While the students are in class, volunteers will hang the bills from the ceiling with a sticky note attached saying something similar to “This dollar brought to you by the OSU Foundation: Building a foundation for your success.”

1. This event will take place once per semester and can be presented differently each time in order to maintain the surprise factor. The goal is to raise awareness about the Foundation and its role on campus.

2. We would also recommend that students in the school of media and strategic communication film the event and post the video to YouTube. They could also do follow-up videos interviewing students on their reactions to the sur-prise.

List of common campus buildings:- Classroom- Classroom North- Business- Ag Hall- Human Environmental Science- Noble Research Center- Physical Science- Life Sciences

Budget/Supplies:- 500 one-dollar bills ($500)- String to hang the bills ($20)- Designed and printed sticky notes to attach to bills ($75 from http://www.zazzle.com/custom/labels)- Volunteers to hang the bills

TACTICS

Lights on Stillwater

Overview: Lights on Stillwater is an event created twenty years ago to enhance the interaction between OSU stu-dents and the Stillwater community. Businesses and organizations have a chance interact with more than 5,000 students, faculty and staff. Because the event is held on Library Lawn, students can easily access this area and it provides adequate space for businesses.

Useful promotional items (i.e. pens, flash drives, drawstring bags, cups, etc.) could keep the Foundation on the minds of students throughout the year. Most college kids keep things like these around because they are useful or fun.

Budget/Supplies:- Booth ($75) and Banner ($25)- iPad2 Giveaway ($500)- Promotional Items ($200)

TACTICS

Classroom VisitsOverview: Foundation members visit orientation and lower-level general education classes to tell the students about the Foundation and its role on campus. They could give a short presentation (5-10 minutes) then open it up for Q&A.

1. By educating freshmen and sophomores on the Foundation and its role, this will cause a trickle-down effect. As these freshmen and sophomores become juniors and seniors, younger students will be able to hear about the foun-dation from older students whom they look up to.

Budget/Supplies:- PowerPoint presentation- Prizes to give to students who successfully answer questions ($20)

TACTICS

GraduationOverview: Graduating and earning a degree is a student’s biggest success. Since 2006, the average amount of bachelor degrees given has been 3,770 per year (http://vpaf.okstate.edu/IRIM/AcademicLedger/Documents/Okla-homaStateUniversity_report.pdf). This is a great opportunity for the Foundation to recognize this success and gain awareness one last time before the student leaves OSU.

1. The Foundation can give students a simple congratulations card saying “The Foundation congratulates you on your success!” The cards could be given when the student is handed his or her diploma or placed on each chair prior to the ceremony.

Budget/Supplies:- Congratulations photo cards ($2,900 from http://www.zazzle.com/cr/design/pt-photocard)

Daily O’Collegian ArticleOverview: Ask students who work for The Daily O’Collegian to write a feature story on the Foundation. The story could include what the Foundation does, who works there and why students should care about it.

1. Thousands of students read the O’Colly every day. This tactic is a cheap and easy way to gain awareness and fa-miliarize students with the Foundation and how it benefits them.

2. The story could also publicize some of the other tactics in this presentation that are used. This would draw even more attention to the Foundation.

Budget/Supplies:- None ($0)

APPENDIX A: WITHOUT THE FOUNDATION

APPENDIX B: SHOW US YOUR SUCCESS

APPENDIX C: SOCIAL MEDIA GIVEAWAY

APPENDIX D: SCAVENGER HUNT

APPENDIX E: $500 GIVEAWAY

Brought to you byThe OSU Foundation

Brought to you byThe OSU Foundation

APPENDIX F: LIGHTS ON STILLWATER

APPENDIX G: CLASSROOM VISITS

APPENDIX H: DAILY O’COLLEGIAN FEATURE STORY

APPENDIX I: GRADUATION CONGRATS

SCHEDULE / TIMELINE

BUDGET

EVALUATION AND RESPONSE