UM-Flint rolls out next phase of brand awareness campaign

After comprehensive campus outreach and market research, the University of Michigan-Flint has begun to roll out its newest brand awareness campaign. The campaign has been specifically designed to support UM-Flint's strategic enrollment plans and overall recruitment and retention efforts. Shaped by the brand attributes most associated with UM-Flint, YOU TO THE POWER OF M (YTTPM) shares the compelling, dynamic story about the educational experience students can expect.

"You to the Power of M exemplifies our UM-Flint brand promise of providing an excellent Michigan education with a unique perspective," said Howard Hughey, director of news and media relations for UM-Flint. "The campaign research highlighted how our campus enables our students to build on their talents and passions to emerge with exceptional problem-solving skills and the ability to rise to any challenge. With these qualities and experiences, our students are singularly prepared to put their outstanding University of Michigan degree to work."

The YTTPM campaign is the result of a year-long campus-wide collaborative effort between leadership, department communicators, staff, faculty, and students. The campaign involved an extensive discovery process including interviewing campus members and conducting focus groups in Flint, Detroit, and Grand Rapids with community college students, high school seniors, parents, and graduate students.

Additional focus groups were held on campus with UM-Flint faculty, staff, and students. All focus group feedback helped identify the most distinctive, authentic, and attractive attributes of the University of Michigan-Flint. Those attributes include:

• An excellent Michigan education with a unique perspective
• Collaborative, personalized learning with applications beyond the classroom
• Diverse, vibrant campus community where students build on their experiences
• Intimate campus that makes it easier for students to get involved
• Greater access to a UM-Flint education with online and hybrid formats
• Outstanding value for a quality Michigan education that attracts exceptional students

This input-gathering process led to the development of creative concepts, which were evaluated and approved by a team of campus communicators. Across all testing, YTTPM emerged as the tag that best captured UM-Flint's brand.

"You to the Power of M truly captures the essence of UM-Flint's culture of supporting everyone in achieving their full potential," Hughey added.

So far the campaign has gone through a "soft launch," featured in various admissions and enrollment management-related materials and regional media buys. The plan is for the campaign to grow and become more prominent through social media and expansion into more markets throughout the state of Michigan and beyond.